On National Teacher Appreciation Day, Crayola launched “Thank A Teacher,” an initiative to celebrate and thank teachers across the country for their commitment to students, learning and creativity. The launch of the Crayola “Thank A Teacher” coincides with the brand’s 115th anniversary and history of honoring teachers. In 1903, Binney & Smith created the first box of crayons and Alice Binney, a schoolteacher and wife of co-founder Edwin, named the new crayons “Crayola.” Crayola also has long-standing relationships with educators including a new program, CreatED, supporting teachers using art in the classroom to improve student success.
To jumpstart the campaign, Crayola employees from across the country – including CEO Smith Holland – visited over 300 schools to hand deliver personal thank-yous. At the kick-off event in NYC’s Flatiron Plaza, a 25-foot-tall digital thank you card streamed heartfelt teacher thank-yous from across the country and actress Debra Messing personally thanked her teacher for the impact he made on her life. Crayola also asked the nation to join in to reach one million teacher thank-yous on social media using the hashtag #CrayolaThanks.
“Teachers have been a core part of Crayola’s heritage since the early 1900s, and we can’t think of a better way to celebrate Crayola’s 115th birthday than by paying homage to our legacy and honoring teachers for all that they do,” said Smith Holland, President and CEO of Crayola. “At Crayola, we admire the passion and commitment of our nation’s teachers in helping young minds grow and unleashing the power of creativity. Today and every day, we commend and celebrate teachers and invite the nation to join us in saying thank you.”
To spur additional participation, Crayola launched Crayola.com/ThankATeacher, a digital site where physical thank-you notes can be uploaded into a gallery, teachers can search and view thank-yous and find heartwarming content. The website also includes a contest launching on July 1, where families can create and upload thank-you notes for teachers for a chance to win prizes for their family, teacher and school. Ten grand prize packs will be awarded, inclusive of:
- $10,000 classroom makeover for the teacher
- One year supply of Crayola products for the school
- $1,000 scholarship for the student
- $1,000 gift card for both the teacher and school
- Free CreatEd seminar for the school
In addition to the grand prizes, one lucky entrant will have his or her thank-you note featured on a special pack of Crayola crayons this holiday. In addition, a weekly sweepstakes will run concurrently with the contest, offering entrants a chance to win $500 gift cards for themselves and their teachers. The contest and sweepstakes will run through August 25, 2018.
Supporting the campaign and extending the thank-you to teachers year round, all Crayola Experience locations are offering free admission with a valid I.D. The Crayola Experience is now in four locations including: Easton, PA; Orlando, FL; Minneapolis, MN, and the newest attraction site in Plano, TX.
To join the conversation and be one of the million thank-yous for teachers, share your tribute on social media with the hashtag #CrayolaThanks.
