UFO Sightings

Education in schools has taken on a broader meaning than I remember it. Today there are a variety of events and activities that students have available to them outside of the classroom that add to their education. These things usually cost money. With cuts in school budgets, principals and PTA / PTO organizations have to turn to fundraising in order to raise the money needed for them.

It is fundraising that many consider to be like the “third rail” on a subway system. It is either viewed as the power source to make things go or it is viewed as the thing everyone wants to stay away from. However, a properly run fundraiser is a blessing for all. There really is no reason why teachers, volunteers, students, parents and the community should dread the start of the school fundraising drive. If the product is right, the incentives are worthwhile, the rewards will be enjoyed by all.

The fundraisers that are usually viewed negatively are usually the ones that the organizers take little or no consideration for what the participants (and their parents) will be getting out of the fundraising drive, especially if they or their child is not going to be on the bus for the 5th grade field trip. Think about it, even the First grade teachers have been raising money for years for that trip and they never get to go. After a while, that begins to wear down even the most well meaning people.

Sometimes you just have to wonder why it is that some schools will have huge sales and other schools in similar neighborhoods and similar size student bodies will have average results. They can even be selling the same fundraising goods, but their results will be miles apart. The answer to that question is not something that is readily apparent. It’s not the product or the neighborhood, it’s “How’ they run their sale that makes the most difference in the outcome.

A case in point is Howell Middle School in Victoria, Tx. For years they had been having $32-$38,000 sales with their 1000 students. One year, they made a change in only one thing…it wasn’t the product, that remained the same. They made a change in how they ran their sale and the year after they had a $34,000 sale they had a $72,000 sale.

One added benefit of the change was that because they had more people “into” the fundraiser, they cured their problem of not having enough volunteers. They even had teachers pitching in and helping on delivery day! That had never happened before.

By running their fundraiser differently than they had been doing, they created a situation that made more people excited and happy to help. The result was increased moral and increased profit. It is true what Napoleon Hill once said, “You can get everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.”

Filed under: Reference & Education