Birney Elementary students collect 2,249 lbs. of shoes in Great Kindness Challenge

More than 2,000 pairs of shoes — weighing 2,249 pounds — have been collected by Birney Elementary School students as part of their second Great Kindness Challenge.

“Not everyone has spare dollars to contribute to something, but most people have a pair of old shoes around,” said Karin Claisse, the parent who organized the drive.

The 2,249 pounds of shoes, all usable and paired, will be sorted and delivered to developing nations by the organization Shoes with Heart.They filled 90 large, green trash bags, packaged and delivered to the charity.

The exercise encouraged the students and staff of the University Heights school to look beyond their own community to collect shoes for deserving nations. Since 2009, Birney has been an International Baccalaureate World School Primary Years Programme, which "focuses on the development of the whole child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and in the world outside. It is defined by six transdisciplinary themes of global significance, explored using knowledge and skills derived from six subject areas, with a powerful emphasis on inquiry-based learning," according to the program's website.

The project highlighted Birney's second-year participation in The Great Kindness Challenge, one school week devoted to performing as many acts of kindness as possible, choosing from a checklist of 50 suggestions.