Growing demands for pricey school supplies anger parents

(FoxNews.com) - Cash-strapped schools across America are demanding that parents spend hundreds on supplies, even requiring bulk purchases of cleaning materials that benefit the entire class, in a move that is fomenting anger among moms who say the lists are real budget busters.

Elizabeth Shatz, a PTA parent from Mineola, N.Y., said she was required to purchase three 20-count boxes of pencils, multiple containers of baby wipes and boxes of tissues to be distributed among her child’s entire classroom. She also had to search store shelves for folders and notebooks in very specific colors – often hard-to-find hues – and was instructed to buy the more expensive “plastic, not paper” variety.

Although she adhered to most of the precise listings, the mother of two found some of her purchases were redundant, as evidenced by the unused notebooks and folders her children brought home. Shatz spends around $175 on supplies, but this figure does not include her additional contributions of tissues and wipes for classroom use, as requested by teachers throughout the school year.

“My kids are 10 and 12 and I don’t see the need for baby wipes in the classroom,” she told FoxNews.com. “Also, the damn pencils -- they ask for too many!”