Admission Possible

Admission Possible is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping promising high school students from low income communities prepare for and earn admission to college. This year, students involved in Admission Possible had the opportunity to participate in a program called Make A Difference, consisting of a competitive food-drive in conjunction with a three week long fundraiser named “The War of 1400” for the 1400 students involved in the event. The high school that gathered the most food during the one day food-drive was awarded the responsibility of choosing the beneficiary of the funds raised from “The War of 1400”.

“By organizing a competitive volunteer activity, we’re encouraging the students to get excited about service and to have fun doing it,” says Andrèa Carroll-Franck, Admission Possible’s Americorps member in charge of planning the event.

Each participant in “The War of 1400” was responsible for collecting pocket change as donations, with a goal of collecting as many pennies as possible.  In order to encourage students to collect as many pennies as possible, the “War of 1400” utilized a simple point system in which each penny was worth one positive point, and any other coin was worth negative points according to its denomination.

In just three weeks, the students collected over $1,300 in pocket change. Robbinsdale Armstrong High School, the winner of the food-drive competition, chose to donate the funds raised to Action Against Hunger.

The spirit and dedication of the students involved in these two events demonstrates how innovation and enthusiasm can truly Make a Difference.