Connecting Schools With Great Fundraising Ideas.

I’m sure you have all heard of the “80/20” rule when it comes to school volunteerism. 20% of the school families do 80% of the work. In many cases, the rule might be better stated 90/10 or 95/5.

Regardless, as a fundraising leader, I’m sure you have seen this play out in your own community. The same few families are responsible for most of the hard work required to pull off a successful fundraising event.

I guess that this problem would not have entered the collective conscious, if it didn’t have somewhat of a universal truth to it. Does it help to get angry at the masses for being lazy, uninvolved, uncaring, and disinterested? I really don’t think so. My experience has shown me that there are all sorts of great volunteers out there, they just don’t know it yet.

So, instead of the 20% doing all the work, (and being a touch resentful because of it), perhaps the 20% should spend a little bit of time trying to get the 80% on board with the school mission.

Here are a few suggestions that I have seen help draw more people into the school volunteer circle.

Recruit
I think that as a leader in the school, one of your primary functions is to recruit others to help you. It is not acceptable to be content with 5 or 10 or even 20 percent parent involvement. You need to actively pursue and invite all people to get involved.

One way to make a start on this is to require each family to fill out volunteer interest form and return it signed to their child’s teacher, which would then be collected and given to you. This volunteer form would list every volunteer position needed for the entire school year, with a brief written description of what the job entails. The family would check each category it was interested in. Make sure this sheet asks the parents to list their evening phone numbers, as well as email address, if available.

You would be able to use this reference list each time you need to find new volunteers. Of course, you are not going to get 100% compliance, and just because someone fills out the volunteer form in September, that doesn’t mean he or she will be available when you need them, possibly months later. However, it does give you a much deeper pool to pull from.

Avoid Cliques
One of the reasons I’ve seen and been told about that discourages potential new volunteerism is the problem of cliques. Even we adults are not immune to playground behavior. When you work with someone closely over an extended period on an important project, relationships and friendships are bound to form. So, it’s natural to want to socialize with these friends whenever you get together for a school function. Striking up conversations with new people is much harder.

However, as fundraising leaders, I believe it’s up to us to create an atmosphere where new people feel welcome into the group. In some cases, this will mean holding a deliberate conversation with the “regulars”, urging them to mingle with folks they do not know. If new people are going to want to join your team, they will need to feel as though they are not outsiders.

Make Productive Use of their Time
Many people today feel that their time and energy are their most valuable commodity. If they are going to invest these precious resources in the school, they want it to be productive and to make a difference. The last thing they want to do is to waste time.

Therefore, your job as leader is to make sure that you have your “ducks in a row” before people show up to a meeting or to an event. Failure to have an actionable plan can cost you credibility with people who don’t know you, and they may not return to volunteer if they sense their time could be spent better elsewhere.

Make the Time You Spend Together Enjoyable
In the previous paragraph, I stressed that you should not waste people’s times. However, it is also imperative that you make sure people are having a good time while they are with you. This means that you, the leader, have to appear relaxed, prepared, and comfortable. People will respond to this, and while they are working, they will have an opportunity to chat, laugh, and get to know one another, thus building friendships (and breaking down cliques).

You must find that very fine line between making sure the group stays on task with not feeling overly pressured.

Communicate Well
This is in keeping with the recommendation not to waste people’s time. One of the best ways to keep people feeling involved and useful is to effectively communicate with your volunteers. If they can expect that you will notify them if there is a change in schedule or to tell you about an important development, they will feel “in the loop”. People who feel this sense of inclusion are much more likely to participate fully in your organization.

Communication doesn’t have to be difficult. A simple phone tree or a quick email are usually enough to get the message across.

Also, attempt to be as deliberate in your communication as possible. Volunteers will start to dread your calls, if you are over-communicating. Too many emails about trivial matters and too frequent update calls can be distracting and only serve to alienate the volunteers from you. Again, it is the leader’s job to find that right balance.

How to Create a Volunteer Culture at Your School, Part 2 of 2

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