Superintendent Mike Reeves first inquired about a sign early this year for Drew Central School District. "I was only interested in an identification sign. We wanted a professionally-made sign that would create awareness for those driving by the school on a daily basis."
Mr. Reeves contacted Stewart Signs to inquire about a new sign. He said, "My sign consultant went through the specifics of cost and quality. We discovered that for only a little more money, our school could purchase a changeable copy sign that would allow us to remind parents and students about book fairs, picture days, and vacation dates. We realized that this type of sign would fulfill our need to increase parent-teacher communication; we couldn't go wrong."
Mr. Reeves, and others on their committee, found that they could get a lot more for their money by investing in a sign that did more than just identify their school. Instead, it would also be the most effective means of communication ever available to them. No more costly, time-consuming flyers - they would now have a permanent fixture for announcing school events, fundraising, acknowledging students and informing parents.
Why was Stewart Signs the right choice? "Aside from the quality of the Stewart sign, we required a payment plan that was flexible. We wanted the sign delivered in June but needed to hold off payment until July when we had our new fiscal year's budget. This was no problem at all for Stewart Signs. As a matter of fact, they have several flexible payment plans and financing options to help meet our needs."
Pam Schaetzel, the General Manager for Stewart Signs adds, "Schools often look at bottom line dollars when choosing a new sign. We understand that budgets are tight and fundraising is hard work; a new sign for the school can be passed over as a project year after year. We work with thousands of schools each year across the US. Our goal is to provide schools with a sign that will last 20-30 years. Our flexible payment plans and creative financing allows the school or parent teacher organization the ability to obtain the sign, start using it and then utilize the value of the sign right away. A Stewart School Sign provides a long-term investment strategy for the school."
So what was the end result? Drew Central received a sign that matched their needs. They are now able to easily announce upcoming events, acknowledge students, as well as the initial objective of identifying their school. "Our new Stewart Sign is such a marked improvement over what we had before. We were extremely happy with the whole process."
Mrs. Schaetzel was asked what a school should be looking at when they set out to purchase a new sign. She replied, "Schools are beginning to look beyond the financial investment, and ensure that they are choosing the right type of sign. The issue of cost, quality, usage and readability are as equally important. After all, a Stewart Sign will be there for many, many years."
Mike Reeves, Superintendent
Drew Central School District
Monticello, AR