The Parent Teacher Organization of Franklin Elementary School in city, state raised $25,000 to install a new playground for their children. Funds were raised over a two year period through several different fundraisers.

Franklin Elementary School PTO of Sterling, Illinois purchased a 40-by-40-foot structure with four slides, a rock wall, climbers and a bridge. They found their community very supportive of their efforts. The Wal-Mart Distribution Center donated food, McDonald’s and the Candlelight Inn donated coolers, drinks and ice for volunteers that come to install equipment for the day. What a great way for local businesses to support a school!

The Hudson Elementary School of Tempe, Arizona partnered with the Symphony of the Southwest for an entertaining and musical fundraiser to benefit the school this fall. The Hudson Elementary School PTA sells individual tickets to the Symphony of the Southwest concerts. They collect more than 35% of the sale price as a school fundraiser. The tickets are also offered to the public at a reduced price, less than 20% the original price. What a lovely way to support your local school, and have a great evening at the same time!

Cathy Bentley, owner of Capitola Coffee Roasters in Capitola, California has a unique fundraiser for local schools. She has a coffee fundraiser that allows students to raise 50 percent of the price of each bag of coffee they sell. Students at the Mar Vista Elementary School in Aptos and also at the Mountain Elementary School in Soquel have raised funds through this java based fundraising program.

You may be wondering, how can you get your local businesses involved with your schools? Get out in the neighborhood and introduce yourself to your local businesses. Ask local businesses for their partnership with your events. Invite them to your programs, plays, fairs and special events so they can see how wonderful and unique your school truly is. Just like on the playground, in order to make a friend you need to go over to the other person and ask them if they want to be your friend!

This is a great way to raise money for people in need, whilst doing something positive that involves everybody at your church. What’s more, there is no age limit on helping out with Christian fundraising, meaning that children and whole families can be a part of this positive activity.

So you’ve decided to hold a Christian fundraiser to support a certain cause or charity. That’s great! If you want a Christian fundraising solution that is quick and easy to set up, while at the same time is affordable and something that the church can fund, then why not go with one of our Christian products to sell at your event?

Our fundraising products come in all shapes and sizes, and there will likely be something for everybody to get excited about selling.

Whether it’s our Journey of Faith Candle Fundraisers, which offer a beautiful selection of candles with a Bible verse, or our Faith Lollipop Fundraisers, which are great for children and adults with a sweet tooth, you should have no trouble picking something that you like.

Once you’ve decided on the product that you want to sell at your Christian fundraiser, you will want to make sure that it is well promoted. This can be achieved by spending a little time making banners and posters to put up around the church. Or you may like to make an announcement after the next church service to spark everybody’s interest.

Basically, there are some school districts in this country, with vastly different levels of family income within its boundaries. Some schools within a particular district may receive Title I funds from the federal government to help with low-income families, while other schools in the same district may have a much higher level of income among its families.

The problem is that schools with wealthier families are typically able to raise more money than schools with less well-to-do families. Therefore, the students in these schools can go on more field trips, have newer text books, have more interesting assemblies, and have newer technology.  (The richer schools have more parents who will buy tubs of cookie dough, tickets to an auction, make pledges for a walk-a-thon, etc.)

Well, there have been complaints that the educational experience of the students in the poorer school is less complete than the students in the richer schools, and this is not fair in a public school district.

Therefore, some districts are creating plans to take the money raised by all their schools, put it in a common pot, and re-distribute it equally amongst all schools, regardless of how much each school kicked in. This way, all students will get the same opportunities.

This proposal is not sitting well with many people. In fact, here is an excerpt from a letter to the editor in The Santa Monica (California) Mirror:

Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Fundraising Efforts: Letter To The School Board

Dear School Board,

I can’t even begin to tell you how disappointed I am with your recent decision to combine the fundraising efforts for the schools into one system. I understand that there is an achievement gap in our schools; I believe that is why some of them receive Title 1 funds. I also understand that many of those funds have been cut, but not all. Will those resources also be allocated equally among all schools in the district?

