Tupelo car tag program rewards local teachers with cash

When Jamie Osbirn and Robin Haire were going through CREATE’s Jim Ingram Community Leadership Institute in 2012, Tupelo’s public schools seemed to have sailed into a latitude of doldrums.

Long a source of pride for the city and region, public perception of the Tupelo Public School District had wavered. That’s why they wanted their personal project to help turn things around.

The Ingram leadership program charges its students with defining a community problem and developi a solution in their first year, then implementing that solution in their second. That’s how the TPSD vanity license plate program was born.

“A couple years before a high school student had presented a senior project laying out ideas for a vanity tag and subsequent funds, but he hadn’t been able to get it off the ground,” Osbirn said. “We were told about that and thought it was a great idea, so we took it from there.”

Today, anyone registering a new license plate or renewing an old one in Mississippi can opt for a Tupelo Public School District vanity tag. Of the extra fee charged, $24 goes to the CREATE-managed GIFT Foundation, outlined and created by Osbirn and Haire. Of that fund, every dollar goes directly to reward the district’s teachers. Neither CREATE nor anyone else subtracts a penny from that figure for any reason.

As a result, for the past several years, the GIFT Foundation, which stands for Getting Involved For Teachers, has distributed thousands of dollars directly to teachers each year. Currently, $2,000 is awarded to a TPSD teacher with one to five years of experience, $2,000 is awarded to a teacher with six to 10 years of experience, $2,000 is awarded to a teacher with more than 10 years of experience and $1,000 is awarded to someone working in a non-teaching role.

“This year, we had the most applicants we’ve ever had,” Osbirn said, noting more than 70 members of the TPSD team applied for the award. To be considered, recipients must first have a TPSD car tag. Then, they submit an application, along with a recommendation from a superior, that goes through an accredited panel.

“Their application is primarily about community-mindedness and community involvement,” Haire said. “It’s about what makes TPSD special to them.”

Shortly before Christmas, Osbirn and Haire distribute the checks.

“It’s cool to see the recipients get it,” Osbirn said. “So often, it happens the timing of the award is perfect. It’s awarded before Christmas, and the recipients don’t know they’re getting it. We like to surprise them with it at school, either in the office or the classroom, kind of like Publishers’ Clearing House. It’s a lot of fun.”

“This is the 10th year of giving,” Haire said, noting the program has distributed nearly $100,000 so far.

There is no restriction on how the teachers use the money. It’s meant to be a true reward. They can use it for a vacation for themselves or for anything else they choose.

“This wouldn’t be possible without the public’s support for the TPSD vanity tags,” Haire said. “We have about 420 active tags right now.”

“The goal,” Osbirn said, “is to have 1,000 tags active so we can give $25,000 per year back to the teachers.”

The two are excited about the ongoing potential for the awards.

“When someone sees the TPSD car tag in front of them in traffic, we want people to understand it’s about much more than just a vanity tag,” Haire said.

“There are a lot of things that went into this process that go well beyond a simple tag,” Osbirn said. “It means a lot more. In fact, many people who have the car tag may not know what the funds go for. We want everyone to know the funds go directly back to reward our teachers and staff. It’s a reward for people who deserve something special for all they do.”

The tag and its subsequent funds are intended to be used as a recruitment and retention tool for the district. TPSD’s teacher base salary is generally higher than those found in surrounding districts, and the intent of the tag program is to augment that further.

“The schools make the community,” Osbirn said. “Tupelo’s schools are one of the biggest success stories of the community. We’re very fortunate to have the quality of education and the quality of educators here all the way around. That’s something that’s seen through everything the schools and their students do. You see it when the community comes out for a homecoming parade or any other function. It’s the very heart of the Tupelo Spirit.”

“If it wasn’t for Dr. Picou and his leadership, giving people belief that they’re doing the right thing, there’d be little motivation for people to put the TPSD tags on their cars,” Haire said. “Because they know they can count on his support, the district’s teachers work unimaginably hard. They want to support the energy he brings, and that’s communicated throughout everything the school district does.”

“Tupelo is going above and beyond,” Osbirn said. “It’s a big little city.”

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