Back to school means back to fundraising for PTO, PTA, and PTSA clubs and activities. If you’re stumped for fundraising ideas, try these four easy ways to spread awareness for your PTO, PTA or PTSA club and gather much-needed funds from in and around the community.
Stir Up School Spirit
Put the school’s name, motto and mascot on fun merchandise for students to wear and use while showing off their school spirit! Items like pens, pencils and rubber wrist bands are low-cost investments on which you can get big returns but don’t forget about popular high-ticket items like shirts, hats, tote bags, and backpacks.
Your PTA, PTSA, and or PTO can use sites like Spreadshirt and Custom Ink to create the products.
Once you’ve decided on which items to sell and you purchase the inventory, you can make them available for sale by:
• Setting up a table for students to “shop” at the school
• Sending home order forms for family members
• Getting a booth at a popular community event
If investing in the school merchandise upfront isn’t a possibility for your PTA, PTSA, or PTO club, you can always sell baked goods. Food items like cookies, cupcakes, candy, and even fresh fruit can be sold at high margins to make money for the school year!
Partner with Local Businesses
Many business owners are happy to support community causes, especially local schools.
Get in touch with well-known companies in your area and ask if they would be willing to host a special day or weekend during which a portion of sales go toward your PTA, PTSA, or PTO club fundraiser.
For example, a bookstore might donate 10% of all sales on history books to help raise money for a museum trip, or a shoe store could make donations from sneaker sales to help send your cross-country team to a national meet. Just about any small business can help raise funds for your PTA, PTSA, or PTO club.
Consider reaching out to small business owners who already have students in the school. They will usually show quick interest in helping out the PTA, PTSA, PTO or student club!
Take Advantage of Fast-Growing Feet
Younger kids tend to outgrow shoes almost overnight, leaving parents with unwanted collections of like-new and gently used shoes of all kinds. What better way to put them to good use than with an athletic-shoe drive fundraiser? Every pair you collect brings in money for your school or organization and helps someone in need.
When you partner up with an organization like GotSneakers, you’ll receive the funds you need to support your PTA, PTSA, PTO or kid’s club. Collecting sneakers for funds is simple. You simply collect unwanted athletic-shoes and send them to GotSneakers with provided pre-paid envelopes to GotSneakers. Once received, GotSneakers will pay you up to $3 per pair of sneakers you send in! Interested in signing up? Learn more about GotSneakers here.
Host a Themed Run
Themed charity runs are fun events designed to raise both awareness and money. Participants form teams and dress up according to the theme, such as superheroes or literary characters, and have friends and family members sponsor them with donations. You can usually host these on your school’s running track.
Invite the community to join in and remember to share lots of pictures on social media to encourage more contributions!
Start scheduling these fundraisers now to raise support throughout the year. Recruit kids, parents and volunteers to spread the word and help make your PTA, PTSA, PTO, or kid’s club fundraising a big success this school year!