This year the four Kent School District high schools are coming together to reach their goal of collecting 100,000 pounds of food to donate to local food banks.

At Kentwood the school’s Munch Madness food drive competition has seen great success with classes competing in a March madness style bracket to see which fourth period class can bring in the most pounds.

Last year the school collected 55,000 pounds, surpassing the goal of 50,000 according to senior and Associated Student Body Vice President Pamela Villaruz.

“Our goal this year is 60,000 pounds for the whole school to collect,” Villaruz said.

ASB President Mariah Lee said that the idea of partnering with the other Kent schools came from a desire to get the other schools involved as well without it being a competition.

“We always wanted to get involved with other schools in the district,” Lee said. “This year it’s our goal to get 100,000 pounds together.”

Villaruz added that the food drive challenges students to go outside their comfort zone to help others.

Students at Kentwood, Villaruz said, go door-to-door in their neighborhoods, and stand outside of grocery stores to collect food, as well as set up collections at school events like sporting games and events like Trick or Trunk, which was hosted at the school the end of October.

The class which collects the most food — the last weigh in is Dec. 10 — at Kentwood will win a catered lunch. So far the school has brought in 8,373 pounds.

This year at Kentlake the effort is ramping up, according to leadership student Laura Williams.

The Falcons are basing the theme of their food drive off the We Day event students attended in Seattle in March and have titled their food drive We Scare Hunger.

Kentlake is also running a competition between fourth period classes, with classes receiving points based on the items they bring in. High need items receive a higher point total than bulk items, for example.

Williams said that Kentlake had food drives in the past, but last year they started to overhaul the event by adding a theme — last year was based off the Hunger Games — and the leadership students are working to continue that trend this year.

“I hope this becomes an annual thing,” Williams said.

This year the winning class at Kentlake will get a taco party during lunch. So far the school has collected, 1,700 pounds, Williams said.

Williams added that the competitive nature is starting to set in at Kentlake with students checking in constantly to find out where they are in the standings and students getting creative.

“We had some people trick or treat on Halloween and went for cans,” Williams said.

Meanwhile over at Kentwood, the competition is getting tougher as Munch Madness enters the Sweet Sixteen.

“In the rules this year we had to say no cheating or stealing cans,” said senior ASB Secretary Shannon Parmley with a laugh when she explained how intense the competition becomes.

Villaruz said that her favorite part of Munch Madness is seeing the enthusiasm and determination of Kentwood students.

Lee added that her favorite part is the ingenuity of what students come up with to collect food.

“One (student) was getting an elementary school to have a food drive and bring in (include) the little kids,” Lee said of the most creative thing she’s seen.

Ultimately, the Kentwood ASB cabinet agreed, that the best part is seeing how students come together to help the community.

“I like how people genuinely enjoy helping out, it isn’t just the competition,” Treasurer Lizzy Roller said.