Salem Central School District has been awarded the “Culture of Caring” recognition by the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) for the student-led “Coin Wars” challenge, where the high school Food Science class teamed up with elementary classrooms to raise money for the Salem Food Pantry.
“The recognition of Salem by NYSSBA affirms that we are making progress toward our long-term goals of creating a supportive environment for students and building a stronger connection between our school and community. We are immensely proud of the students and staff who led the “Coin Wars” challenge,” said Superintendent Julie A. Collier
In a congratulatory letter, NYSSBA Executive Director Robert S. Schneider noted the district's commitment to upholding a culture of caring.
“There are many examples of good deeds, acts of kindness, social-emotional support, charity, self-directed initiative and leadership that can be found every day in public schools across New York state. We believe that the “Coin Wars” Challenge to Benefit Salem Food Pantry is worthy of recognition through our Culture of Caring program.”
In November, the Food Science class began the “Coin Wars”, which challenged students in grades 3 through 6 to collect the most coins in a two-week time period. The winning class was rewarded with a snack party from the high schoolers. In total, the students raised $1,863 for the Salem Food Pantry.
“Our Food Science class is work-based learning, so as a project we organized the kids with the coin challenge, came up with the idea to donate to the food pantry, and used it to help families who need food from the pantry,” said freshman Mary Langevin.
“When a student suggested that funds from the challenge go to the food pantry, it made sense to partner. We have gone over to the food pantry before to help unload donations and stock shelves,” said Amy Maxell, who teaches the Food Science class.
