Johnna Pinholster
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
The simple act of purchasing some groceries can help schools earn money.
Valdosta State University’s James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and area businesses have partnered together to collect box tops at area supermarkets.
Dr. Brian Gerber, VSU director of curriculum and instructional outreach, said they have estimated that about $200,000 in box tops goes unused each year within the county.
People need to realize that if they buy five things each week with the “Box Tops for Education” label it amounts to about 50 cents, Gerber said.
Now, if 10,000 families buy that many items each week, every week for a whole year, hundreds of thousands of dollars could be earned for schools, he said.
Boxes to collect the box tops are being placed in 10 supermarkets within the county so people can drop off the box tops.
The box tops that can be redeemed by schools for money are on hundreds of products. A full list of products that bear the “Box Tops for Education” label can be found on the Internet.
With the reduction in school budgets, the entire community needs to be involved in supporting education, Gerber said.
“The box tops can only be redeemed by the schools,” Gerber said. “They are of no value to a person.”
Distribution of the box tops will be determined by the number of students at each school.
So far, both Lowndes County and Valdosta City schools are participating in the drive, but Gerber said the program is open to any private schools within the county that want to participate.
Abby Cozart, a sixth grader at Lowndes Middle School, and Shiquan Hunter, an eighth grader at Valdosta Early College Academy, both said they will be encouraging their family and friends to participate.
“This will get more people involved in school work,” Hunter said.
The money is needed at the schools, Cozart said.
Once redeemed, money from the box tops can be used to buy items like computers and school supplies, Gerber said.
Gerber said some people have told him that the program will not be successful because people will not want to be bothered with ripping box tops off and putting them in the provided containers at area grocery stores.
He doesn’t believe that.
People know schools are struggling, even if they don’t have children.
Gerber said he believes people will participate to help raise money for the schools and education of the area’s students.
Charles Dunaway, store manager of the Harveys on Bemiss Road, said participating in the program is just an extension of what the store already does.
The chain frequently runs advertisements that tell people what items in the store have the “Box Tops for Education” label on them, he said.
Box Top collection boxes are located at:
• Winn-Dixie, 1060 Lakes Blvd., Lake Park
• Winn-Dixie, 3200 N. Ashley St., Valdosta
• Winn-Dixie, 1105 Madison Highway, Valdosta
• Harveys, 2211 Bemiss Road, Valdosta
• Harveys, 4036 Bemiss Road, Valdosta
• Harveys, 1715 Norman Drive, Valdosta
• Wal-Mart SuperCenter, 340 Norman Drive, Valdosta
• Wal-Mart SuperCenter, 3274 Inner Perimeter Road, Valdosta
• Publix, 1741 Gornto Road, Valdosta
• Mr. B’s IGA, 1405 N. Lee St., Valdosta
