Popsicle® Launches Second Year of Stick with Art Campaign to Help Bridge the Arts Education Gap

In partnership with the National Art Education Association, Popsicle announces second phase of Stick with Art! Contest and $500,000 three-year commitment to continue making arts education across the US more accessible.  

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., Nov. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Popsicle is a brand created by a kid and committed to championing kids' imaginations, starting in the classroom. Many children do not get a chance to flex their imaginations in their classrooms or enjoy the long-lasting benefits of the arts due to a lack of resources for arts programming. Despite widespread support for arts education funding in the U.S., and consensus that art is an essential part of a well-rounded education, there has been a persistent decline in arts education funding over the last four decades – and it continues to decline, particularly in under-resourced schools.¹ Students without access to arts education, often from lower-income families in underserved areas, are those who rely the heaviest on schools to experience any arts opportunities.²

Popsicle hopes to help bridge this inequitable arts education gap and ensure that as many children as possible have an equal opportunity to develop and fully use their imaginations both in and out of school. To help empower children and their teachers to express creativity, Popsicle is partnering with the National Art Education Association (NAEA) again to champion imaginative play and learning within classrooms nationwide with the second iteration of its Stick with Art! Contest.

After receiving over 800 submissions last year, Popsicle is opening the contest doors to welcome not just all visual arts educators for students ages 6-18, but also the parents of these students as well, who can now submit on behalf of their child's arts teacher. Submissions provide eligibility for the chance to win funds to support their teacher and school initiatives that build greater equity in arts education. From November 1, 2023, – December 10, 2023, Popsicle is inviting art teachers and parents to participate in the Stick with Art! online art contest by sharing their students' craft stick creations in-feed on Instagram using the hashtag #StickWithArtContest and tagging @Popsicle. Forty qualifying submissions will be selected at random to win $1,000 to cover the cost of arts supplies, and will then be invited to apply for larger $10-20K grants to support school-wide initiatives that help close the arts gap by advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in their arts education programming! The five winners of the larger grants will be selected by a panel of NAEA representatives and announced in 2024. 

"We are extremely honored to continue our partnership with NAEA to support Popsicle's commitment to help bridge the arts education gap and help kids stick with art," said Bentley King, U.S. Head of Ice Cream Operations at Unilever. "Popsicle understands the barriers many face due to the arts education gap, so we are thrilled to support programs that will have a positive impact on our next generation of artists. The Stick with Art! Contest will give educators an opportunity to help their arts programs flourish and give their students a space to let their imaginations run wild."

"NAEA is excited to once again partner with Popsicle and open the Stick with Art! Contest to even more educators, as well as the parents in their school community," said Mario R. Rossero, Executive Director of NAEA. "Popsicle's continued advocacy for equitable access to arts education for students across the country furthers the work we do to advance arts education every day."

With the second Stick with Art! Contest, Popsicle looks forward to continuing its support of teachers and schools, and hopes to inspire kids' imaginations and their interest in art.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. The Popsicle Purpose Promotion is sponsored by Conopco, Inc., d/b/a Unilever. The Stick With Art! Contest is sponsored by Conopco, Inc., d/b/a Unilever. Teachers must be legal residents of the 50 U.S. & D.C., 18+, who are art teachers of a child between the ages of 6 and 18 years of age and have made or are currently planning to make Popsicle stick creations in their class. Parents must be legal residents of the 50 U.S. & D.C., 18+, who are art parents/guardians of a child between the ages of 6 and 18 years of age that have made or are currently planning to make Popsicle stick creations in their art class at a federally recognized public/private/charter school. Parents who homeschool are not eligible. Begins at 12:00 a.m. ET on November 1, 2023 & ends 11:59 p.m. ET on December 10, 2023. For official rules, eligibility, odds, limits, prize descriptions, and complete details visit https://unileversweepsrules.com/popsiclepurpose/

About Popsicle

As a brand invented by an 11-year-old, Popsicle has always created opportunities for kids to play more often and use their imagination, from the vibrant colors and flavors of Popsicle products to the upcycled, back-of-pack craft activities with Popsicle sticks. For more information on Popsicle, visit www.popsicle.com, or follow @Popsicle on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For product locator, please visit www.popsicle.com/storelocator.

About Unilever North America  

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products, with sales in over 190 countries and products used by 3.4 billion people every day. We have 148,000 employees and generated sales of €52.4 billion in 2021. Over half of our footprint is in developing and emerging markets. We have around 400 brands found in homes all over the world – including iconic brands like Dove, Knorr, Hellmann's, Magnum, Axe, Ben & Jerry's, Degree, Seventh Generation, St. Ives, Suave, TRESemmé, and Vaseline.  

Our vision is to be the global leader in sustainable business and to demonstrate how our purpose-led, future-fit business model drives superior performance. We have a long tradition of being a progressive, responsible business. It goes back to the days of our founder William Lever, who launched the world's first purposeful brand, Sunlight Soap, more than 100 years ago, and it's at the heart of how we run our company today.  

The Unilever Compass, our sustainable business strategy, is set out to help us deliver superior performance and drive sustainable and responsible growth, while:  

• Improving the health of the planet;
• Improving people's health, confidence and wellbeing; and
• Contributing to a fairer and more socially inclusive world.

While there is still more to do, in the past year we're proud to have achieved sector leadership in S&P's Dow Jones Sustainability Index, 'Triple A' status in CDP's Climate, Water and Forest benchmarks, and to be named as the top ranked company in the GlobeScan/SustainAbility Sustainability Leaders survey for the eleventh consecutive year.  

For more information on Unilever U.S. and its brands visit: www.unileverusa.com  

About National Art Education Association (NAEA)

The National Art Education Association (NAEA) is the leading professional organization serving art educators in schools, universities, museums, and community settings. Founded in 1947, NAEA champions creative growth and innovation by equitably advancing the tools and resources for high-quality visual arts, design, and media arts education throughout diverse populations and communities of practice.

Media Contacts
Rachel Kastil,[email protected]

¹ American Academy of Arts & Sciences

² American Academy of Arts & Sciences.org

SOURCE Popsicle