School Fundraiser: What do I do???

[KalamazooMom]

My DD started kindergarten last week at the public school in our neighborhood. So far everything is going well and we have been very impressed with the teacher and the school. However, we're not even 2 weeks into the school year when they send the stuff home for us to go out and sell things to our friends and family! I know with the budget situation they need to raise money for extra things like field trips and sports, etc. and I'm all for supporting the school. However the thing I find the most maddening is that there was a whole separate brochure of the prizes kids can win for selling the most stuff-- the class that sells the most gets a pizza party, the kid that sells the most gets a DVD player, other prizes include stuffed animals-- my DD already said she wants to win the stuffed cow. I'm really disgusted by this approach. It's sponsered by the PTA, rather than the school itself. And all the slick stuff comes from the company, and I'm sure there are hundreds of other schools getting the same crap. It's sickening that they're doing this with 5 year olds, I think.

So my problem is how do I deal with this, and how much of a stink do I make? Do I write a letter expressing my disgust? If so will I be labelled as a crackpot parent? Do I just not participate and not say anything? Do I send a check to the PTA as a contribution with a note that says we have chosen not to participate? Do I buy one or 2 token things just so it seems like I and my kid are participating?

What have other people done?

[shelbean91]

We had the exact same thing, probably from the same company, for my kindergartener and my preschooler. I didn't do anything. Completely forgot about it. Dh isn't allowed to bring fundraisers to work- company policy and I couldn't sell alot with the marketing pitch of 'hey, do you want to buy some crap for much more than it's worth!!' :LOL

I think it's more for the bigger kids. I didn't say anything as we're in a school with almost 1200 kids and they do need fundraisers. I also considered buying a few inexpensive things to give as holiday gifts to the teachers and decided against it.

[kewb]

I hate that prize garbage. My oldest (7) Likes to look at the catalog of prizes but he knows that he is not allowed to go selling and that he is most likely not getting any of that stuff. I bring the fundraisers to work and a few co-workers and I buy something from each others fundraisers. I pick the prize before I hand it in. Most of the time my ds has forgotten there is even a prize.

[spero]

We don't do the fundraisers. I just send the stuff right back. I refuse to sell crap to nice people to fund expen$ive "Arts-in-Ed" programs that IMO are simply not necessary to the school learning environment. We used to call that stuff "field trips" when I was in school - and we each paid our own way.

[EFmom]

I pitch the literature into the recycling. I usually contact someone on the PTA and explain that corporate America can sell its own crap--it's not going to do it on the backs of my kids. But I'm happy to support the school, so I ask them if I can just send them a check and that usually works out. But I also hate the prize aspect of it as naturally my kids think they are missing out on something.

The PTA ladies will grudgingly take my money, but I might as well be speaking a foreign language about the commercial aspect of the fund raisers. I have asked repeatedly why they can't just send out a direct solitication letter at the beginning of the year and let those of us who are so inclined skip the fundraisers and still support the school. Honestly, I think some of these people have too much time on their hands and like organizing frozen pie sales.

[MelMel]

whatever happened to candy? now all my cousins and neighbors show up with wrapping paper and knick knack catalogs...MAYBE one or 2 have ones with icky expensive boxed nuts and fancy chocolates....but when i was little we had 'Worlds Finest' choc bars and they were soooooooooooooo good.

my grade and high schools were VERY poor private/religious schools and always had candy bar sales to get extra money. we didnt get prizes or anything.....it didnt really help anyway, becasue they are both closed now.

I wouldnt mind buying some of those candy bars, though...if someone showed up at my door....although i do think its kinda wack to have lil kids out peddling stuff for PTA.

[shelbean91]

Ours had about 6 booklets, some with crap (knicknacks), some with candy, some with cheese/sausage, some with candles. Basically something for everyone.

[BumbleBena]

Originally Posted by MelMel

whatever happened to candy? now all my cousins and neighbors show up with wrapping paper and knick knack catalogs...MAYBE one or 2 have ones with icky expensive boxed nuts and fancy chocolates....but when i was little we had 'Worlds Finest' choc bars and they were soooooooooooooo good.

I remember those! They were a buck apiece, and later they came out with chocolate covered almonds, caramels, mints... I think they cost $2, but it was still pretty reasonable.