I work hard to support my school, sacrificing valuable time and resources. And I’m not ashamed to admit that this is primarily because I have two children in the Santa Monica school system. I want to support them as much as humanly possible, which is easy to do when I get to see how my efforts affect their lives on a daily basis.

Would I work just as hard knowing that my time and money might go to other schools in the district? I’m honestly not sure. But the fact that I’m even asking myself the question just goes to show how wrong-headed your decision is.

While I believe that combining some of the resources from the wealthier schools could help, creating a system that equally distributes funds to all schools will only result in an overall decrease in the number of donations. On the surface, it would seem your plan is plausible — a simple and fair redistribution of funds — but this assumes that you’ll receive the same amount of money. Sadly, this is not the case.

The first rule of fundraising is to appeal to the donor’s sense of social responsibility and community. Put simply, people give more to causes that are personal or “hit close to home.” By broadening the spectrum of how school funds will be distributed, the board will have effectively narrowed its fundraising target and legislated a major disincentive to donations, especially with regard to your top-tier donors. Just imagine what would happen if college alumni associations were forced to distributed their donations to all universities instead of the college of their choice.

It’s just that simple.

My friends and neighbors have all expressed that they will not continue to monitarily support the schools in the same manner. We have not only discussed this in the hallways of our schools, but also with incoming parents. In fact I spoke to a friend on Monday about this new effort on the part of the school board. She was planning to move her family to Santa Monica, and has now decided to stay in Brentwood. So I know I’m not alone. Luckily, I am the treasurer of my child’s class, so next year I plan on asking for more money upfront to support our teacher rather than fundraising for the district.

So, how do you feel about this debate? Do you agree that all schools within one district should be able to give all its students that same opportunities, or is it ok for there to be a large gap between rich and poor schools?

I’d love to know what your thoughts are. Please share them with us in our forum!

Thanks!

Photo by: WebWallpapers

I came across a web site called fiverr.com.  It’s a site where people offer to perform a service or sell you a product, for the flat fee of $5.  Hence, the name- “fiverr”. (Don’t know why it’s spelled with two “r’s” but it is.)

Anyway, a lot of the stuff that’s advertised on the site is weird and not necessarily useful for a school fundraiser, but I did see a few people willing to make fliers, posters, banners, or any kind of advertisement for only $5!  This is something I have always been terrible with, so to find someone with talent willing to be artistically creative for that price definitely catches my attention.

Now, I’ve never used this service, so I can’t attest to the quality of the service myself, however, there are reviews for each provider, which should be helpful in making a decision.  For instance, in the screen shot below, you can see that this designer has a 99% approval rate.  66 people approved, while only one person did not.  For $5 that seems like a pretty good bet.  But, be sure to check it out for yourself.

Here’s a screen shot of what I’m talking about.

Would you like to learn more about school carnivals?  Check out Jim Berigan’s “School Carnival Money Making Guide!  It’s 186 pages of advice, suggestions, and ideas that will help your school make the money it needs!

When planning a school Halloween carnival it’s important to include lots of fun games for the kids to play. Playing games, competitions and winning prizes make the event so much fun for the students.

Many times each grade or class will have their own game booth. The game idea that your group picks should be age appropriate. There are a wide variety of game ideas that are good for each age level.

There are some games that students will expect to see each year, such as the bean bag toss. Be sure to include the most popular games that your school carnival had last year. Students also like to find something new and different. So finding a few unique, fun Halloween carnival games will bring some new excitement to your event.

Traditional Games

Just about every carnival should include the traditional, tried and true games that everyone enjoys. Some of these are kids games and others can be for older siblings and adults.

Dunking Booth – Who can resist dunking their teacher, classmate or school principal. You just need to prepare for the logistics of hosting the booth, making sure it works properly and is safe. If you don’t want to build one, check with local rental companies.

