by Kenneth Brown

Created on: May 11, 2008   Last Updated: September 10, 2009

Woodriver Elementary School in Fairbanks, Alaska, where I teach first grade, recently raised $1400 during one short Saturday afternoon in order to purchase new technology and support a community garden. The steps we followed in planning and producing our elementary school fund-raiser can serve as a model for any school fund-raiser, elementary or high school.

Step 1: Pick a date early in the school year. This is critical. Parents and students are much more willing to support a school fund-raiser at the beginning of the school year, when student and parental interest is high. In most areas, autumn weather will also guarantee a good turnout at your school fund-raiser. In addition, it is easy to tie your school fund-raiser to one of the many Fall holidays, such as Halloween. If the weather is too good, however, parents and students may be attracted to outdoor activities that keep them away from your school fund-raiser.

Step 2: Choose a Chairperson, but Delegate Individual Responsibilities. It is important to have one person with the overall responsibility for the school fund-raiser, someone who can make final decisions without alienating volunteers. The chairperson, however, should delegate everything else. Being a musician, for example, I was put in charge of the live music performed at our school's fund-raiser. Knowing that I would set up the sound system and schedule the bands, the chairperson did not have to worry about it and was free to concentrate on other areas.

Step 3: Planning, Planning, Planning. If you schedule a school fund-raiser at Halloween, start planning in August. Hold weekly planning meetings and involve as many teachers, support staff, parents, and students as possible. The more engagement and ownership you can develop during the planning process, the more successful your school fund-raiser will be. Planning will also help reduce numerous fund-raising ideas at the beginning to the one or two ideas that the planning committee feels will create the most profit for the least cost, in both materials and labor. Put a teenager or older elementary student in charge of an activity: they often do a better job than adults.

Step 4: Refine your Fund-raiser Concept. You may have a surefire fund-raiser concept, such as a Garage Sale with items donated by parents and students, but you may need to tweak your original concept. We originally planned to put garage sale items together in clear plastic bags which would sell for $5.00 each. As the garage sale fund-raiser approached, we went with the more traditional idea of selling items individually, but grouped together by type (toys, clothing, electronics).

Step 5: Food! Even if your fund-raiser concept is a Garage Sale or a Halloween Carnival, remember that food sales can produce terrific profits at little cost. Sell popcorn, soft drinks, or ice cream. Old-fashioned cakewalks produce new-found profits.

Follow these 5 steps and you will have a successful school fund-raiser.

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