FITCHBURG — At Sizer School, education isn’t just about the tests and quizzes, it’s about engagement, experience, curiosity and giving back.
Last week, Sizer School 10th grade students Scarlett Brooks, Caroline Rathier, Lorelei Charles and Rocco Perez visited Project Bread in Boston to present their idea for fighting hunger, “Project Sprout.”
In a board room filled with Project Bread leaders, Rocco Perez and his group asked the question, “If we have the resources to solve hunger, then why isn’t hunger solved?”
These students, from Fitchburg and Clinton, created a proposal for a grassroots organization to coincide with a bill aimed at subsidizing the growth of fruits and vegetables in a way that would make nutritious foods more accessible at lower cost to consumers. It would also require restaurants and grocery stores to donate surplus edible food rather than discard it.
“I’ve always been interested in this topic. I’ve always found it important and I’ve always wanted to find ways to help people and this project gave me the perfect opportunity to do that because I really didn’t know how to before,” said Rathier.
Their presentation included data points, action steps and asked Project Bread representatives themselves why they are passionate about ending hunger. At the end, students handed out business cards with their project proposal attached via QR code.
“I have friends who are hungry and they ask me for food and I help get meals for them because I grew up with a lot of food — coming home to a meal every day — so seeing people hungry makes me glad I can help. I want to change the world and feed people who are hungry,” said Perez.
“Sizer School is built on a foundation of project-based learning, hands-on lessons and teaching students how to think deeper, care about themselves and others and act creatively and responsibly in this world,” said Lindsay Alweiss Director of Community Development, Communications and Recruitment. “This partnership with Project Bread is a prime example of this. These students used historical context from their history classes and applied critical thinking and problem solving skills to imagine a solution to a modern day problem.”
Alweiss is also the Advisor for Sizer School’s Student Ambassador Program. A leadership group dedicated to event planning, community building and social change. All four students who presented Monday are active members of the Student Ambassadors and plan to start their program at Sizer as soon as next year.
“I am really passionate about this because I want to make sure everyone can afford fruits and vegetables, not just the empty carbs and all that stuff,” said Brooks, sharing her own family’s experiences with food insecurity.
Discover how project-based learning inspires and engages authentic, meaningful learning for all students and visit www.sizerschool.org for more information.
“This experience showed what young people are capable of when given the opportunity,” said Peter Newman, Sizer School’s Portfolio Coordinator. Newman helped the students perfect their presentation for Project Bread. “I am proud of how our students prepared, supported each other, and shared their ideas and vision with confidence.”
-Sizer School
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