Wal-Mart is changing the way it honors teachers, but is providing teachers with a means of buying much-needed school supplies.

Previously, Wal-Mart honored a selected teacher as a Teacher of the Year. This year, it honored 10 teachers at a selected school with $100 gift cards to purchase school supplies for their classroom. Demopolis Middle School was selected as this year’s honored school.

Receiving $100 gift cards for their classrooms were Vicky Thorne, Jim Ellis, Kim Easley-Bell, Lisa McHugh, Jesse Bell, Heidi Nettles, Andrea Turberville, Geneva Howard, Mesha Smith and Dana Freeman.

“This is a blessing,” said DMS principal Clarence Jackson, Jr. “With the limited resources we have this year, that little bit helps a lot. The $100 gift cards mean a lot to those teachers, and it really helps.”

Wal-Mart personnel manager Doris Stephens, store manager John Whitehead and co-manager Matthew Joiner handed out the gift cards to the honored teachers.

“This is an opportunity for us to come out and reward your efforts and the hard work that you do for your community,” Stephens told the teachers. “The new Teachers’ Rewards program will replace our Teacher of the Year program. The company will help 40,000 teachers nationwide offset out-of-pocket expenses for school supplies.”