Charter school, all Princeton Public Schools now participating in discount card program that features more than 70 local businesses

Princeton Perks discount card
The Princeton Perks card costs $25.

You can support local schools, student programs, restaurants, area businesses, and other good causes all at the same time by purchasing a Princeton Perks Card now through the end of April.

“The shops and restaurants are the heartbeat of our neighborhoods and they have always supported our schools,” said Princeton Unified Middle School PTO Co-Presidents Veronica Foreman and Kim Marks of the participating businesses.

The $25 card gives you discounts at more than 70 local businesses through the end of the year. The program, which was started as a fundraiser for Princeton’s public elementary schools, has also expanded to include the Princeton Unified Middle School, Princeton High School, and the Princeton Charter School. All of the schools will now sell the discount cards alongside the original organizers.

“We hope that by bringing all our families together and inviting friends and neighbors to participate, that the united front will have a great impact on our local businesses,” said Sharon Litvinsky, vice president of the Friends of Princeton Charter School. 

You can buy a card by visiting princetonperks.com and then selecting any school’s sales portal. Most businesses offer cardholders 10 percent off, though some deals are restricted to certain days of the week or types of merchandise. Cardholders can find the Princeton Perks logo displayed in shop windows or near the register of participating businesses. Any local business is welcome to join. The program is free for businesses; they do not pay to participate and don’t make donations to the schools based on cardholder transactions. 

“We’re happy to be participating in the Princeton Perks discount program,” says Jon Lambert, owner of Princeton Record Exchange, which is located on South Tulane Street. “Local students, teachers, and businesses all benefit, and we think it’s just this kind of collaborative effort that will help us make it through these challenging times.” 

Each school’s parent group will determine how best to use the funds they raise from card sales. Community Park is donating their proceeds to the Princeton Children’s Fund to subsidize summer camps for low-income students. Riverside Elementary School has earmarked its funds for spring educational programs and graduation celebration activities for 5th graders. Littlebrook Elementary School is purchasing materials for teachers and supporting arts and cultural enrichment activities, and the Princeton Charter School is providing summer academic support programs and free attendance at summer camp for under-resourced students. Princeton Unified Middle School is donating half of its proceeds to the Princeton Mobile Food Pantry, and Princeton High School will use proceeds to help low-income students attend the spring prom and participate in special graduation activities.

“The pandemic has highlighted how central our schools are in surrounding students with a community of support,” said Shazia Manekia, PTO co-president at the high school. “Beyond just academics, our schools have been providing critical resources for immediate needs from food and clothing, to more complex ones. Our PTOs have continued to work hand-in-hand with school administration and teachers to address the growing needs of our communities, especially during the pandemic, and tackle them head-on.”

Participating businesses as of March 24 include:

The Bagel Nook 
Bella Boutique 
The Bent Spoon 
The Blue Bears 
Card My Yard 
Chopt 
Color Me Mine 
Chennai Chimney 
Cranbury Station Gallery 
Creative Cakes By Sweta 
Custom Ink 
Cyndi Shattuck Archiving & Photography 
Elite Five Sushi + Grill 
FICUS 
French Flair Ferme 
Homestead Princeton
Highbar Boutique 
Jammin’ Crepes 
jaZams 
J. McLaughlin 
Jules Thin Crust Pizza 
Kopp’s Cycle 
La Jolie Salon & Spa 
Local Greek
Local Q 
The Mint 
Mandalay Trading Co. 
Mediterra 
Milk & Cookies 
Miya Table & Home 
More than Q 
Nomad Pizza 
Oink and Moo BBQ
Olsson’s Fine Foods 
Orvana 
Osteria Proccaccini 
Pizza Den 
PJs Pancake House 
Planted Plate 
Playa Bowls 
Princeton Canoe & Kayak Rental 
Princeton Events Co. 
Princeton Floral Design 
Princeton Playspace 
Princeton Mattress 
Princeton Record Exchange
Princeton Soup & Sandwich
Pure Barre 
Reporte Hispano 
Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard 
Room 16 Theatre Arts 
Schouse Szechuan Cuisine 
scienceSeeds 
Sherwin-Williams Paint 
Small Bites by Local Greek 
The Studio Salon 
Tacoria 
Teresa Caffe 
Teriyaki Boy 
Terra Momo Bread Co 
Thomas Sweet Chocolates & Ice Cream 
Tico’s Eatery & Juice Bar 
Tidy Nerd 
Toobydoo 
Tortuga’s Mexican Village 
Tranquility Den Massage 
Tratoria Proccaccini 
Vaseful Flowers & Gifts 
ZOË 

Avatar of Krystal Knapp

Krystal Knapp is the founding editor of Planet Princeton. Follow her on Twitter @krystalknapp. She can be reached via email at editor AT planetprinceton.com. Send all letters to the editor and press releases to that email address.

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