Many school fundraisiers are beyond the affordability of parents. As much as a parent would like to contribute and help a school, in a down economy, parents are finding it increasingly difficult to give while meeting their basic necessities. There is always a feeling with the parents that the money given is not being utilized in a way that benefits the school and the parents. Parents do not mind giving, but what is sold by the school as a fund raiser is not a real value add for the parents.

School fundraisers are extremely time consuming and labor intensive to manage. It takes away time for a school to focus on their primary objective of teaching. Its uncomfortable to keep asking parents for money knowing fully well that parents may not be able to afford it.

Schools need to start thinking about fundraisers differently. Parents are more willing to give if they see a direct benefit from the fundraiser, positively impacting them or their child in school. Low cost ticket items are preferred over high cost fundraisers like auctions and dinners, unless the item is of significant value to the parent.

Fundraising products or solutions that would really work well are those that use a school’s resources and the parents time and money wisely to make a difference : Improving the child’s performance, making the parent feel that they are more connected with the child, programs that improve the school’s recognition, saving time and reducing costs for the school, improving parental engagement, reducing the parent’s workload etc.