You may have seen the #10featuredteachers hashtag floating around Twitter or Instagram. It reportedly started when singer Ed Droste asked fans to support teachers in not-so-advantaged neighborhoods by sending much-need school supplies. Kristen Bell helped spread the word—and the results were nothing short of pure awesomeness.
Springfield, Tennessee teacher Josh Vaden was among the educators who Bell featured. The tenth and twelfth grade English teacher needed books of adult interest for his teenage students. Bell reposted Vaden’s pic, writing, “Today’s teacher of #10featuredteachers is Josh from TN! Also in his photo is a Valentine’s Day card he made for his students when they were expecting a snow day but had school anyway! (So cute!).”
Bell added Vaden’s story to her IG post. Vaden, who is in his seventh year of teaching at his alma mater wrote, “Literacy is a gateway for opportunity, and I want my kids not only to be good readers, but also see themselves represented in the lit they read. I would love to have a more unconventional library that features more than old, dead white men in the classical canon.”
Vaden went on to add, “Because of my school’s location, much of the population comes from poverty. I love these kids like my own, and I wish everyday that I could do more for them.” Well it looks like he did. The books started rolling in—by the hundreds.
To read the stories of Bell’s other #10featuredteachers, visit the actress’s Instagram page!
—Erica Loop
Featured photo: StorylineOnline via YouTube
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