SCHOOLTEACHERS grabbed at dollar bills in a “dash for cash” during intermission at a hockey game in South Dakota, the U.S., sparking controversy for turning teachers’ need to pay for classroom supplies into a public spectacle.

“As a teacher, I find this humiliating,” a commenter wrote after video of the event was posted to Twitter. “Scrambling against others on the ground for a few US$1 bills? How about honoring teachers with genuine donations rather than turning us into silly entertainment for fans?”

The Sioux Falls Stampede hockey team had urged fans not to miss Saturday’s contest, which it promoted as its inaugural “Dash for Cash.” With fans cheering them on, 10 teachers from local schools gathered around a large piece of carpet at center ice, where US$5,000 in US$1 bills had just been dumped out.

The educators wore hockey helmets, but they made little contact with each other as they dropped to their knees to scoop up money and stuff it into their shirts and pockets.

Video of the event went viral over the weekend after reporter Annie Todd of the Sioux Falls Argus Leader posted it on Twitter.

The hockey team did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NPR.

South Dakota ranks toward the bottom in terms of spending on education. The average salary for teachers in the state is US$48,984 — 50th in the U.S. (in a list that includes Washington, D.C.) — according to the National Education Association union, which says the state spends US$10,805 per student — 38th in the nation.

One critic of the dash for cash promotion called it “dystopian,” noting that while schools and teachers struggle, the U.S. House of Representatives just approved a new U.S. military bill worth US$768 billion. The defense authorization bill includes money for two more destroyers than the Biden administration requested.

The Stampede, a junior league team whose players are 16-20 years old, said all the money the teachers could grab would be used for their own classrooms or school programs.

As for the teachers who took part in the promotion, it might not come as a surprise that they gamely tolerated the hoopla, while focusing on what they can do for their students. When the dash ended, they smiled and waved to the crowd, their shirts bulging with cash.

“I think it’s really cool when the community offers an opportunity like this” to pay for things that usually come out of a teacher’s own pocket, said Alexandria Kuyper, who teaches fifth-graders, in an interview with the Argus Leader.

Kuyper came away with US$592, one of the highest totals, according to the newspaper. (SD-Agencies)