Every single year, the Becton student body looks forward to the end of the year celebration of prom for upperclassmen. It is something that students look forward to even as freshmen, working endlessly with teachers and the three communities of the district to raise money throughout all their years of high school. This year, Freshmen-Sophomore/Co-Junior Class Advisor, Angela Calasso, has organized the Pennies for Prom: Penny Race!

For this fundraiser, each grade will be competing, or racing, to collect the most funds for their prom in the span of one week. The rules indicate that the Class Presidents and Vice Presidents of each grade will be collecting and managing the money accumulated. They possess grade-specific money jugs to differentiate which funds correlate to each grade. The officers are responsible to count the total balance at the end of each school day. 

To make things more interesting and fun, the totals for each day will be shared on a leader board! As for the reward of the winning grade, Ms. Calasso revealed, “The grade with the most funds raised will win an in-school movie day! The winning grade will have the opportunity to vote on the movie as well.”

Penny wars are an age-old tradition for many high schools and a timeless fundraiser. “I did it when I was in high school, and many other teachers shared their experiences as well. The success is usually very high,” Ms. Calasso divulged. She also stated that one of her class officers was inspired to do this fundraiser after watching a viral TikTok of a school that had a very successful “Penny War” fundraiser. 

The leader board will be announced with the morning announcements and shared virtually on Twitter! It has been frequently asked if one could turn in coins besides pennies and the rules state that students may turn in coins other than pennies and even cash!

The mission of the fundraiser is to raise as much money as possible. Good luck to every grade, and may the Penny War commence!