School Fundraisers

What is the Fund for Public Education’s Role in TCSD School Fundraisers?

 

We collaborate closely with TCSD to support TCSD school fundraisers that support specific clubs, sports, schools and so much more. FPE helps ensure all school fundraisers follow TCSD policies and accounting procedures with tax receipt documentation, coordinates approval from the appropriate leaders (principals through the TCSD#1 Board of Trustees depending on the financial goal). We offer online systems for raffle tickets, donations, credit card processing and so much more.

How to Host a School Fundraiser

Please read the drop down menu for each step carefully so you understand the approval process and timelines.

  • Good fundraising always starts with a real problem that you’d like to address and an outcome that you’d like to achieve. The problem should be one that can’t be addressed through your school’s site budget or other district funds, and the outcome should be one that impacts the TCSD#1 community as broadly as possible. A great example: Many local students don’t meet the criteria for federal free and reduced lunch, but still face food insecurity. That’s an unmet need. Our outcome goal is to ensure that every child in need has access to free meals.

  • Your financial goal should always been realistic and transparent. In the example above, we use district food service data to estimate the cost of all those free meals, including the cost of the food, its preparation, packaging, and distribution. Be honest about what you need to achieve the outcome that you want.

  • TCSD#1 and the Fund for Public Education partner to enable easy, professionally managed fundraisers that fit different needs:

    • General Donations: Donors can give any amount to support the school, project, club, or team of their choice, over any period of time. This is great way for donors to invest in the programs that they love most.

    • Peer to Peer: Donors can choose to support specific students taking part in a larger event. This includes events like read-a-thons, art contests, etc. It’s a great way for kids to engage their families and friends in support of a good cause.

    • Ticketed Events: Donors can purchase a ticket for a one-time event. This is a wonderful way to raise community support by showcasing students’ talents.

    • Sales: Donors can purchase items or services in support of our schools. This includes car washes, bake sales, craft sales, etc. It’s a great way for kids to engage with the community.

    • Raffles: Donors can buy tickets for a chance to win a special prize. By law, raffles are required to follow specific rules that other types of fundraisers are not subject to. If you apply to do a raffle on behalf of TCSD#1, you’ll receive special instructions on how to solicit and receive raffle prizes.

    • Auctions: Donors bid on items. Auctions can be very time consuming and don’t typically pay off as well as other types of fundraisers. We strongly discourage auctions if the items’ individual worth is less than $10,000 each.

  • Look for a time of year that gives you enough time to adequately plan your fundraiser, that works well for students and for the community, and that doesn’t overlap with other fundraisers.

  • Every school fundraiser is subject to the same financial approvals and processes as any other financial transaction within TCSD#1. This ensures equity and transparency. To gain approval, you will need to submit a brief application, which will ask for your goals and other basic information about your fundraiser. Depending upon the amount of your financial goal, this then goes through a series of approvals.

    • Financial Goals up to $2k: Approval of principal

    • Financial Goals from $2k to $5k: Approval of principal and FPE ED

    • Financial Goals from $5k to $10k: Approval of principal, FPE ED, and TCSD ED of Resources

    • Financial Goals from $10k to $25k: Approval of principal, FPE ED, TCSD ED of Resources, and Superintendent

    • Financial Goals of $25k and greater: Approval of TCSD#1 Board of Trustees and FPE Board of Directors

    Applications for fundraisers under $25k can typically be approved in 1-2 weeks. Applications for fundraiser greater than $25k may take up to one month to approve. Please plan accordingly.

  • Once approved, your fundraiser will be set up on our online platform, Rally Up. As a fundraising leader, you’ll have access to the back-end of your fundraiser page, will be able to see where you’re at relative to your goals, and will be able to share updates with donors.

  • For donors to support your fundraiser, they need to know about it. We’ll help you spread the word through press kits, social media, and district outreach.

  • The money raised by your fundraiser goes into a special account, that is then available for you to spend on the tools and services needed to meet you outcome goal.

