NEW LONDON,Wis. (WFRV) – Over the past few years, New London School District staff and officials have been working to add new things to create better environments for their students. They recently added the school district’s first ever book vending machine to Parkview Elementary.

The book vending machine was made possible through a gift from Gloria Peterson, who was a teacher at the school at the time. Peterson won the Herb Kohl Scholarship Teacher Fellowship Award and used excess funding to purchase the machine. Local community members help provide books through the Donors Choose Project.

Students are able to earn a coin by being a “bulldog of character”; the coin allows them to get a book at the vending machine. Principal, Jody Peterson says she wants to incentivize students for not only working hard but also practicing honesty, responsibility, fairness, and respect. The school not only provides a vending machine, but district wide they have implemented different prizes students are able to win through good choices.

Superintendent, Scott Bleck says since the district passed their referendum they have added several things to all of their schools. He says through input from teachers and principals like Miss Peterson, they are able to add innovative things to the classroom experience.

Superintendent Bleck says “Tomorrow’s leaders are amongst us today. The people that will be taking care of you and I in our community as well. So it’s our goal and objective to create opportunities for those students” He says it has been a team effort, but they want to continuing building up future community leaders, who have great character.

For more information on the school district, you can visit their website.