School fundraisers??

[EweSheep]

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Well that sounds like a good idea! If we got the money in our budget!

 

[Beau coop]

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We don't have headmaster/mistresses in America. LOL Although I would love to have that title.

In my children's school, there was a lot of pressure to sell. The kids that sold the most got praised publicly by their teachers.

I think that it is dangerous to expect children to go door to door selling items. Some of the kids who have come to my door had no parent with them, not even waiting on the sidewalk.

My son's last school told the kids to not go door to door but to get their parents to sell the items at their work! I hate when my friends' children ask me to buy overpriced items also.

I understand that schools need money but there has to be a better way.

I am not a fan of fundraisers either.

I work in a private school in NY and we have a headmaster.

 

[skeeter03]

Oh the fundraising.
It sucks we try and this we have to try harder to support our school as the government sees fit to give all its money to the stupid olympics and cut the PAC money in half this year - PAC money is what is used to pay for swimming for the kids and new sports equipment and electronics and such we wont have enough so we know that the fundraising is going to be really pushed this year.
but its hard to raise money we go to immediate/extended family but with over 7 kids in school all looking for money HA you dont get much. and it seems they all get it at the same time.
but we try............................

 

[mom'sfolly]

I hate fundraisers, and I'm glad that my school is doing a direct appeal this year; however, to put this into some perspective.

I pay taxes. I have friends who send their kids to private school. They pay far more than I pay in taxes, for each child. They must provide uniforms for their children. They also have to do fundraising, usually for a much larger amount of money than I do. Their children's school has no special ed, no talented and gifted program, no gym, no band, no school nurse, no cafeteria, no reading specialist, etc.

My elementary school PTA helps pay for things like: extra teacher education, more library books, shade awnings for the playground (Texas), extra PE equipment, math pentathalon, science kits, other enhancement activities, teacher appreciation and other things. Some of these things should be paid for by the district, but cannot be. This fundraising and effort gives OUR school additional programs and opportunities that other schools may not. Because the funds are raised by the PTA they are specific for the school where the funds are raised. My tax dollars go to the city and state. Due to the arcane funding system of Texas many of my tax dollars go out of district, to poorer schools. I like that some of my money can be directed through fundraising.

I hate the rewards system and I hate the a huge portion of the money goes to the company whose products are being sold. I would rather write a check to the PTA, buy my kid a dollar store item and not be asked for money for the rest of the year.

 

[saddina]

Just wanted to add:

Because of insurance, schools here no longer do bake sales or car washes. Bake sales because of food poisioning, car washes because or safety. The concern is that the district can be sued if either go bad, so they're out. Which is why we're left with things like pricey wrapping paper, tubs of half thawed cookie dough, and various over priced junk, those companies carry the insurance to cover fundraising incidents.

Last year Mr. Saddi and I spent $1200 in class supplies, between staples, and replacing science lab equiptment that was busted beyond repair. This year there was no budget for restocking the chemestry lab cabinet, and the budget is so far in the red it's bad. I can teach reading and history with a white board and last year's books, but are the chem students supposed to close thier eyes and imagine thier solutions in beakers? Often funding choices are done above the teacher/principal level and we're stuck with whatever funds the state/district sees fit to give us.

 

[Chickenmaven]

mom'sfolly :

I hate fundraisers...
I hate the rewards system and I hate the a huge portion of the money goes to the company whose products are being sold. I would rather write a check to the PTA, buy my kid a dollar store item and not be asked for money for the rest of the year.

I do write the check! And I write a note to the teacher (and CC the principal) asking them to please accept this check and understand that our family is active in other fundraising efforts. I would rather donate $$$ to an arts program or shelter or donate food to a pantry. I think it is really underhanded to exploit kids this way. When I hear parents bragging/whining about spending 6 hours on Sunday delivering purchases, I have to bite my tongue. They are fools to spend hours & hours & hours selling $1,000 worth of wrapping paper to net $60 bucks for the school. They are busting thier humps for the guy that owns the fundraising company!

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

My kids just came home with the fundraiser, I'm doing the check, love it, I just can't buy that junk $20 for 5 ft of paper, how much does the school really get.

 

[WriterofWords]

Try being the teacher that hands out the fund raiser and then has to explain that: No, the state does not cover everything, No, the Federal Govt. does not cover everything, No, all of your taxes do NOT go to the schools, No the fund raiser does NOT go to the teachers lounge so we can buy donuts, No, the school does not get 100% they get about 75%. Why do we have fund raisers? Because if we didn't we couldn't have all the little special things we do for our students that our lousy budgets don't cover.
Yes the District financial records are available on line for almost all districts, or you can ask for a hard copy of it at your district main office, it's available to the public.
In our district even if the kids sell one tiny little item, they get a prize. We don't push it hard like others do, and no not everyone has to participate, and no I can't buy something from every student who asks me, but I will something from one who has sold nothing.
I'm sorry it's such a horrible thing for you to deal with, it's no easier for us having to do it.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I am also doing the direct donation to the school this year. I just am not going to buy another $15 tub of greasy cookie dough or some other worthless bauble. I also am not interested in asking friends, relatives and co-workers to buy these expensive items when so many people are struggling to pay their bills. At my kids school the money raised by the fundraiser goes to each class room for field trips etc. so I would much rather just write them a check and have them get the whole amount instead of most of it going to the fundraising company.

 

[deb1]

I wonder if it would be possible simply to write a list of what each schools need funds for and ask parents to donate? It sounds like parents and teachers dislike the fund raisers anyway. That way the school gets a hundred percent of the donations.

I wonder how other countries handle this. Do their goverments give the schools more money then ours do?