Donated school supplies are stocked in the Ghost Teachers' Closet room at Kaukauna High School July 20, 2026. PC: Fox 11 Online
KAUKAUNA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Kaukauna School District teachers in need of classroom supplies now have an in-house resource to help them stock up.
The Ghost Teachers’ Closet, organized by a now-retired teacher, is set up in Kaukauna High School.
“Teachers spend an average of $500-$1000 of their own money every year and that’s why this was created to try and help them out, help our budgets a little bit. So teachers don’t have to be spending their own money on their students,” said Lisa Mader, the retired teacher who started the Ghost Teachers’ Closet.
In addition to paper, pens, pencils, erasers, folders, and paper clips — the closet also has stuff like snacks, winter hats and gloves, even baskets and bins to help teachers set up their rooms.
“Some things that people don’t realize, high school teachers don’t have that list, so they don’t get the Kleenex. So I have a lot of high school teachers that come in and need Kleenex. We always need sanitizing wipes, organizational bins we do a lot of that. Teachers want to keep themselves organized so they can be successful at their jobs,” said Mader.
Everything in the room was donated – some community partners helping, families making donations, even retired teachers passing on items they don’t need anymore.
Once a week, during the school year, retirees man the shop and teachers are welcome to come in and “shop” for what they need. There’s just no checkout because this is all free.
According to Mader, “It takes a while to build up that supply in your classroom, and everything you need. And it changes every year, our curriculum changes, and we want to stay on top of the new and upcoming things and keep ourselves ready for our students.”
While the Ghost Teachers’ Closet really is about the classroom, once a quarter teachers can pick a little something up for self care too. “We also have a corner over here of just fun little items that teachers could come and get like a take care of you items. They can take books from there and bring them back when they’re done So a little way to kind of help support their mental health a little bit, too.”
Current needs for the Ghost Teachers’ Closet include:
- Facial tissue
- Sanitizing wipes
- Tape
- Goo Gone
- Post-It Notes
- Sensory fidgets
- Colored printer paper
- Colored cardstock
- White board erasers
- LEGOS
Dropoff donations are accepted once a month and an Amazon Wish List is set up for people who want to help.
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