When I taught high school, the kids would bring me catalogues full of the wrapping paper and candies. They were expensive, the paper was ugly, and you only got about 4 oz. of nuts/candy for $10. The music group actually brought me a catalogue of cheesecakes, some costing upwards of $35 apiece!

Whatever happened to bake sales? I loved being able to buy a Rice Krispie bar for fifty cents, and since the goods were all donated, the school got to keep all the money.

Personally, I would write a letter expressing my concerns. It is not your (YOUNG) child's responsibility to raise money by selling a bunch of overpriced crap for the sake of getting a cheap toy. I think it's appalling that this is even an option. JMO.

[KalamazooMom]

Originally Posted by shelbean91

Ours had about 6 booklets, some with crap (knicknacks), some with candy, some with cheese/sausage, some with candles. Basically something for everyone.

Yup, that sounds like what we got-- though I think there were 4 brochures. Lots of candles and wrapping paper, cheese and sausage, chocolates and peanut brittle, a few items of jewelry. Nothing anyone I know would need or want. Also, there's a link that you can buy stuff over the web so your friends and family that are far away can still participate (whoooppee), though, if people buy stuff over the web it doesn't count toward your kid's prize totals.

[shelbean91]

Originally Posted by BumbleBena

Whatever happened to bake sales? I loved being able to buy a Rice Krispie bar for fifty cents, and since the goods were all donated, the school got to keep all the money.

Many schools no longer allow home baked goods for safety reasons. You never know what a parent might want to slip to their kids.

[momsgotmilk4two]

Maybe I'm mean, but I'll just explain to ds that you have to sell a LOT to get those prizes and we don't know that many people. I'll tell him he can sell to us and his grandparents but that's it. Our neighbors all have kids of thier own who are hawking the same stuff, so I'm sure they don't want ds showing up at their doorstep with all that crap. I hate it when that happens to me. I feel bad turning the kids away, but what ever happened to the candy bars that were a buck or two? I will spend a buck or two, but I will not spend ten dollars or more on stuff out of a catalog or magazine subscriptions.

[2GR8KIDS]

Things aren't like they were when most of us were in PS. Public schools are truly struggling. This year the PTA of my son's school has to pay for custodial supplies INCLUDING TOILET PAPER! That's right, the school district can no longer supply toilet paper. So, we aren't just talking about paying for elaborate "extras" or field trips.

The appeal of these sales fundraisers is that the PTAs get to keep a large portion of the proceeds. My son's school has one of these "sell crap" fundraisers yearly and the PTA gets 50% of the proceeds. We have a ton of other types of fundraisers too. I think part of the rationale for not just asking people to write a check is that they want everyone (even the kids) to be aware of the financial situation and to be part of the solution, and they don't want the school to end up being financed by a few well-off families.

I think my son's school has tried to balance things by having only one selling fundraiser a year. If you are truly morally opposed, I'm sure your PTA would accept a check in lieu of participating. Also, I don't think anyone (even PTA ladies) likes these fundraisers, so perhaps instead of just offering criticism you could come up with an idea for an alternative fundraiser and volunteer to help organize it. As for prizes, I buy a few rolls of wrapping paper, and do what PPs have said- explain to my son that we won't go door to door. Among family, we each usually purchase a roughly equivalent amount from each cousin's fundraiser.

Part of me would love to sell this junk door to door and, when someone gives me grief, tell them to VOTE TO RAISE TAXES, for heaven's sake. Oh well.

[CarrieMF]

It's sponsered by the PTA, rather than the school itself.

So have you(or anyone else complaining about these fundraisers) joined the PTA to try and get them stopped from the inside?

How much money does the PTA get for doing these things and how much of that goes towards school functions?

The school here does not do any fundraisers other than the ones which raise money for various groups like MS, Cancer, etc Most sports teams and other groups around here do sell chocolates, cookies, etc.

The Parents Group here raises money through 1 hot lunch a month(we have no cafeteria). That's usually the only money raising thing they do throughout the year. The Leadership club(grade 6 students), Band, or other groups of children within the school will hold bakesales(with homebaked goods, or foods that the kids have cooked in the kitchen at school). They're having one next week to raise money for cancer research.