Duck pond – This is great for toddlers to grade 1. Fill a galvanized tub with water and colorful plastic ducks. Each duck has a number on the bottom that corresponds to a prize with that same number. The child picks up a duck from the pond and the person working the booth awards the prize. Easy and fun for little ones.

Darts – You cannot have a carnival without the traditional balloon dart game!

High Tech Games

Why not incorporate technology into your Halloween carnival?

Wii games – Have a Wii set up to play one of the sports like bowling. Have a time limit!

Wii tournament – Even better have a Wii tournament.  Each player signs up for a time slot ahead of time, paying an entry fee.  Players come back to play one another in the tournament rounds to determine who the best player is.

Guitar Hero or Garage Band – These are other very popular games that kids enjoy.

Jeopardy – This long standing TV show is available as an interactive game.  Classroom Jeopardy is customizable with your own questions or you can just use one of the Jeopardy software programs for your game system.

Click here to enroll in Jim Berigan’s FREE year-long school fundraising e-Course!

Big Event Games

Draw a crowd — plus media attention and publicity ahead of time — with an unusual game.

Super-sized board games – Take your regular, old fashioned board game and make it BIG.  How about putting together lots of Twister sheets for the “world’s largest Twister game?”  One group found success with a life size checkers game.

Sports tournaments – Hold a tournament at the same location of your school Halloween carnival.  Great for teens who are “too old” for kiddie games and costumes.  You could have several age brackets to make it fair.  Start filling up the entry level brackets and times before the day of the carnival so people know when to be there.

Inflatables – There’s so much more to inflatables than just a simple bounce house!  Now there are activities like obstacle courses, bungee competitions, and slides.  Check with your local party rental place to see what’s available near you.

More Game Ideas

Here are several great websites that have more ideas to help you create fun carnival games:

A to Z Carnival Game List – Long list of many popular carnival games & variations

Muscular Dystrophy Association Carnival Game Ideas – Carnivals are held for MDA fundraisers. They offer some ideas that may be good for your Halloween carnival too.

Carnival Savers – Has a lot of ideas for Halloween carnivals – fast & easy games, build it yourself game booths, popular foods, petting zoos and other fun activities

These school Halloween game ideas should get you started on the right path. With some creativity you can probably come up with many other activities that your kids will love!   Is there an unusual game that’s worked for your school in the past?  Let us know in the comment box below:

I hope you’ve enjoyed the selection of articles on TopSchoolFundraisers. com this month.  I’ve tried to focus on a number of issues that are important for starting your fundraising year off right.

As always, if you are looking for fundraising ideas or great products to raise money for your school, please head on over to FastTrackFundraising.com!  They have an amazing selection of products with proven results.

In addition to this blog, we also have a sister blog, StepByStepFundraising.com.  That site has a broader non-profit focus, but there are some terrific articles that would be helpful to anyone looking to learn more about raising money.  Below, I have posted some links to articles that appreared on StepByStepFundraising this month.  I hope you take a few minutes to check them out!

Thanks, and we’ll see you right back here in September!

Step by Step Fundraising Articles, August 2001

Is Your Board Strong Enough to Make Hard Decisions?

10 Time Management Tips for Nonprofit Communicators, by Gayle Thorsen

Super-hero Guide to Beating Burnout, by Maureen Carruthers

If Donors Knew What Others Gave, Would They Give More? By Gayle Gifford

How much should you request in your foundation grant proposal? By Pamela Grow

You’ve Gotta Have a Plan! 3 Tips to Develop Winning Grant Proposals, by Betsy Baker

What one piece of advice would you give to a friend just starting out in the non-profit world?

Guest Video Post: Amy Eisenstein on Smart, Creative Fundraising

Would You Do It All Over Again?

What are the Traits You Most Admire in Your Non-Profit Colleagues?

