Wonder Bread champions equity in education by inspiring the wonder of science in K-12 students

28-Jan-2021 - Last updated on 28-Jan-2021 at 11:29 GMT

Wonder Bread is on a mission to stimulate children's interest in science. Pic: Flowers Foods/GettyImages/metamorworks

Flowers Foods is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its Wonder Bread brand with a $100,000 Wonder of Science initiative focused on bolstering science education in US schools.

The brand has partnered with AdoptAClassroom.org and Emily Calandrelli, a science communicator, MIT engineer and co-executive producer and host of ‘Emily’s Wonder Lab’, a children’s educational series on Netflix.

Wonder Bread is donating $100,000 to non-profit AdoptAClassroom.org, which will be used to provide supplies and equipment to middle and high school science teachers and students across America.

It will also be used to fund a series of virtual events hosted by Calandrelli.

Nurturing the curiosity of children

Georgia-headquartered Flowers Foods is one of the largest producers of packaged bakery foods in the US, posting $4.1bn in sales in 2019. The conglomerate operates bakeries across the country that produce a wide range of bakery products, producing goods under the Nature’s Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder and Tastykake brands, among others.

Wonder Bread is credited with the popularity of sliced bread in the US and, according to the producer, captures the ‘wonder’ that recipe developer Elmer Cline experienced when first watching a hot air balloon race. A century later, it still aims to nurture the curiosity and imagination of children through the magic of science.

“For the past 100 years, Wonder Bread has had a deep connection with classrooms and learning, so we are proud to be working with AdoptAClassroom.org to support education and are fortunate to have Emily accompany us along the way,” said John Steed, senior VP of the company’s legacy brands.

Real life skills

Emily Calandrelli

AdoptAClassroom.org, a 501(c)(3) organisation, has used its proprietary platform to raise $50m to support more than 5.5 million students since founding in 1998. The award-winning charity holds a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and a platinum rating of transparency from GuideStar.

According to executive director Ann Pifer, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education is critical and an important part of the non-profit’s mission to advance equity in education.

“We look forward to seeing how Wonder Bread's donations will empower students with real life skills,” she said.

Calandrelli added that getting kids excited about science – which affects lives every day – “is the best part of what I do.

“Joining Wonder Bread to spread that message of wonder not just through my show but directly into classrooms is a fantastic opportunity. I can't wait to share my love of science with them.”