Some thoughts on fundraising…

Students want to send tangible items to their Partner Sites.  It feels good to pack up boxes of items and think of students in another country opening them. However, from the feedback we have received, the best support is in the form of money.  Not only does this allow the recipients to purchase exactly what they need for their students, it also supports the local economy in that country.  Often it is difficult to even get a package to some locations, therefore making it risky to send these items.

Create a timeline for your fundraising events.  Sometimes it is beneficial to space out these events in order to get the best response.  At one of our Partner Schools,  in an effort to raise as much money as possible, they found that monthly fundraising events needed to be regulated to once a nine weeks, with the exception of Change for Change Fridays which occur once a month. They also wanted to coordinate with other groups such as the Beta Club and the PTO who were also having fundraisers for the school and community.

Designate Special $1.00 Days for Students

Students can pay $1.00 to participate – such as on Hat Day or Free Sit Lunch Day – something that they are not typically allowed to do at school.  Except for the cost of Tyvek wristbands to show who has permission to wear a hat in the building or sit where they want at lunch, we have found this to be one of the easiest and most profitable money makers at middle schools.

Change for Change Days

Collect coins in a large commercial water cooler container each month on a designated Change for Change Day. We suggest setting up a table in the front hallway and have different student council students monitor.

T-shirt Sales

When selling t-shirts for any school event, donate a percentage of each sale to One School. One Hope.

Water Bottle Fill Up

Did you know that a 16 oz water bottle filled with dimes equals $100?  Homerooms can compete to see how many can fill the water bottles or students can do this as a year-long personal fundraising project.

Walk-a-thon

Find out the average distance or time it takes students at your sponsored One School. One Hope. Partner Site to walk to school, then set up a walk-a-thon to raise money for walking that same amount.  Students will get people to pledge a certain amount per mile they walk.

Jeans for Teachers Week

Teachers pay $10 to wear jeans to school for a week.  If teachers already get to wear jeans at your school, choose another privilege they would appreciate having.

After School Food Sales

If the food service provider for your cafeteria will allow, sell food after school and have all of the proceeds go to One School. One Hope.  We’ve found this works extremely well on half-days.

Vendor Booth

Have a vendor booth at a local event or school event with items created by students for sale.  Get school clubs onboard to help make the items, such as the knitting club, art club, etc. Recruit parents who have businesses to donate some items for sale, such as jewelry, candles, soaps, clothing, etc.

Some of the One School. One Hope. Program Sites have artisan initiatives attached to the program.  Sell their products and help give hope AND employment to the students and their families.