Fourth grader was mocked for wearing a hand-made college logo on a T-shirt. Then the university turned his design into their official merchandise

Sometimes, all a student needs is one supportive teacher. On November 5, 2019, Changing America shared the story of a 4th grader in Florida who was made fun of for his DIY creativity on "college colors" day. According to CBS Mornings, the 9-year-old boy, whose identity was kept anonymous, did not have official University of Tennessee attire, so he improvised, but little did he know how the other students would react to it.

His DIY creation

Laura Snyder, a teacher at Altamonte Elementary School, shared on Facebook that the boy was super excited to show her his DIY college colors T-shirt. He wore an orange T-shirt with a hand-drawn logo of the school pinned to it. But after lunch, everything changed. Snyder explained, "After lunch, he came back to my room, put his head on his desk, and was crying. Some girls at the lunch table next to his had made fun of his sign that he had attached to his shirt. He was devastated." The reason she shared it on the networking service was to request contacts at the university. She planned to get him an official UT T-shirt.

Official college swag

Her post went viral, and people at the University of Tennessee saw it. On September 6, she shared an update that the university reached out and sent her student a care package. They also informed her that they will be using his hand-drawn design on their official U of T merch. She described the boy's mood after seeing all that he received from the University of Tennessee, "My student was so amazed at all the goodies in the box. He proudly put on the jersey and one of the many hats in the box. When I told him that his design was being made into a real shirt and people wanted to wear it, his jaw dropped. He had a big smile on his face, walked taller, and I could tell his confidence grew today!" 

Value of good teachers

Teachers are regarded as a child's second parent, so it would make sense for them to encourage and motivate them during tough moments. A national survey revealed that 88% of Americans reported that they had a teacher who made a positive impact on their life. 98% believed that a good teacher can drastically change a student's life for the better. Another survey conducted by the ING Foundation revealed that 83% of Americans had teachers who boosted their confidence and self-esteem, while 79% had encouraging teachers who pushed them to follow their dreams.

Miss Snyder was one of the rare ones; not only did she believe her student's design was good. She also helped him get a 4-year scholarship. To make it even more special, the university included the student's design in a decades-old tradition. They painted the 'Rock' an orange color with the boy's hand-drawn UT design. The rock is a 97.5-ton block of Knox dolomite that is located near the music center. To commemorate it, they posted a photo of the painted rock on their official Instagram page. But the cherry on top was a 4-year scholarship that the U of T offered the boy. 

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