Students at Whittier Middle School have more than doubled their fundraising goal this quarter while leading a schoolwide effort to support the City of Norman Animal Welfare through creative fundraisers and service projects. After raising $1,900 last year, students set an ambitious goal of $2,500 this year, but are now projected to finish at nearly $5,500.
The quarter began with Silver Wars, a friendly grade-level competition where students donated change to earn points for their class while trying to sabotage other grades by adding dollar bills to their containers. Snow days slowed momentum, but students responded with a “snow pledge,” asking for $1 per inch of snowfall.
Leading up to Valentine’s Day, students sold keychains and Crush sodas that could be sent to friends with messages of encouragement. For the final push, students launched “Tat a Teacher,” allowing them to buy temporary tattoos for teachers to wear during Parent-Teacher Conferences. Snack and drink sales throughout the quarter also helped boost the total.
In addition to fundraising, students supported the shelter by creating decorations, writing sympathy notes for families who lost pets, designing posters of adoptable animals and building doghouses for families in need. The school newsletter also highlights a weekly “Pup/Purr of the Week” to encourage adoptions, and several students and families have already adopted pets as a result.
“This has been an incredible experience for our students,” Language Arts teacher Anna Miller said. “They set a big goal, stayed creative when challenges came up, and really took ownership of helping animals in our community.”
Final totals will be announced at the end of the quarter, but this year’s effort is already the most successful yet for Whittier Middle School.