Since 1998, our donors and corporate sponsors have teamed up with us to adopt classrooms across the country, helping 6.4 million students learn and succeed in school. Over these past 25 years, we’ve received tens of thousands of remarkable teacher stories that illustrate the great lengths teachers go to support their students.
Read these three teacher stories to truly understand how Subaru’s award-winning program, Subaru Loves Learning, is helping our nation’s dedicated teachers who are doing all they can to ensure their students have a successful school year.
Note: Subaru of America, AdoptAClassroom.org’s largest corporate sponsor since 2021, continues to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of students. In 2023, AdoptAClassroom.org and Subaru were awarded the Gold Halo Award for Best Education Initiative for Subaru Loves Learning, which recognizes corporate social impact initiatives.
3 Teacher Stories That Will Make You Want To Support Classrooms
1. A middle school teacher spent $5,000 on learning supplies for her students who came to the U.S. from all over the world.
Brenda A. teaches 6th-8th grade Social Studies in a bilingual classroom in Camden, NJ. Many of her students are immigrants who come to school without classroom supplies as their family adjusts to a new country. Brenda spends a significant amount of her own money ensuring her students have what they need in her classroom.
A majority of Brenda’s students are English-language learners (ELL). According to Brenda, many of the learning materials provided to her classroom aren’t designed with ELL students in mind, so she provides what they need.
Leticia, Brenda’s 7th grade student, is happy to have teachers like Brenda who cares so much about her and her classmates. Some of the classroom materials Leticia says she needs to learn include “pens, pencils, glue sticks, snacks, earbuds, paper, and new color pencils,” which are supplies Brenda ensures they don’t go without.
Brenda and her students felt supported after Subaru adopted every teacher within the Camden City School District, throughout 2021-2023. While they make a difference in classrooms nationwide, the heart of Subaru Loves Learning is with the local communities like Brenda’s.
2. A 3rd grade teacher provides her students with school supplies for the classroom and their home because they have none.
Emily L. teaches 3rd grade Math and Science in Monroeville, PA. Ninety percent of her students come to school with zero classroom supplies because their families can’t afford them. Emily purchases these materials for her students so they have an equal opportunity to learn.
“I buy supplies for each student because I want them to be set up for success, and have all of the same materials,” said Emily. “I don’t want a child to feel like they don’t have what someone else does. So I provide it all.”
Emily keeps more than just her classroom stocked with the supplies she purchases. To ensure learning doesn’t stop when they leave school, she equips students with learning tools to use at home.
“I had one student email me, telling me how much she appreciated me buying her a book because her family couldn’t afford for her to have it. It really meant a lot to her to get a brand new book,” said Emily.
Emily’s student Rowan says she feels grateful that her teacher cares so much about her and her classmates. By 3rd grade, Rowan is already able to recognize the need for school supplies in her classroom.
Subaru of Monroeville joined Emily in making an investment in their community by adopting her classroom, and the community was grateful for their support. According to Emily, Subaru’s donation “makes the students and families feel supported and that the community truly cares about their education.”
“It makes me feel so good knowing that other people want to help my classmates and I succeed in the classroom,” said Rowan.
3. A Special Education teacher creates an inclusive classroom where every student can learn and succeed.
Sabrina R. is a 2nd and 3rd grade Special Education teacher in Madison, WI. Her students have diverse learning needs that require inclusive classroom supplies. Unfortunately, she doesn’t have the classroom budget to purchase materials that support all of her students’ individual needs.
The school supply list sent to her students’ parents at the beginning of the school year only covers basic materials like notebooks and markers. Sabrina understands her students’ learning needs best, and knows they require more than the basics. That’s why she spends her own money to help ensure each of her students succeed, especially since her students’ families may not always have the funds to provide those materials.
“The school I teach at is a primarily low-income school. The majority of our students come from low-income families, and many families in our school are experiencing homelessness,” said Sabrina. “We work to make sure that all students have everything they need at school to support their learning.”
When Sabrina is able to provide her students with the materials that support their individual needs, her students are given the chance to flourish. But Sabrina is only able to provide her students with so much on her own. That’s where her local Subaru stepped in to help.
Subaru of Madison’s donation to Sabrina’s classroom allowed her to purchase the inclusive supplies that neither she nor her classroom budget can cover, like wiggle seats and adaptive scissors. Now, she’s better prepared to meet her students’ needs.
“Subaru of Madison made a huge difference for my students when they donated funds. Their help made learning more accessible for my students,” said Sabrina. “My students were very excited to be able to use the different materials that I was able to get with the funds from Subaru!”
This is the third year of Subaru’s campaign with AdoptAClassroom.org, supporting classrooms in high-needs schools with teacher stories just like these. During Subaru Loves Learning 2023, Subaru and its retailers put school supplies in the hands of students who need them.
Since 2021, Subaru has funded more than 6,000 classrooms in their retailers’ communities, benefitting more than 470,000 students nationwide. Learn more about Subaru’s commitment to supporting education in their community.
For more teacher stories, check out our blog.