Published: April 27, 2009 10:31 pm      

Students turn pop consumption into an easy fundraiser

WURTLAND — A student project at Wurtland Middle School is bubbling over with success.

Students are having a pop tab drive, bringing in the tabs from their canned beverages each morning at school to place in a 30-gallon container. The tabs will eventually be recycled and the money will go to the Ronald McDonald House.

Science teacher Scott Bowling, who founded the school’s student council this year, is leading the students in the effort.

“I was doing some Web research, looking for charities that had fun and easy ideas that would be easy to collect,” he said. “This one seemed pretty clean and it didn’t take up a lot of room.”

After about a week of collecting pop tabs, the school had nearly filled one 30-gallon container. Collection will continue through the end of the school year and Bowling estimates they will have collected a full container and a half, if not more.

“Two would be phenomenal,” he said.

Bowling said he’s not sure how much money such a collection will bring, as the price of aluminum fluctuates. He said their goal is $500 but said he thinks they will exceed their goal.

Bowling said he’s not sure about the weights and measures of the pop tabs.

“I know a gallon of milk is eight pounds,” he said. “And we are using a 30-gallon trash can to collect the tabs in. Basically, I’m going to fill up a gallon milk jug and weigh it.”

Bowling said he estimates they have 100 pounds of aluminum now.

“This is the first time we’ve done this. I’m learning as we go myself,” he said.

LEE WARD can be reached at lward@dailyindependent.com or (606) 32-2661.