Milwaukee businessman and philanthropist Herb Kohl has been making sizable donations in recent years to Wisconsin teachers through the crowd-funding platform DonorsChoose.org. To send a message of “we love teachers,” Kohl’s philanthropic foundation gave $507,000 on Valentine’s Day to flash-fund 924 projects.

The teachers’ projects represent educational supplies, technology, equipment and instruments, training and trips, plus food, clothing and hygiene products, according to a news release. Kohl said in the announcement that he wants to support teachers as they bring love and care to their classrooms every day.

“Teachers humbly and resourcefully go the extra mile for their students,” he said. “I am inspired by their actions, which help bring equity to Wisconsin’s classrooms. While these efforts are priceless, the materials cost money – money teachers should not spend out of their own pockets.”

On Feb. 15, messages that read “you just got funded” will appear in the inboxes of 755 teachers at 424 schools, the release says. The donation will affect 84,771 students.

The average classroom project cost is about $600. This donation processed all project requests that needed up to $2,400 to be fully funded, according to the release.

Herb Kohl Philanthropies has provided $2 million for classroom support to Wisconsin teachers throughDonorsChoose since 2016.

Near the start of the school year in 2016, funding was announced for about 700 projects across the state.

Kohl again provided funding through the platform in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week in 2017. He disclosed another gift last year to celebrate the same occasion.