Connecting Schools With Great Fundraising Ideas.

If you are the PTO/PTA president or school principal, you may be all too familiar with the phrase “fundraising fatigue.” Or you may have felt this syndrome for yourself at one point during the school year.

So many organizations, schools and various causes are now fundraising. They also seem to be fundraising more frequently during the year, or running year-long fundraisers. It is important to keep your fundraising efforts motivated and focused so people do not feel burned out and tired.

Although some may feel fundraising fatigue, many Americans support their schools’ efforts enthusiastically according to the Association of Fund-Raising Distributors & Suppliers. In the 2005-6 school year, 8 out of 10 Americans purchased a consumer item to support a school fundraiser. 9 out of 10 parents purchased a consumer item to support a school fundraiser.

One suggestion for fundraising according to the Association of Fund-Raising Distributors & Suppliers is to do less fundraisers and to do them more effectively. Many fundraisers are a strong cause of burnout. Setting a time limit for your fundraiser is also important. This encourages full participation during the time limit, along with the guarantee that there will not be another fundraiser within a certain amount of time. The Association of Fund-Raising Distributors & Suppliers suggests two to three fundraisers a year for a school’s strongest fundraising success.

Source: AFRDS.org

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Curious what other school PTA groups are planning for fall? Here’s a few schools that already planned some great fundraising events for fall:

Georgetown MA PTA is planning two family dances, Meadow Farms gift wrap, Genevieve gift wrap and a silent and live auction.

Grande Park Elementary PTA in Plainfield IL is holding a Back to School bash. They’re also planning their annual fall barbecue.

Hancock Elementary School PTA in Hancock, MD has a corporate sponsorship program to help fund their new playground.

Nesaquake Middle School PTA in Saint James, NY will be offering Entertainment Books as their fundraiser. They are also planning the sale of popular spiritwear clothing and other spirit items.

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A couple weeks back I wrote a post called Schools Getting Health-Wise, Need Healthy Fundraisers. The issue of wellness rules in school and finding healthy fundraisers is an ongoing topic. In fact more schools than ever will be looking for fundraisers that comply to school wellness rules.

In Fairbanks, Alaska the school board put in a new wellness policy that started in the 06-07 school year. So groups within the district had to find some new ways to fundraise without candy or chocolate. Some groups decided on healthy foods such as salads and bottled waters. Others sold candles, other items or held events or contests. Many were quite successful.

However, vending machines without candy bars apparently were not so exciting for students. Snack machines, which in past years supplied over $250,000 in revenue for the district saw a drop by 25% in 2006-2007.

The district isnt’ panicking, Sather said. Yes, revenues are down, but, again, she expects they will pick up in the coming years especially as snack companies respond to the growing national trend and provide a wider variety of healthier options.

(From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)

I agree it’s definitely not time to panic! There will likely be even more new foods not only available for the vending machine program but for direct sale fundraisers as well.  Popcorn is one such fundraiser that is currently available. It will be interesting to see what others come out in the coming months and years!

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General Mills Box Tops for Education is sponsoring a “Shop for Education Week” from August 27 to September 3, 2007. During this time you can earn more box tops credit for your designated school when you shop online at their Box Tops Marketplace.

Find out more about this special offer

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Firstgiving, a leader in providing Web-based fundraising services for individuals and charities, today announced the release of its new application for Facebook, a leading online social networking website. Firstgiving’s new application allows users to rally their Facebook communities for support, thereby greatly increasing their fundraising potential.

“This new application is a huge win both for our users and the charities they support,” said Mark Sutton, Chief Executive Officer of Firstgiving. “The ability to access the tens of millions of Facebook community members means Firstgiving users can exponentially increase their ability to raise funds for the worthwhile causes they support.”

Setting up a person to person online fundraising page with Firstgiving is easily done using an online template that can be personalized with messages and photos. Fundraisers then send links to their pages to family, friends and networks around the globe and ask for support for a walk, run bike ride, growing an embarrassing mustache, or any other reason they can think of.

All of the money raised through these efforts go to certified charitable organizations. Nonprofits can also use Firstgiving’s services for their supporters. Because of its ease and ability to reach more people, Firstgiving’s online fundraising pages help raise an average of three times more money than traditional methods.

Facebook is all about networking, and according to Sutton, “By opening the doors to the Facebook community, Firstgiving users may find new friends who support the same causes — thereby growing their personal networks.” In addition, Facebook “friends” can also help with fundraising by using the new application to promote friend’s pages on their own Facebook profiles.

“Regardless of how you access Firstgiving’s services you can be sure that all transactions are safe and secure and reach the charity of your choice,” said Sutton.

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Roundup of grants to schools recently awarded:

Colorado charter schools will get a cash infusion thanks to a $20.8 million federal grant. Full Story

Chattanooga Tennessee area high schools will benefit from a $975,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation. The grant is specifically to help improve the teaching of mathematics in 16 area schools. Full Story

A Savannah, Georgia elementary school will have new trees for their playground thanks to a $10,000 grant sponsored by the Georgia Forestry Commission. Full Story

Four educational organizations were awarded $2.23 Millionby the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to assist students in low-income area elementary schools. The four grants total just under $600,000 in the first year and grow to just over $800,000 in each subsequent year. Full Story

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Many high school marching band booster clubs host tournaments, contests or exhibitions These are often practice performances for marching bands as they prepare to compete in regional and state contests. They are also usually a fundraiser! The marching band booster club raises funds from ticket sales, concessions, t-shirts and other fun things like raffles.

One Ohio based company is sponsoring a really big two-day school competition event this weekend (Aug. 17 and 18, 2007). In addition to marching band exhibitions there will also be football games and cheerleading spirit contests. Eight area football teams will compete during the event: East Liverpool High School, Harrison Central High School, John Marshall High School, Linsly School, Magnolia High School, St. Clairsville High School, Wheeling Central Catholic High School, Wheeling Park High School.

“Our primary mission with the Wheeling Hospital Football & Band Jamboree is to provide a new and positive experience for the youth of our community,” said Bill Ihlenfeld II of Scholastic Sports Marketing. “The Jamboree will also serve as a fundraiser for nonprofit organizations and the involved Ohio Valley schools.”

from WTOV Channel Nine

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