HAMPDEN (NEWS CENTER Maine) – A teacher in Hampden was shocked by the outpouring of support after she asked parents to help her raise money for a unique addition to her classroom.
"We put this on Facebook at 4:30 on Wednesday afternoon and I woke up on Thursday morning and found out it had been funded,” Karyn Field said.
Field, a teacher a Reed’s Brook Middle School, took advantage of a crowdfunding called Donors Choose. She raised hundreds of dollars in just hours to purchase standing desks for her eighth grade classroom.
"A lot of people in class stand and nobody seems to have a problem with it,” 14-year-old Will Airey said.
Airey was the student who sparked the idea when Field said he suddenly stood up in class one day and other students followed.
"I thought either this is my Dead Poets Society 'Oh Captain My Captain' moment or these kids really learn better when they're standing and more comfortable,” Field said.
Airey said it helps keep him and other students focused.
The concept is not entirely uncommon in the school. The first standing desks were introduced in Jason Kash’s classroom just a couple of years ago. He built several desks himself so that students could stand and work collaboratively.
"Kids are really growing up they're maturing but they're also very honest about what they need and that's one of the things we push them to do is to be honest about what you need to learn best,” Kash said.
Field said she hopes by having the desks in her class it will encourage students to be more engaged—something she said would not have been possible without parents’ generosity.
"That is what this community does,” Field said. “They are so supportive of their kids, our school all of it. We are just so lucky and we know how lucky we are.”
The standing desk have been ordered and are set to be delivered any day now. School officials said this is a good way to try something new before adding items to the annual budget.
The school district as a whole will see if parents are just as generous next Tuesday when residents vote on whether or not to fund a new turf field for the high school.