School Sign for John Tyler Elementary School

When the PTA of John Tyler Elementary School began to consider giving a gift to the school at the end of the year, there was no shortage of ideas, but the idea of a marquee kept coming up.

Janice Gustafson, the PTA's treasure said, "The thought was that if we could better communicate with the parents, either coming to school to pick their children up, or just driving by, it followed that more parents would show up at school events."

So the search for the right sign began.

Janice liked the pencil ruler sign that a neighboring school had, and thought that it would be appropriate for John Tyler Elementary as well. The PTA received information from several sign companies but Janice recommended buying from Stewart. "The consultant we spoke with at Stewart Signs was incredibly patient with us. There was no pressure, and he understood the parent-group purchasing process." The obvious experience and resulting knowledge that Stewart School Sign Consultants have makes the entire process much easier than it would be otherwise."

Although the PTA knew what style they wanted, their consultant walked Vicky Curry, PTA President, through all of the options available to them. Communication was a main reason for their sign purchase, so a double-sided sign was a must. Traffic from both directions would be able to read the school's message. "We wanted parents, students, and others in the community to be aware of important dates and events." They also felt that an illuminated sign would be beneficial. "We knew that a sign that displayed the school messages day or night would be much more valuable to us. Just because the sun sets at five o'clock doesn't mean we want to stop communicating with those driving by."

Another key purpose for the sign was the size of the message area. With four rows of text available on each side, the school has ample room to display their announcements. Their consultant also made sure that the letters were large enough for the speed limit of the area. "He informed us that if the letters were too small, then no one would be able to read our message. He asked all of the right questions to make sure we'd have a quality sign that worked for us. He wasn't trying to sell us a sign, he wanted to know our needs and make sure that they were adequately addressed." There was also a matter that was voiced by the PTA and quickly addressed: "We were very concerned about installation and who would do it," said Vicky. "Our consultant made it so easy, he offered to coordinate it with a local installer and took care of everything for us."

The PTA had a portion of the money set aside from the spring, and after a successful fall fundraiser, was ready to purchase their sign. The result was another happy customer. "The sign is wonderful! All of the meeting, planning, and fundraising paid off in a big way," said Vicky. "There were no problems; we're really enjoying it! It looks especially beautiful when it's lit up at night. Our consultant put a lot of work into this project and made everything very easy for us, we're so glad we chose Stewart Signs!"

Vicky Curry, PTA President
John Tyler Elementary School
Hampton, VA