Wayfair Unveils Winners of Dream Classroom Giveaway

Wayfair (NYSE:W), one of the world’s largest online destinations for the home, announced today the winners of the Dream Classroom Giveaway, a contest awarding five teachers across the United States with brand-new classroom furniture, storage, and décor. Conducted by Wayfair Professional, Wayfair’s business program, nominations from the public were accepted through a contest website earlier this year. Winners were selected based on their meaningful impact on a student, class, or community, a unique teaching approach, or how an upgraded teaching environment would foster student learning and participation.

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Wayfair Professional Dream Classroom Giveaway winner (Photo: Business Wire)

“We’re thrilled to announce the Dream Classroom Giveaway winners. These are exceptional teachers who are leaders and innovators in their communities,” said Margaret Lawrence, vice president, Wayfair Professional. “We hope that with top of the line classroom furniture, storage, and décor, these teachers will have the upgraded classrooms they need to continue impacting their students and community for many years to come.”

Out of more than 2,300 contest submissions, five winning teachers were selected:

• Chelsea Haffenreffer, first grade teacher at Riverton Elementary in Portland, Maine, teaches students who face a variety of socioeconomic and developmental hardships. New classroom furniture will create an inviting, comfortable environment, and optimize a complicated room layout with modern storage solutions for her supplies.
• Jessica Poggemoeller, third grade teacher at Shoal Creek Elementary in San Diego, California, built the school’s STEM program, creating a Makerspace from scratch, and was nominated 10 times. Creative storage and contemporary workstations will elevate the hands-on activities for students and provide much needed organization within a busy, cluttered space.
• Devann Manning, sixth, seventh, and eighth grade foreign language teacher at River Oaks Middle School in North Charleston, SC, described the importance of having those "aha moments" with her students. Flex seating and a reading area will help her students focus on the tasks at hand, like the Spanish novels they explore in the spring.
• Alicia Oddo, seventh and eighth grade English language arts teacher at Joseph C. Wilson Foundation Academy in Rochester, New York, was described by her nominator as "phenomenal," with the ability to reach students with culturally relevant, creative lessons. As a product of Rochester public schools herself, Alicia knows the strength of her school system and new, varied workspaces and seating, along with library-level storage, will amplify her lessons and impact.
• Braden Mitchell, 11^th and 12^th grade mathematics teacher and football coach at Northridge High School in Layton, Utah, recently implemented a "flipped classroom model" where his students learn new material at home and then master it in class with small group activities and one-on-one guidance. With new tables and chairs, his students will have the flexibility to group themselves as needed for the day’s work.

The winning teachers will work with a Wayfair Professional designer to complete their classrooms throughout the fall. Winners will select all new classroom items, including student desks and chairs, storage options, marker boards, a teacher’s desk, and more, all tailored to the appropriate age group, with variations based on the needs of the students and the type of classroom.

Chelsea Haffenreffer, one of the five winning teachers, said, “My new classroom has had a major impact on how my class functions for me and for my students. Flexible seating, tons of storage, and new student chairs and tables have made all the difference.” She added, “My first graders love their new classroom and all the options for how they can learn and interact throughout the day. It feels like a fresh start.”

Wayfair Professional’s Dream Classroom Giveaway contest was held in partnership with leading education manufacturers and suppliers. These partners include:

Educators, administrators, and teachers looking for more information on Wayfair Professional and to sign up can click here.

About Wayfair Professional
Wayfair Professional believes in helping business make good spaces great. Delivering optimum value and convenience through personalized tools and services, the Wayfair Professional program provides business customers a broad range of membership privileges to help build the perfect spaces – no matter the size or industry. The program offers members an expansive selection of products and exclusive savings across thousands of top brands as well as customizable shipping, easy invoicing, dedicated service and more. To enjoy this specialized business shopping experience across Wayfair’s family of retail brands including AllModern, Birch Lane, Joss & Main and Perigold, visit www.wayfairprofessional.com.

About Wayfair
Wayfair believes everyone should live in a home they love. Through technology and innovation, Wayfair makes it possible for shoppers to quickly and easily find exactly what they want from a selection of more than 14 million items across home furnishings, décor, home improvement, housewares and more. Committed to delighting its customers every step of the way, Wayfair is reinventing the way people shop for their homes – from product discovery to final delivery.

The Wayfair family of sites includes:

• Wayfair - Everything home for every budget.
• Joss & Main - Stylish designs to discover daily.
• AllModern - The best of modern, priced for real life.
• Birch Lane - Classic home. Comfortable cost.
• Perigold - The widest-ever selection of luxury home furnishings.

Wayfair generated $8 billion in net revenue for the twelve months ended June 30, 2019. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts with operations throughout North America and Europe, the company employs more than 14,500 people.

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