Top 10 Things I Love about Fundraising Part I

Top 10 Things I Love about Fundraising Part 2

As you are planning your school carnival, you must start to think of them in this capacity, as well.

The simple truth is, if the teachers want something to happen, it happens. If they don’t see the importance of an issue, it “mysteriously” fades away.

This is why you do not want to alienate the staff in any way. You are counting on these people to make sure fliers get passed out on time, important announcements are stressed to the students, auction projects are well-thought out, well-crafted, and done on time, and that they actually show up to help on the day of the carnival with big smiles on their faces.

With the many responsibilities a teacher has, you’ve really got to make a strong effort to gain their full attention. Here are some suggestions:

1. Butter them up- a cup of gourmet coffee, a small plant, a modest gift card, or just a simple note of appreciation goes a long way toward winning a person over. You should have volunteers whose sole job it is to sprinkle the teachers with affection.

2. Be clear with your expectations- put everything that you want the teachers to do in writing. It’s way too easy for them to make a verbal promise and then get busy and forget. Teachers need clarity and specificity from us. If you want them to remind students to make sure their money is in for the pre-sale wristbands next Friday, put it in a memo and hand it to each teacher individually. Don’t ever assume that a teacher knows what we actually want to happen and when.

3. Give them plenty of lead time- Don’t hand them that memo on Thursday, expecting them to do something the very next day. Give them at least a week to make something happen. Of course, emergencies do arise when you’ll need immediate help, but don’t go to that well very often.

4. Follow up regularly- So many things get piled on top of teachers that it is very wise to keep checking in on them. Be careful not to become a stalker, but keep sending them a warm, positive message that you want to help. If you become “top of mind” -in a good way- they will come to appreciate you.

5. Don’t take teachers for granted!- If you ever start to think that teachers are simply going to help you out, just because they love the school, you will be sadly mistaken and sorely disappointed. Remember that a teacher’s first priority is to teach. Raising money, even when it benefits their classroom, doesn’t rank as high. You’re going to have to work at winning the teachers to your cause.

In a similar fashion, you will also need to communicate effectively with the principal. Having worked in this office myself, I can speak with experience that the most important thing for me was to know that things were getting accomplished and nobody was complaining.

Make sure the principal knows what you are up to as you are scurrying about the hallways, but you don’t need to bog him or her down with details. Just send a message that you are taking care of business, and in most cases, you’ll be left alone to do your work.

Be careful, however, not to abuse the trust of a principal. This man or woman is the key to your freedom of movement. If you are seen to be a loose canon or a general disruption, you will find your ability to move freely sharply curtailed.

Photo by: mikebaird

I hope you take a few minutes to check out these posts and don’t forget to visit our friends over at FastTrackFundraising for all your fundraising needs!

See you in May!

- Jim Berigan

FundraisingIdeas.org

10 Fundraising Clichés That You Should Avoid

Would You Do Something Absolutely Crazy for Your Non-profit?

Sound Fundraising Advice from 1970s Television

A Creative Way to Get Your Non-profit’s Competitive Juices Flowing

The Value of Non-Board Board Members

The Pressure of Coming up with a Catchy Fundraiser Name

What Do You Have to Think About When Choosing a For-Profit Fundraising Partner

What If You Didn’t Throw a Fundraiser and Everybody Still Came?

Make More of What You’ve Already Got

Two Unusual and Profitable Fundraising Events You May Never Have Heard Of

An Excellent Example of a Non-profit Partnership in Action

4 reasons your staff should donate money to your non-profit first

5 Things You Can Do to Avoid being the Non-profit that Gets Cut from the Family’s Donation Budget

The Advantages of Working for a Non-Profit over a For-Profit

Step By Step Fundraising

A Quiz for Perspective Board Members

6 Ways to Increase Optimism about Fundraising at Your Non-profit

Shrink those floral centerpieces at your benefit auction, by Sherry Truhlar

10 Reasons to Contact Donors Other Than to Ask for Money

Mobile giving: 4 trends nonprofits should consider, by Gayle Thorsen

Is Your Organization Grant Ready? by Betsy Baker

Your nonprofit doesn’t need a blog, by Joanna Miles

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Nonprofit Leadership, by Amy Eisenstein

Surprise! Are You Ready to Fundraise?

