Alvin – Desperate times call for desperate measures is the saying -- but as teachers get ready to return to the class it’s adaptation and innovation that are calling.
Take the new foot pump sanitizing station built by teacher Ashley Martin’s husband. It’s become a pretty popular item.
“He’s ready to meet the challenge, meet the demand. Whatever that demand is,” Martin said. “We had no idea that this was gonna blow up like it has.”
The Martins got the idea from a Dallas area teacher online and figured they could build one too. It’s a 38-inch stand made of PVC pipe that holds a 30-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer. Martin plans to place the station right outside her classroom at Don Jeter Elementary in Alvin Independent School District to provide an essential, practical tool for her students.
Cody made me a foot pump hand sanitizing station for my classroom! Love it! 😍 Let me know if you need one! Holds a 30 ounce hand sanitizer.
Posted by Ashley Martin on Monday, July 20, 2020
“You don’t have to have a desk or a table for it to stand on. It’s self-standing,” Martin said. “So, the kids aren’t touching on something while they’re waiting to get hand sanitizer. There’s nothing else to clean. It’s a self-standing system.”
The sanitizing station is just one example of how educators are finding ways to adapt in the face of the current pandemic. Teachers in Conroe Independent School District are hoping to use a see-through partition to safely separate students who sit at pods.
"I think teachers are masters of being flexible," said Martin. So, you know the guidelines are constantly changing. We're just going to have to adapt and we're going to do the best we can to serve our kiddos."
Martin’s husband already has made 45 of the sanitizing stations. He is selling them for $30 each.