{"id":21542,"date":"2019-11-26T09:50:55","date_gmt":"2019-11-26T14:50:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.customink.com\/?p=21542"},"modified":"2019-11-26T09:57:16","modified_gmt":"2019-11-26T14:57:16","slug":"making-the-grade-custom-t-shirt-rewards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.customink.com\/blog\/making-the-grade-custom-t-shirt-rewards\/","title":{"rendered":"Making the Grade with Custom T-Shirt Rewards"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you walk the halls of Cabrillo High School, you\u2019re sure to see a healthy mix of trendy styles. Like every other high school in Long Beach, students show off their own unique flair with popular brands and gear that represent who they are. If you look closer, however, you\u2019ll notice that there\u2019s something different about the students of Cabrillo High. While many of them are wearing their own styles, many more are wearing matching custom t-shirts, hoodies, and other apparel. This custom spirit wear may look like it\u2019s just about school pride, but if you ask the students about their shirts they\u2019ll beam with pride because these shirts can\u2019t just be bought in any school spirit store, they have to be earned.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

Students at Cabrillo High School help design their own shirts, teaching them collaboration and design structures.<\/p><\/div>\n

When Kenneth Fisher started as a math teacher at Cabrillo High School 22 years ago, the school\u2019s reputation wasn\u2019t anything to write home about. \u201cStudents would be embarrassed to say they even attended Cabrillo,\u201d he says. \u201cWe walked around the campus during lunch and found that there were more students wearing gear from other high schools in the Long Beach area.\u201d But in 2009, a new principle challenged the teachers with a difficult task\u2014get the students to wear \u201cCabrillo Gear.\u201d The idea was that if more students wore school gear, then both school pride and performance would increase.<\/span><\/p>\n

Around this same time, the school also began a push in one of its four career pathways, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). As a member of the mathematics department, Kenneth helped form Cabrillo Engineering and Design (CED) in an effort to push students further into the STEM world. \u201cWe set up competition teams and created events in which students could interact with professionals from STEM careers,\u201d he says. But with 86% of the students on free and reduced lunch programs and many learning English as a second language, there was still a need to give students more motivation to succeed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Using the new spirit wear initiative as a base, Kenneth created a system of t-shirt rewards in order to encourage his students to strive for even greater success. The program was simple\u2014in order to motivate hard work and reward dedication, students could receive shirts for a number of accomplishments including participating in events like the school\u2019s Women in STEM Symposium and Luncheon, participating on CED competition teams, taking Kenneth\u2019s AP calculus class, and achieving different levels of the honor roll.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

Kenneth and his wife Emily cheer on the Cabrillo High School Solar Cup team in their custom windbreakers.<\/p><\/div>\n

In order to make the shirts even more desirable, the initial designs are created by the students in the different programs themselves. Once the design is ready, it is handed over to the artists at Custom Ink, who help the students refine and revise until a final design is agreed upon. \u201cIt is a lengthy process because students are learning about design structures and many times want a last-minute addition,\u201d Kenneth says. \u201cThe artists are always patient and are willing to listen to suggestions from the students.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
<\/header>\n
\n
Try these tips to start
\nyour own t-shirt rewards system<\/div>\n
    \n
  1. \n
    Pick something you want to encourage.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
  2. \n
    Tell your students how they can earn a reward.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
  3. \n
    Choose a great shirt.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
  4. \n
    Create a design or use one of our templates.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
  5. \n
    Give the kids something they’re proud to wear.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n