A guide for School Fundraising

A. Shashi Kumar
PTSA Fundraiser
Published in
5 min readOct 20, 2018

Public school funding should be made available at the government level to fully support a heartily and complete curriculum for all the students. Public education supposed to be transparent and the great equaliser in which every student is given a high quality of education to succeed in a respectful and responsible manner.

Before going into a deep dive in school fund-raising let us know few more things about this.

School Fundraising is about securing money for a particular cause. Fundraising is one of the oldest method in practise today used to generate project financing and support for existing budgets. A school can use these types of events na variety of different ways for a variety projects. Many schools incorporate annual fundraisers into their calendars; whether for scholarships, technology up-gradation, construction etc.

What is School Fundraising?

Fundraising is a process that many schools and other organisations avail to solicit the voluntary contribution of resources to achieve monetary goals. A school fundraising can provide the financial foundations to upgrade technology, purchases new equipments, install more relabel security systems, etc. Some educational organisations even run fundraisers to provide extra programs for their students that the regular budget doesn’t cover such as art class, music class, and after school programs.

Most people know that a fundraisers is an event where people intended to raise money. You can go formal if you’re looking for donations, or you can also plan for a fun experience. We are shortly describing few of the here:

1) Product Fundraisers: This practice typically involves purchase and re-sale of popular consumer goods by a non-profit organisation where as the group sponsors. The sale keeps a portion of the gross sales. Products can be acquired in the mass and paid for in advance by the organisation, then it can be re-sold to it’s supporters.
There are 3 types of product fundraisers that schools generally acquire to raise their funds:
a) Pre-Sales Fund-raising
b) Product In-hand Fund-raising
c) Online Fund-raising

2) Self-Organised School Fundraisers: Few schools also raise their fund subsequently through auctions and raffles. This type of fundraising involves local businesses and local restaurants for donations by the schools. Where as in auction people are permitted to bid at their dinner tables. Where as in raffle people buy tickets then they are been picked up randomly from any of the container.

3) Public Fundraisers: Under this event schools organises art exhibitions or talent contest. They asked board of members and regular donators to contribute prize for the students. Schools charged admission to families, friends and other students to attend.

4) Silent Fundraisers: Under this schools starts partnering themselves with few of the graduation organisation. The main purpose of the school is to make graduation for students in an affordable prise. By aligning themselves with a graduation suppliers, they create an online store where students can buy graduation accessories. The company then in turn, would give cash back to schools for every students purchase made.

Fundraisers are most efficient when directed towards people who have a direct or indirect connection with Schools. People are typically more willing to offer financial support to a school that they are involved with on a personal level. Schools might try to engage past students and alumni, or the relatives of current students or recent alumni.

Now when focusing on boosting the reputation of your school comes into play. Show the public that you can make a real difference in their community. Make it clear how the community will benefit from your school fundraisers.

School should always focus on their ultimate goal when preparing for an event. Figure out why you want to raise funds and work out on the details. Do you need a new gym? A new library? Maybe even a new roof? Whatever you need, figure out how much it will cost and build your event goals around that.

Maybe sometimes a school want to attract new students? Maybe they want to fund a new art program? If a school is packed full of talented students, think about hosting a talent show fundraiser. Something like that will engage parents and students, provide a venue for healthy competition, support creativity, and involve the entire community.

Genuinely a successful school fundraiser will be one that both students and parents find appealing — by either saving them money or providing them with added benefits. Fundraising events can be exciting and fun, but it’s important to remember the goals you set. Make sure that you don’t hold a fundraiser without a clear goal in mind.Some schools may feel uncomfortable or invasive by announcing their goal up front, but if students and parents do not understand the purpose of the fundraiser, and the exact cash amount that creates a negative impact in there mind. You need to be clear and concise about your target and your objective. Once you decide to hold a fundraiser, make sure to share all information with the community, parents, and students.

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