PORTLAND, Ore. — A partnership between Portland Public Schools and DoorDash is paying off.
Starting in April, the logistics company has been donating its expertise in delivery, to get food and learning materials to students who can't pick it up themselves.
Those students are in families with transportation issues, mobility issues, or who have members with underlying health conditions that make them more vulnerable to leaving the home.
"For those particular families it’s not as easy to access and so this DoorDash partnership was really birthed out of a need, (and) us wanting to tell our community hey we see you, and we know that you’re out there," said Camille Idedevbo, who is Corporate and Foundation Relations Officer for PPS.
The need was great before COVID-19 sent students home from their classrooms. Nearly one-third of kids in the Portland district qualified for free or reduced cost meals. More than 350,000 meals have been distributed at 15 pickup sites since PPS schools closed its buildings. And the need is increasing.
For the subset of families who cannot pickup at school sites, DoorDash is there. It has been making 450 deliveries a day.
"We process that information and then we also work with our network of 'dashers' to facilitate these deliveries," said DoorDash Social Impact Leader Sueli Shaw. "And we’ve been so inspired by the stories we’ve heard from dashers as well, who are getting a lot out of serving our community in this way."
The food bundles provide students a breakfast and lunch every school day. And at the end of the week they include extra food to help through the weekend.
DoorDash will continue to donate its services through the end of the school year, working through the Fund for Portland Public Schools.
The San Francisco based company is doing similar work across the country, as part of its social impact program.