Are you overwhelming board members with hidden expectations? By Gayle Gifford

Online Fundraising for Tiny Nonprofits: A Case Study, by Maureen Carruthers

Here are a few links to the articles I liked, but wasn’t able to get to this month.

Enjoy!

- Jim Berigan

A Low-Key Family Event = Way to Recruit Volunteers From the PTO Today Blog

Asking for Money – Thoughts on Elementary School Fundraising From the BelieveJay Blog

Would You Like to Make More Money at Your Next School Carnival? From Everybodyhatesfundraising.com

$4,428 in ‘Tips’ at Don Jose’s Mexican Restaurant Goes to CV Schools From the Castro Valley Patch

Chance to put your own stamp on carnival fun From the Cambridge-News UK

Would you like to learn more about school carnivals?  

Check out Jim Berigan’s “School Carnival Money Making Guide!  It’s 186 pages of advice, suggestions, and ideas that will help your school make the money it needs!

After having written about school fundraising for three years, I can tell you with authority that one of the most popular subjects I have posted on is the school carnival.

So many schools have carnivals, and most people who run them are always looking for new ideas to keep their carnival fresh.

Here is an article I put together for the website EverybodyHatesFundraising.com. If you are in the process of planning a carnival, it might give you a few novel thoughts.

Good luck!

First, a disclaimer: The following list is just a mashed-up collection of carnival games and ideas that I have come across on the Internet over time. I simply thought that this might be a helpful resource for people who were searching for game suggestions.

If you are interested in dozens of more great carnival ideas, check out my e-book, The School Carnival Money Making Guide. It’s full of helpful advice, words of wisdom, tales of fundraising glory, and a few laughs.

Thanks!- Jim Berigan

1. The Beauty Salon was a popular booth at our Fall Carnival. The boys and girls loved getting their hair colored, blue, green, pink! Combine this with fake-tattoo applications and face-painting, and you’ve got a real destination!

2. Karaoke was also very popular this year! Try getting the principal to sing a few songs and really liven up the crowd!

3. About three years ago, our room moms rented an electronic bull. (I can’t think of the right name!) The line never ended! The kids and adults loved it! (Editor’s note: check with your insurance company first!)

4. My sons’ school has a Kissing Booth. They didn’t get actual kisses, but they did give you a Hershey’s Kiss instead. They also have a lips stamp, and they stamp your face with it! And you see TONS of kids running around their carnival with several kisses! Very cute!

5. We played “Bingo for Books” in the media center.

6. Snack Walk- like a cake walk but kids picked out bags of chips, a box of Little Debbies, bag of cookies, 2 liter bottle of soda, etc. Maybe put in some broccoli for a booby prize!

7. We also auctioned off Janitor-, Principal- and Librarian- for-a-day. Those were very popular. (Janitor brought in the most!)

8. We have done Super Twister with dots painted on a large piece of tarp that got taped to the floor with everyone trying to touch the correct color with the correct body part. Ours is big enough that 30+ kids can play at a time.

9. A popular game at our school’s carnival was the football toss. Rings were hung from the ceiling (beginning with rings the size of a hula-hoop) and you would try to throw a football through a ring. The smaller the ring, the higher the points/greater the prize.

10. Hit the Teacher With a Wet Sponge. Hugely popular, even with the parents. Give the teachers goggles or a scuba mask!

11. Bubble-gum Blowing Contest: Popular because gum’s usually a no-no.

For the complete list, which has 23 more suggestions, please visit EverybodyHatesFundraising.com.  Thanks!

Photo by: Roy Montgomery