Social Media Used For Good
It’s not often you come across a news headline about social media being used for good. That is why when we heard about the #10featuredteachers campaign, we simply had to share. Keep reading for an uplifting story of one singer’s effort to support low-income schools nationwide.
What is the #10featuredteachers Campaign?
Last month, Ed Droste, lead singer of Grizzly Bear, had a conversation with a friend who recently became a teacher in Los Angeles. He was shocked to learn that educators around the country often spend their own money on school supplies. That’s when he came up with an idea. He decided to host a 10 day social media campaign in which he would post about 10 teachers working at underprivileged schools and encourage people to donate to their Amazon wish lists. Thus the hashtag, #10featuredteachers, was born.
Instagram Responds To Hashtag
Since the original post, the campaign has gone viral with dozens of celebrities challenging each other to participate. Some of which include actresses Kristin Bell, Busy Phillips, and Kiernan Shipka. For ten days, each celebrity posted the stories of 10 teachers in low-income classrooms and asked their followers to donate to provide school supplies.
As of today, the campaign hashtag has been posted 954 times and has helped upwards of 60 teachers in the U.S. receive the supplies they need. One teacher for example, was sent so much mail that it had to be stored in an entirely separate room. The best part though is that the challenge is still going strong. In fact, Kristen Bell has even increased the campaign to feature 20 teachers instead of 10.
There’s no telling how many more teachers will get the spotlight, but for now, it looks like #10featuredteachers has all the momentum it needs to keep moving forward. We certainly hope so!