Alverno High School Students Raise Over $1,000 for Girls Education

Alverno students were recently given an incredible task— raise $1,000 to help educate a girl in India through She’s the First. The method? Selling cupcakes for $1 a piece on campus, to friends and family, and around the community.

In August, Alverno was introduced to She’s the First, a nonprofit organization that sponsors girls’ education in the developing world, helping them be the first in their families to graduate. In the process, She’s the First fosters leadership and global awareness in young Americans, by inspiring them to lead creative fundraisers and correspond with sponsored students.

Prior to the launch of the “Cupcake Craze,” Alverno’s Campus Ministry had chosen a school named Shanti Bhavan Children’s Project in Baliganapalli, Tamil Nadu, India who would receive the proceeds from the cupcake sales on campus. Shanti Bhavan is a home and exceptional school located in rural Tamil Nadu, India, for the region’s most socially and economically disadvantaged children. Admitting students at the age of four, Shanti Bhavan provides a holistic, high quality education until the age of 17 free of cost, and subsequently funds college education for its students. The total cost of a student receiving an education at Shanti Bhavan is $1,600, which includes education, room and board, medical costs, clothing, and recreational expenses.

In order to help raise the funds to sponsor a girl to attend Shanti Bhavan, Alverno students started baking, creating dozens and dozens of cupcakes to be sold. More than 30 students entered a cupcake bake-off for $5. Five faculty and staff members generously volunteered their palettes as judges and tasted over two dozen cupcakes before declaring three winners who each received a special prize. The flavors of the winning cupcakes were dulce de leche, maple and bacon, and pumpkin spice, respectively. After a week of selling and baking, Alverno students were not only able to meet but exceeded their goal by raising $1,100 for a student at Shanti Bhavan.

“At Alverno, we teach our students about the importance of social justice and the difference that one person can make in the world,” said Ann Gillick, Head of School. “I am proud to see them take the lesson and put it into action by helping a school like Shanti Bhavan. We share a very special and important mission with them of empowering each young woman to be exactly the person she wants to be.”

About Alverno High School

Alverno High School is a Catholic, private, college preparatory school for young women dedicated to preparing them to function in a society as informed, knowledgeable persons, who have the requisite skills to make and implement mature decisions about complex problems. Enlivened by the spirit of its Immaculate Heart Community sponsors, and mindful of the Franciscan roots of its founders, Alverno’s program—academic, spiritual, aesthetic, social, and physical—is shaped by the staff, trustees, and students in light of the world for which the students are being educated. Alverno’s mission is to empower each young woman to be exactly the person she wants to be and since 1960, Alverno has empowered more than 4,100 women to meet that goal. For more information about Alverno High School, please call (626) 355-3463 or visit www.alverno-hs.org.