Teachers receive SONIC donation for Teacher Appreciation Month
Sonic Drive-In honored two Spring-Ford Area School District teachers through the food chain’s third annual #ThanksTeach social media campaign.
Zach Laurie, from Brooke Elementary School in Royersford, and Stephanie Cooper, from Evans Elementary School in Limerick, were both rewarded $200.
“I was thrilled that they awarded me $200 toward a project,” Laurie, who has taught at Brooke Elementary for 14 years, wrote in an email. “I was really surprised (and REALLY EXCITED) to be selected as one of the teachers who received the funds from SONIC.”
Laurie, who currently works as a RAM Quest teacher at Brooke Elementary, where he teaches “a special area class that focuses on STEM/STEAM concepts,” said the school district has been “very supportive” of the initiative, but funding is limited.
“Getting these funds allowed me to get the (Wonder Workshop) Dash robot that I would not have been able to get at this point,” Laurie said. “Because of SONIC’s generosity, I’ll be able to ‘pilot’ using the coding robot with a small group of students, with the possibility of implementing them on a larger scale in the future. That would not have been possible without SONIC’s generous donation.”
Cooper received her funding as part of her project toward getting flexible seating for her fourthgrade students.
“The kids would have more options for what kind of seating,” Cooper said, adding that she’d implement standard desks as well as sofas, standing desks, and lower desks.
Cooper, who has been working in the Spring-ford district for 22 years, said she and another teacher who works next door to her are trying to do this “research” of flexible seating together.
While her project has not been fully funded, Cooper said she has until August to raise it, or else she is at risk of losing the donation.
“It’s just one of those things that you just have to wait and see,” Cooper said. “We’re supposed to be doing it together.
Everyone is welcomed to join the #ThanksTeach campaign. SONIC encourages people to share stories, photos, and videos on social media with the hashtag. Facebook users can “Smile to Say #ThanksTeach” with a Facebook augmented reality camera effect on their cellphones.
SONIC celebrated Teacher Appreciation Month in May by recognizing and rewarding teachers with is Limeades for Learning campaign since 2009, but it has expanded to social media just in the past three years. The company’s $1 million donation was split among more than 5,000 public school teachers nationwide this year. Overall, SONIC has donated $10.7 million to public school teachers in the United States.