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Author: Anonym/Sunday, March 30, 2025/Categories: News
The Teacher Appreciation Week portion of this article was first published in April 2024.
May observances provide a number of powerful opportunities to connect with staff, students and families through thoughtful communication. From teacher appreciation to cultural celebrations and mental health awareness, next month offers meaningful ways to recognize and uplift your school community.
Each May, schools across the country celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week to recognize the tireless efforts of educators, who work to provide not only a rich educational experience for students, but also to create a sense of safety and belonging.
As school communicators begin to organize plans for this year’s Teacher Appreciation Week, check out how some of your colleagues from around the country are recognizing their districts' educators to help inspire your own plans.
Every year, the National PTA creates a Teacher Appreciation Toolkit that districts can customize to celebrate the teachers who help develop every child in their classroom and go beyond the call of duty. This year, the #ThankATeacher Toolkit includes thank you cards, certificates, fliers, social media graphics and much more. Many of the toolkit materials are also available in Spanish.
Community High School District 99 in Downers Grove, Ill., goes beyond celebrating teachers, dubbing the week “Staff Appreciation Week” to recognize how the work of all district employees positively impacts students. Each year, the district invites students and families to submit a note of appreciation to district staff members, thanking them for all they do.
In prior years, the submissions were merged into separate one-page documents that the communications team printed for each staff member, along with a Certificate of Achievement. The certificates and notes were then delivered to staff member mailboxes, and all submissions were shared with principals, the superintendent and the board of education for their review.
In recent years, the team has streamlined the process. At the end of each day, Communications Specialist Lauren Miholic reviews the submissions collected via the Google Form, and works with a teacher who helps with the program to generate a personalized, downloadable PDF certificate that is then emailed to each recipient using a Google Sheets extension called Autocrat.
“Last year, we had more than 1,000 notes of appreciation submitted,” said Miholic. “We’ve had great feedback on the program, and it’s a really great way for students, families, employees and community members to recognize both teachers and our other incredible staff members like guidance counselors, custodians and paraprofessionals. We still share all the notes submitted throughout the week with school principals to help demonstrate the impact of the recognition.”
At the Saugerties Central School District in New York, Senior Video Production Specialist Kristine Conte also created a Google Form where students and families could submit a message of appreciation for a teacher ahead of Teacher Appreciation Week. Collecting more than 250+ responses, each message was dropped into a template Conte created in Canva, addressed to the recipient, and emailed as an e-card. All teachers also received an e-card from the district.
"It was a lot of work," said Conte. "But I must say, the payoff was worth it. Teachers said this made their day. One teacher said it made her cry."
In 2022, principals at the three high schools in Portsmouth (Va.) Public Schools selected a graduating senior to write a letter to a teacher in their K-12 academic career who made a difference in their lives. The communications team invited the teachers to individually read the letters aloud on camera, each of which shared ways their guidance had extended far beyond the classroom.
“The idea of featuring student voices for a Teacher Appreciation Week video came from a member of our communications team during our annual one-day department retreat,” said Chief Communications Officer Lauren Nolasco, who noted that many of the team’s creative ideas originate at their staff retreat or during staff meetings when time is dedicated solely to pitching ideas and thinking of new and innovative ways communicate. “There’s an authenticity to a student’s voice that really brings that feeling of appreciation to life.”
As the teachers finished reading their letters, already filled with emotion, they were then surprised by the author of the letter, who greeted them on camera with flowers and a hug. The end result was a simple, yet incredibly impactful video that demonstrated the power of gratitude. Shared first with the teachers featured in the video, then with all staff, followed by the school community, the video also went on to win a 2023 NSPRA Publications and Digital Media Award.
“As the daughter of two educators myself, it was just so incredible to see the magic of the end result,” Nolasco said.
As part of last year’s Teacher Appreciation Week, the team created a video where district leaders and administrators expressed their gratitude for teachers. And they’re already making plans for this year.
“Teacher Appreciation Week is on the agenda for our department retreat this week,” said Nolasco. “As school communicators, time can be a hard thing to come by,” she said. “But it’s so important to dedicate time to allow ourselves to find creative influences and inspirations to push ourselves to new heights.”
As all school communicators know, finding new purposes for existing content can serve as not only an incredibly handy timesaver, but also as a way to provide additional exposure to audiences beyond its original. So when Erin Crew, director of communications, marketing and media at Spring-Ford Area School District in Pennsylvania was developing plans to collect student testimonials for Teacher Appreciation Week a few years ago, she recalled an archive of appreciation notes authored by graduating seniors from over the years, originally used for a different event, she could tap into.
“In 2006, the district started a Senior Impact Awards event, where graduating seniors are invited to recognize any current or previous district employee by sharing how they made an impact on their lives,” said Crew. “I realized that these nomination statements could also be shared again during Teacher Appreciation Week. And with 15+ years worth of nominations, there’s a great variety to choose from.”
Using photos from the event, social media posts are created and shared to various platforms to celebrate the week.
“We see a lot of great engagement from these posts during the week,” Crew said. “Students and alumni will recognize their own nominations being used and comment and share the posts.”
Of course, providing teachers with a gift of appreciation is also part of many district’s celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week. Beyond notepads and stickers, some districts work to offer educators something unique by thinking outside of the box.
In Dothan City (Ala.) Schools, the district celebrates Employee Appreciation Week during Teacher Appreciation Week in an effort to recognize all district staff. One recent Employee Appreciation Week included a week of treats local to the area for the district’s 1,200 employees, including ice cream from a local business on Monday, sponsored stadium cups with district and vendor branding on Tuesday, boiled peanuts (a yummy local treat and staple in Dothan!) on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and sponsored cloth bags with district and vendor branding on Friday.
“I came from the nonprofit world before my career in school public relations, so I tapped into some of my existing relationships with the local businesses during the first years of the program,” said Public Relations Officer Meagan Dorsey. “In more recent years, I’ve put out a formal call to area businesses and retailers to support the week. In addition to purchasing the items themselves, business community volunteers also help our central staff with distribution and management.”
While a massive success, Dorsey notes that it's a taxing undertaking for a one-person department like herself. “As the program continues to grow, I’m also continuing to look for ways to streamline the week while making the same impact,” she said. “I’ve got a few ideas in the works for 2024.”
The Spring-Ford Area School District offers something not as tangible during the week. “Last year, we held ‘get out of a duty’ drawings for our teachers,” Director of Communications, Marketing and Media Erin Crew said. “When a teacher’s name was drawn as a winner, a member of district leadership would cover a duty for them for the day, like lunch or recess duty,” she said. “Our superintendent was a former music teacher, so when a music teacher’s name was drawn, he had great fun covering that period!”
Honor the voices and contributions of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Check out tips from Edutopia and this award-winning video from Dallas (Texas) Independent School District for ideas that can spark meaningful recognition in your schools.
Celebrate the rich history, culture and contributions of Jewish Americans. Use this national toolkit to help plan thoughtful observances and educational opportunities.
Mental health is central to student and staff success. Explore award-winning communication and awareness campaigns, social media plans, videos and more from school districts across the country to help inspire your own district's plans for recognizing Mental Health Awareness Month on the Mental Health and Wellness page of the members-only Samples and Resources section on the NSPRA website.
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