Resource Challenged: The Classroom’s Bare Supply Closet – part III

Fundraising is hard. Getting parents, teachers, and students to participate can be extremely difficult and frustrating.

Apperson reached out to the National PTA audience with a survey on fundraising to see what has and has not been working for them. The responses were outstanding.

66% of respondents said they felt the parent organization supports their school very well, followed by 31% saying they felt their school was supported “well.”

A surprising 56% said fundraising has been effective for their school, while 23% said it has been very effective! These are great numbers. Does your school reflect the same?

If not, here are some fundraising ideas our respondents said worked well for them:

• Fun run (no outside company involvement)
• Candy Grams or Pencil Sales
• Yearly carnival/festival
• Math-a-thon
• Basket auctions
• Bingo night
• Book sales
• Spirit Wear
• Class Packs by Apperson

An overwhelming 82% said that parent participation is their biggest challenge when it comes to fundraising. Here are some tips on how to encourage parents to get involved:

• Let them know ahead of time
  Give parents plenty of notice to plan accordingly. Be sure to spread the word about the fundraiser through multiple outlets. You can send flyers home with the students, email the parents, post it on the school bulletin board, etc. You can even send letters home in the mail!
• Emphasize the importance and impact
  Be sure to specify what the school needs, why they need it, and how fundraising will help achieve this goal.
• Options
  Allow parents to choose how they would like to donate their time by having a sign-up sheet. Some parents may prefer cleaning up, while others may enjoy hosting certain activities. Let the parents decide what their strengths are and where they would prefer to be.

Apperson has created a solution to both the school supply funding depletion and the lack of fundraiser enthusiasm. Apperson is launching a new program, Class Packs by Apperson, that is a practical and easy-to-use fundraiser while ensuring parents are getting the school supplies that they desire.

Parents have the freedom to customize their supply lists so that they are not forced into buying items in bulk that they do not need, and participating schools will get a 5% rebate on all supplies ordered. The school supplies are then packaged for each individual student and shipped right to their school.

We hope this list of fundraising activities and tips for increasing parental involvement will help your school make fundraising more successful. What else does your school do to make this an effective process? Share your experiences with us below!