Walking into the chapel, you could feel the energy and excitement in the air as more than 1,000 guests gathered for the Box Tops for Education Town Hall event at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia recently. The mission – to engage in a critical conversation around the importance of a solid primary education for our nation’s children, while encouraging each other to become more involved in that effort as parents and as a community.
The Town Hall, hosted by comedian Steve Harvey, attracted a diverse panel of education experts and celebrity moms for the discussion, which was moderated by National Cares Mentoring founder Susan L. Taylor.
These celebrities and key stakeholders, including LifeLearn President Dr. Jacquelyn Jackson Fleming; Spelman College President Beverly D. Tatum; actress Tisha Campbell Martin; Grammy Award winning artist Chilli from girl group TLC; and Grammy Award winning singer-song writer Monica, all attended the event because they know the critical importance of education.
Taylor assured the guests that this Town Hall was something different.
“Believe me, this was a call to action for all of us,” said Taylor. “What we had was a lively discussion about our children’s development and about what we must do as parents, teachers and responsible members of the community to ensure that our young ones are self-sustaining contributors to their families and community in ways that matter most. All of this starts with pre-school and a strong primary education.”
Panelists spent time talking about their own experience with education, taking care of their children and wanting the best for their communities. Discussion was then opened up to the audience to ask their questions to the panelists about education.
“It was inspiring to see so that so many people shared the passion that General Mills has around education,” said the president of General Mills’ Baking division Anton Vincent.
Box Tops for Education is a program that started in response to the growing number of schools experiencing financial difficulty. It offers an easy way to earn cash for schools in your community by purchasing participating products, clipping the coupons and turning them in for cash. The cash can, in turn, be used for whatever the school needs.
The Box Tops for Education program offers parents easy, everyday ways to earn cash for their school. The program began in 1996, as more and more schools struggled to make ends meet. Each year enrolled schools receive a program kit to help them build their own comprehensive fundraising campaign. Most schools designate a program coordinator to develop ways to encourage parents, school staff and community members to clip Box Tops from participating products and bring them to school.
After the collected Box Tops are sent in to General Mills, the school receives a check, equivalent to 10 cents for every Box Top redeemed to spend on anything they choose. Schools have used the cash from Box Tops for Education to purchase items such as computers and computer software, library books, art supplies and playground equipment.
To learn more about Box Tops for Education visit www.btfe.com.
