Simple Ways to Help Fund Our Schools

The little things add up. Good things come in small packages. A penny saved is a penny earned. We have all heard phrases such as these throughout our lives, but rarely do we actually have opportunities to put the axioms to the test. As it turns out, there are many ways we can make a big difference in our schools by just doing the small things. The good news is that most are free, or close to it, and require less then five minutes of our time.

We can start helping our under funded schools in our kitchen in as little as 10 seconds. Look inside your cupboards and pantry. You probably have several General Mills products. Each one of those products contains a little symbol that looks like a stamp. These are what are known as "Box Tops for Education". General Mills is giving schools 10 cents for each box top stamp that they submit. While 10 cents may not seem like a whole lot, the amounts do add up. Schools can bring in thousands of dollars with the box top program.

By clipping those box tops and dropping them off at a local school when you pass by, you are helping the school buy computers, art supplies, library books, playground equipment and other supplies that are needed. It only takes a second to cut off the stamp, and a minute to drop the collected stamps off at the school, but the benefits are immeasurable.

Campbell's has also had a similar program for over 30 years now. The Campbell's Labels for Education program works in the same way as the box top plan. You snip labels from soup cans, Goldfish cracker packages and other Campbell's products and drop them off at your local school. Again, the time spent is virtually zero and the gift is free. Campbell's, in lieu of money, offers the school a selection from a catalogue where the schools use their point totals from the labels collected to purchase supplies and equipment for the classroom.