Every school year, Parent Teacher Associations and Organizations (PTA/Os) help keep academic and extracurricular activities alive in schools. It’s often a thankless job. Kids assume that fun activities like school dances and field days are solely organized by the school administration, and that’s okay. Parents and teachers don’t plan, organize, and raise funds for praise. They do it for the kids. Whether you belong to the parent or teacher part of the organization (or both), there’s now a great variety of planning and fundraising tools available to make this next school year’s efforts run a little more smoothly.
1. Give While You Shop
Arguably the easiest way to raise funds is to shop with businesses that donate portions of their profits to schools. Aside from what you’re already paying for your groceries and the few seconds it takes to snap a photo of your receipt, it costs nothing. Whether you’re shopping at a supercenter, dollar store, or local convenience store, use the Shoparoo app to make a cash donation for every receipt! Submit up to 20 grocery receipts within a rolling 7-day period. Check with your local retailers for other fundraisers, as well.
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2. Crowdsource for Classroom Supplies
Sites like kickstarter give creative types a platform to fund their projects, but have you ever looked into crowdsourcing networks for teachers? DonorsChoose.org makes it easy for anyone to help a classroom in need. Public school teachers from every corner of America create classroom project requests, and donors can give any amount to the project that inspires them.
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3. Have an Online Auction
According to PTA.org, online fundraising auctions have emerged as a highly profitable way not only to engage the local community, but also to reach a national audience of donors and supporters. It can take as little as 30 minutes to set up an account through fundly.com or pledgie.com.
[Learn more about Fundly and Pledgie]
4. Plan it Out
Say goodbye to all those confusing group texts, and emails, and paper sign up sheets! Plan your next PTA event or fundraiser with Sign Up Genius. It’s free, and easy to use. In addition to fundraisers, you can organize donations, event volunteers, schedule, and more!
[Sign Up Now]
5. Keep it Old School
There are a lot of high-tech options available, but kids still love tangible—even sniffable—objects. Buy Smencils in bulk for a low rate and sell them back to students to raise funds for classroom supplies. Rather than using candy or cookies to raise money, teachers can feel better knowing they're selling a product that doesn't contain any sugar or calories.
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More planning and fundraising ideas on page 2...
