Panther Packs Teach Service Learning Lessons

The Lower School campus buzzed with purpose on January 23 as students participated in Panther Packs, a hands-on service-learning project that invited children to help address hunger. Working classroom by classroom, students made sandwiches and decorated brown paper lunch bags with drawings and messages of encouragement. These small but powerful gestures were meant to remind recipients that they are seen and supported by their Poly friends.

The project is part of Poly’s beloved Lower School Service Learning program, which has brought hygiene kits, toys, and school backpacks with supplies to those in need. Helmed by Lower School Faculty Hallie Rogers and Sarah Ferrell, parents also came out to support the initiative, with support from parent co-chairs Bicky Law P ’35, ’37, and Asha Mashaka-Zienkiewicz P ’37. For this initiative, the completed lunches were delivered to unhoused Angelinos staying at the Arroyo Seco Tiny Homes Village in Los Angeles.

“In the Lower School, service learning means thinking beyond the Poly community to learn how to give back,” said Hallie. “The goal is to build good human beings and empower students to make a difference. Panther Packs are a really tangible process that they connect to. They just had lunch, and now they're packing lunches for people who are hungry, understanding what that feeling is, and knowing that some people don’t have access to food.”

Each classroom received a book to support their learning, including Saturday at the Food Pantry by Diane O’Neill, Don’t Waste Your Food by Deborah Chancellor, and Kevin and the Food Drive by Kristin Johnson. Saturday at the Food Pantry explores community, dignity, and learning about food access. Sarah and Hallie created bookmarks with service-learning-related questions to support classroom discussion, including prompts that ask students to share a time when someone was generous or received kindness, or how small actions can create big changes.

“One of our goals is to connect service to literature and conversation,” said Sarah. “We want students to understand that service isn’t just an activity—it’s about empathy, problem-solving, and recognizing our shared humanity.”

For students, the experience was both meaningful and joyful. As they carefully decorated bags with smiling sandwiches and messages like “You are loved!,” they reflected on why the project mattered to them.

Rohan A. ’36 shared how the class books taught him that sometimes people need different kinds of help to live their best lives. “We learned that some people need help because they don’t have enough food,” said Rohan. Classmate Ella S. ’36 shared her excitement about participating. “I like doing things to help people,” she said. “It’s fun to make something, and it feels good knowing someone else will get it.”

Poly parents were also an indispensable part of the day, helping organize the sandwich materials and divide up paper bags for every Lower School student to participate. Once complete, the lunches were delivered by parent volunteers.

“Service learning is a different kind of learning,” Bicky said. “It teaches kids what it means to give back, to care for others, and to understand their role in the world. That’s just as important as anything they learn in a textbook.”

For Service Learning co-chairs Sarah and Hallie, they always have another idea up their sleeve. This school year marks the third year they have led the program and are always coming up with ideas. 

“We base our work on what is happening in current events,” said Hallie. “If we see something and are inspired, we will always put our brains together to help.”