DASD Cereal Box Challenge

Downingtown Area School District (DASD) has taken another step towards fighting food insecurity with an effort led by the students of Beaver Creek Elementary, Pickering Valley Elementary and West Bradford Elementary schools. As part of the district’s first-ever Cereal Box Challenge, students collected cereal boxes to donate to local food pantries. Aiming to collect 1,000 boxes, they exceeded expectations and gathered 2,731 cereal boxes.

“We were trying to figure out what we could do - something that kids could take ownership of,” Beaver Creek Principal Dr. Dawn Lawless said. “Cereal is something that they can relate to, and they understand that people need breakfast to start their day. We all need a little help sometimes and this is the perfect way to give back.” 

As a way to celebrate the students’ generosity and desire to help those in need, the boxes were arranged in an impressive domino trail that captivated the entire student body as it toppled through the halls of each school.

“The cereal box challenge has been a beautiful experiment in paying it forward that’s proved more successful than we ever imagined,” Pickering Valley Elementary School Principal Travis Orth said. “We got a lot more cereal than we thought, and it will be great to give it to people in need.”

The cereal boxes will be donated to several locations, including the community food boxes at East Ward Elementary, Bradford Heights Elementary, Beaver Creek Elementary and Lionville Elementary schools; the food pantries at Downingtown High School West and Downingtown Middle School; and the Lord’s Pantry of Downingtown. These initiatives provide access to non-perishable food staples, perishable and non-perishable food items, personal care items, and school supplies to students and families in need.

Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Justin Brown explained, “The Cereal Box Challenge is a perfect way for the district to directly support its families and is the next step in our fight against food insecurity in the community. Access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food is a basic human right and one that helps set our students up for success.”

To learn more about how DEI work in DASD, visit www.dasd.org/diversity.