In my hometown the highschool did the magazine sales. They never did anything like that in the elementary school, I don't know if they even did bake sales in elementary. In the highschool they do have a sort of cafeteria now, it's basically a small room with a window to order through and they get subs and snacks. The different clubs & sports teams would hold bake sales to raise money for their travel expenses IF they had to stay in a hotel.

[dziejen]

While fundraisers are nothing new here (oldest dd is in her 5th yr of public school) this year I am pretty discouraged because it is a Kathryn Beich fundraiser which is a distributor of Nestle products : In the past I have bought one or two items for gifts for the holidays for others but this year I am going to skip it. I do feel badly since they get the kids revved up about the prizes but honestly it is not in our budget anyways even if it was a company that I considered ok. I explain to dd and hope she will understand. I guess I feel ok not buying because I do volunteer my time at school and there are numerous fundraisers throughout the year. I really like the ones that aren't selling such as our yearly school carnival but they are much more work to put on and require volunteers and donations of food and time. One of my friends has sent checks rather than participate in the fundraisers (we probably would if we had the $$ right now) and they schools willingly accept this. Plus sending in a $20 donation gives the school 100% profit rather than the 40-50% from selling items. Glad that your daughter's first year is going well otherwise though, KalamazooMom!

[kewb]

As a matter of fact, I am a voting member of my PTO and I have come up with alternative fundraisers to selling overpriced wrapping paper:

We need to buy new playground equipment so I came up with our most successful fund raiser to date: We sponsered a golf outing. I also suggested a few that they are hoping to implement this year: Have the art teacher have each class work on a project and then they can be auctioned at family events, arrange a Family Photo Day with the school photographer. For $12 you get a 10 x 13 print (with the option to buy a package). Around here the photographers usually want a guarantee of x amount of families and the school gets a percentage. Usually any families over the guarantee amount the school gets all the money. I also like the Yankee Candle FUndraisers but they require a lot of work on the backend.

I do like the idea of foregoing purchasing the wrapping paper and just making a donation.

[oceanbaby]

Originally Posted by shelbean91

Many schools no longer allow home baked goods for safety reasons. You never know what a parent might want to slip to their kids.

That is so sad. What kind of world are we living in, when we tell kids they can't bake things for safety reasons but then send them out to hawk future landfill? Please tell me that this is not the norm.

[CarrieMF]

We need to buy new playground equipment

Have you contacted the city about helping with the funding? Here the playgrounds in all the schools have been being upgraded and the city is forking over a portion of the cost because it is is public property.

[kewb]

I will check with the PTO President if he has checked with the govenment. Thank you for the idea.

[LunaMom]

I can't stand those wrapping paper/candy fundraisers. I just read an article about the Sally Foster fundraisers (probably the biggest one of them all), and it turns out that the CEO of Sally Foster was the second highest-paid CEO in the country last year, making something along the lines of $158,000,000. No, that's not a typo, there are really six zeros. So the school gets about 50% of the profits, and the rest goes to make some guy very, very wealthy. I think it's just a terrible exploitation.

I'm very happy to bake for bake sales or simply make a donation, because all of the money made from those fundraisers goes back into the school.


If my daughter is upset because of the prizes (and a lot of schools have a whole assembly to kick off thse fundraisers, where they showcase all the huge prizes that nobody ever wins because you have to sell six zillion candy bars to win them), so be it. We don't need a cheap plastic ruler with a picture of Scooby-Doo on it as a prize for pressuring our friends and family into buying crap they don't need.

[Starr]

I'm sad to say that I am a sucker for fundraising..when it is done right. Our local school volleyball team was trying to raise money for new equipment and was selling pies, at $13 a piece, but they are really big pies... Anyway my neighbor girl came over and approached me in person and explained why they were fundraising and what they would be purchasing, how much money they made on each pie and so on. So yes I bought one from her. In my opinion when you are involved in an extra curricular activity and are fundrasing at least have enough sense to go out on your own and fundraise not have your parents bring it to work and try to get people to buy.

Don't know what to say about fundrasing at such a young age though, thats not done around here. Obviously a 5 yr old can't sell stuff so it then falls on the parent. I would call and ask what the money is for and exactly who is supose to campaign.