Elementary School Teacher Wins $150,000 And Donates It All To Her School
January 11, 2015
A third-grade teacher in Boston who won $150,000 in an online contest donated her entire winnings to her school.
Credit: ABC News
Nicole "Nikki" Bollerman, 26, was honored this week by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh after she donated her grand prize of $150,000 from a Capital One #WishForOthers contest that also funded three books per student.
"I really made the wish for my students and I was blessed, lucky and thankful that Capital One gave me the opportunity," Bollerman told ABC News. "Since I made the wish for my students I thought I would do something to make their lives better rather than spend it on myself."
Bollerman teaches third-grade at UP Academy Dorchester, a public charter school that's a year old.
"My #wishforothers is that my voracious, adorable, hardworking, loving scholars all leave for their December break with a book in their hand," wrote Bollerman in her winning entry, according to the school's website.
Capital One's video of the book unveiling has been viewed about 900,000 times.
Bollerman said she has been working with school administration to make sure the gift will "improve the lives of the students," including better computer access and coding lessons for the children, though the school has not made any commitments yet.
Capital One provided three books of Bollerman's choice to her students:
1. "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul," the latest book in the popular children's series. "Those kids just eat up those Wimpy Kid books," Bollerman said.
2. "My Father's Dragon," a 1948 novel by Ruth Stiles Gannett, "one of my favorite chapter books growing up," Bollerman said.
3. "Where the Wild Things Are," by Maurice Sendak, who grew up in Bollerman's town. "I wanted the kids to have a picture book to share with their younger brothers and sisters," she said.
Because Bollerman wanted all the third-graders to have books to read over December break, she and her mother bought each child not in her class a book as well.
Credit: Yahoo News
Click Here For The Most Popular On Sunny Skyz
A Husky Was Lost. Owners Found Him With A Drone - Hanging Out With Bears
Dog Completely Changes From Black To White
Cat's Face Shows Opposite Of Gratitude After Being Rescued
A First Birthday Reunion Party For The Whole Litter, Mama Pup Included
This Senior Dog Sanctuary Celebrated 12 Years With A Dog Prom
Local Police Department Makes Public Statement To Community On Taylor Swift's New Album
Man And Dog Left Stunned After Cat FLIES Across The Room
The Cat Chooses You: A Boy's Heartwarming Shelter Adoption Story
'Thing Kept Attacking Me': Squirrel Defends Man's Home From Burglar
Dog's Hilarious Windshield Wiper Chase Captured By Motorist
Owner Purrfectly Captures Cat's Two Opposite Personalities In Viral Video