On August 5, 2026, Village Well Books & Coffee hosted its third annual Educator Night in Culver City. The event, part of a nationwide series by independent bookstores offered K-12 teachers 20% off books, raffles, gift cards, and publisher previews of children’s books.
For most educators, building classroom libraries is a personal investment. A national teacher survey by AdoptAClassroom.org showed the average teacher spent $895 out-of-pocket on classroom supplies, excluding books, during the 2024-2025 school year.
At the event all attendees, primarily local K-12 teachers, relied on personal credit cards to pay for stacks of books at the counter.
Because underfunded districts rarely cover new titles, educators are forced to fund and build their own classroom libraries. Literacy expert Donalyn Miller deems this expectation unacceptable, noting, “no one asks the basketball coach to buy their own basketballs, ” as stated on Raising Real Readers.
The event unfolded against shifting government budgets. At the federal level, proposed education cuts threaten $130 million for LAUSD and $922,000 for Culver City Unified. At the state level, despite approving a $128 billion education budget, California quietly cut $5.5 million for the COMPASS program, stripping 10,000 public schools of free digital access to Encyclopedia Britannica, New York Times, PBS, and research journals starting July 2027.
Keynote speaker Jaimi Boehm of the Wildwood School addressed the elephant in the room. She admitted that the news cycle often makes her want to look away, but looking out at a room full of dedicated teachers she chooses to double down on student-centered learning and inclusion. “Whatever feels uncertain right now, I still believe in educators. You are exactly what young people need.”
While state legislators crunch numbers in Sacramento, at Village Well educators traded practical solutions. Gabriela Romero from non-profit 826LA, a local writing non-profit,offered free tutoring, workshops. “All the teachers I spoke to are [from] schools that we haven’t serviced yet, and so maybe that’s our first step towards helping, ” Romero told Culver City Crossroads.
As the night wrapped up at Village Well, the line at the register proved that when funding falters, both teachers and local communities step up because they care deeply about kids.
Clara Carvalho