Frequently Asked Questions

    • Any TCSD#1 staff member

    • Any coach, leader, or chaperone of a TCSD#1 club, activity, or team

    • Parents and guardians of TCSD#1 students

    • All school fundraisers must run through the TCSD#1/FPE system (exceptions may be made for our community partners including Bronc Backers and PTOs)

    • All school fundraisers must be approved prior to launch; you can submit an application for approval here

    • School fundraisers must directly benefit TCSD#1 schools and students, and must adhere to district equity guidelines

    • Any fundraising materials that use the TCSD#1 logo, the Fund for Public Education logo, or images of students must be approved prior to release

    • General Donations: Donors can give any amount to support the school, project, club, or team of their choice, over any period of time. This is great way for donors to invest in the programs that they love most.

    • Peer to Peer: Donors can choose to support specific students taking part in a larger event. This includes events like read-a-thons, art contests, etc. It’s a great way for kids to engage their families and friends in support of a good cause.

    • Ticketed Events: Donors can purchase a ticket for a one-time event. This is a wonderful way to raise community support by showcasing students’ talents.

    • Sales: Donors can purchase items or services in support of our schools. This includes car washes, bake sales, craft sales, etc. It’s a great way for kids to engage with the community.

    • Raffles: Donors can buy tickets for a chance to win a special prize. By law, raffles are required to follow specific rules that other types of fundraisers are not subject to. If you apply to do a raffle on behalf of TCSD#1, you’ll receive special instructions on how to solicit and receive raffle prizes.

    • Auctions: Donors bid on items. Auctions can be very time consuming and don’t typically pay off as well as other types of fundraisers. We strongly discourage auctions if the items individual worth is less than $10,000.

  • TCSD#1 and FPE do not allow:

    • Individual crowdfunding (such as GoFundMe or Patreon)

    • Social media fundraisers (including Facebook)

    • Fundraisers that rely upon images of students to raise funds, or which potentially expose students’ personal information

  • Fundraisers cannot be used to pay for:

    • Cash awards or payments to individuals

    • Salaries for staff, including coaches and teachers

    • Facilities improvements not directed by TCSD#1 leadership

  • TCSD#1 and the Fund for Public Education support fundraisers August through May. You will need to apply at least 30 days in advance.

  • All fundraisers require district approval. This ensures that district financial policies are followed, that fundraisers remain equitable and transparent, and that everyone—donors, students, staff, and families—all have a positive experience.

  • The application itself is quick and easy. The approval process depends on the level of your financial goal and can take anywhere from one week to one month; please plan accordingly.

  • There is a 12.5% administrative fee that is attached to school fundraisers housed on the Rally Up platform.

    Please note that donations made directly to the Fund for Public Education or through the Donate button on our website, do not incur any fees.

    So why do we use Rally Up for school-based fundraisers? The short answer is that fundraising can be an expensive, time-consuming business. The Fund employs a team of full-time professionals who raise more than $1 million annually for programs across the district with very low administrative costs. We can do this because our efforts are concentrated through a handful of efficient campaigns.

    School fundraisers, on the other hand, are about raising money, but they’re also about providing students with opportunities to connect with the community and opportunities to learn. This makes it difficult to combine them into efficient campaigns while maintaining the sense of connection and involvement that is so essential. And it leaves us with dozens of school fundraisers that must be individually managed at significant expense. We find the best way to keep costs low, while giving the best opportunities to kids and the greatest impact for donors, is to handle these school-based fundraisers through an online platform. We use Rally Up, a proven platform that is well-loved by teachers, coaches, and donors. The associated fee pays for the online fundraising platform, the credit card processing fees, and the accounting services that are required to make school-based fundraisers work. Most of this is covered through a service fee paid by the donor at the time they make their gift. By paying the service fee, the donor helps ensure that your fundraiser directly benefits kids and doesn’t pull resources away from other essential programs.

  • The Fund for Public Education is a 501(c)3 nonprofit school foundation and all gifts we receive are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. The deductibility of raffle tickets and auction items is dependent upon the value of the prize, the number of tickets purchased, and/or the amount bid. Donors are always welcome to contact us for more information.

  • Your funds are typically available within 48 hours of the end of your fundraiser. They are placed in a special account and can be accessed by your school’s administrative team, or by the district activities team, through our Donor Designated Funds form.

  • The Fund for Public Education is here to support you. Have fun, and together we can make great things happen for kids and schools.