School fundraisers....I HATE them.

[MoniqueU]

We don't participate in the school fundraisers for our public school kids. If they cut the field trips out all together that would be more then fine with me. The current principal who is a witch IMHO and wears the same yellow blazer to every school even we have decided no more out of county fundraisers. I live in a county that boarders Orange County California and San Diego County California, both great places with tons of neat things to do for field trips. Our county the best they could come up with is a farm. We used to go to Knotts and Sea World and some cool museums now it is farms that the kids complain about. So no I am not busting my butt to sell some fundraiser and then getting charged 15 bucks additional to have my kid go on the field trip. The fundraiser also helps pay for 6th grade science camp for the kids. My DD is in 6th this year and absolutely doesn't want to go with no hair straightener and no in room showers for a week or them allowing her to bring her music and phone with internet. I don't blame her I wouldn't want to go either, we aren't campers and she is at that age where her hair and clothes mean alot to her.
And OP I completely agree on your first post about school funding. I know what I pay for private high school for my son and it is probably thousands less then the public schools spend yet the education is top notch and there aren't 2000 kids all trying to eat lunch during 2 periods and the drugs and racial tensions and downright snobbiness of the kids. We live in what the people call the trash with cash neighborhood of our city. Higher incomes, rotten snotty kids.
I participate in the fundraisers at my sons school because I knew up front what I was getting myself into and most of them are for football. We are only responsible for another 200 in fundraising for the rest of the year and 100 of it can be for the wine tasting event they have in the spring. WINE TASTING Oh yeah that is my kind of fundraiser. I am so pro voucher system it isn't even funny. I think the teachers unions are running the education system into the ground. We have had both good and bad teachers at both public and private but the ones at the private don't last long. Tenure is the biggest detriment to the students I have ever seen. My MIL is a big Teachers Union Rep and she claims they can fire teachers for cause but never once have I heard of that happening here and we have some really crazy teachers currently at my girls elementary.

 

[smidgy]

I'm sorry the OP has to deal with the public school system, when she is not used to doing so. but since her child is benefiting from said system (for whatever reason) : you reap the benefits, you also pay the price. no free ride.
yeah, I know, fund raisers are a pain in the butt. as a grandma who used to be a pto mom, soccer mom, current moose lodge member, current VFW member.... they NEVER END!!! It's the volunteers who get out there that make things happen!!
Hubby and I NEVER bothered our friends or coworkers, bugging them to buy overpriced wrapping paper or "bins'o'nuts". but the dollar bars of chocolate for sports... hubby always put the box out at work with a sign ... they went like hotcakes. (the other stuff, we just contributed without selling)
also...who wants to pay for a bunch of kids to wash your car when you can do a MUCH better job yourself? but we do it anyways, cause it's for a good cause, and we teach the kids washing the cars a valuable lesson... volunteerism.
lots of the "extra" stuff the kids at public schools enjoy (dances, field days, etc) isn't in the school budget... hence... fund raisers. If your child wants to participate, it would be seemly to also participate in the fund raising. If , like us, you're uncomfortable asking friends, then just donate the amount.

a funny "aside"... at the VFW, there are ALWAYS raffles. well, they went back in the archives and found an item where there was a picnic/fundraiser in the 1930's? (I think). and back in those times, they also added that there was a baby no one wanted, if anyone wanted to adopt the baby. (I know, sounds crazy, but consider the times!)
one of our VFW members stated, "since it was the VFW, they probably "raffled" the baby off!
ok, it was a JOKE!!
as long as there are people willing to volunteer their time, and as long as there is a NEED, there will always be fundraisers. pick and choose your charities. and God bless the people willing to donate their time, and God bless the people willing to donate their money.

 

[smidgy]

. The fundraiser also helps pay for 6th grade science camp for the kids. My DD is in 6th this year and absolutely doesn't want to go with no hair straightener and no in room showers for a week or them allowing her to bring her music and phone with internet. I don't blame her I wouldn't want to go either, we aren't campers and she is at that age where her hair and clothes mean alot to her.
.

I really am at a loss as to what to respond to this.

all I can say is... this is a young lady who would GREATLY benefit from participating in some "fundraisers".. such as .. volunteering at a soup kitchen, or gathering extra clothes for the needy, or collecting Toys for Tots., or.. helping out with the "make a Wish Foundation". she is young enough where, if you help her participate in these things, she will grow up into a beautiful young woman who doesn't think the world revolves around her.

and, of COURSE, a young girl her age is concerned about her hair and clothes.
(those middle school years, all those hormones ,those are the toughest!). THIS is the time to teach her about concern for others. you do this, and she will be beautiful inside AND out.

 

[smidgy]

PS. I AGREE about the stupid overpriced wrapping paper, etc. at least sell something people want!

and I HATED when my boys went door to door, and stood outside the grocery store hours on end.... to vie for "THE PRIZE" ... and then some other kid's dad owned a company, and sold 1000 boxes of candy in one week!!!

why not just say "we're having a contest again.. and Tommy Jones is going to get the bicycle(again)"

hate to sound wishy washy, but fundraisers are neccessary.. volunteers are neccessary. maybe redo the way they work. a way to teach kids to volunteer , just because "it's the right thing to do". instead of "top" prizes, the more everyone raises, the bigger the party.

 

[aprilgail2]

I really am at a loss as to what to respond to this.

all I can say is... this is a young lady who would GREATLY benefit from participating in some "fundraisers".. such as .. volunteering at a soup kitchen, or gathering extra clothes for the needy, or collecting Toys for Tots., or.. helping out with the "make a Wish Foundation". she is young enough where, if you help her participate in these things, she will grow up into a beautiful young woman who doesn't think the world revolves around her.

and, of COURSE, a young girl her age is concerned about her hair and clothes.
(those middle school years, all those hormones ,those are the toughest!). THIS is the time to teach her about concern for others. you do this, and she will be beautiful inside AND out.

 

[BuckNaked]

I'm the PTO president at my son's small Catholic school, and we have 3 fundraisers per year - wrapping paper (just finished), a 5K in November and a silent auction in the spring. While part of our funds go to "extras", the bulk of the money we raise goes directly to the school to supplement their operating budget. The PTO's committment this year is $4,000/month or $40,000 for the school year.

So yes, we offer rewards to the kids that sell the most wrapping paper - kids that sold more than 30 items get lunch out with the principal (donated by the principal), for every 5 items sold, a ticket is dropped in for a weekly drawing, and the top 5 sellers get a limo ride to Chuck E Cheese for lunch.

Having said that, I don't buy the stuff - I write a check directly to the PTO, because we get all the money that way. Many parents don't participate at all, and that's fine too.

In short, if you don't want to do it, don't.

 

[Pigeon]

We don't do fundraisers, either. We write a honking big check to the PTA on back to school night and we are done. Corporate America can sell its own overpriced crap. They aren't going to use my kids as an unpaid sales force to do it. By doing a direct contribution, the PTA gets 100% of the money and Sally Foster gets squat. It's all good.

I do think that the marketing assemblies to get the kids spun up to sell crap to win "prizes" is nothing short of obscene, and I'm not shy about complaining. Every year we get several nastygrams sent home about how precious educational contact time is, so please don't schedule medical appointments during school. They lost me on that one the first time they started squandering contact times on fundraiser assemblies.

 

[TruBlu]

I am VP of our PTSA. We have fundraisers to help with extras for the children. We help pay for kids who can't afford to go on field trips, extra playground equipment, an ice cream for each child on their birthday, etc. We work REALLY hard. We do this mostly for other kids in the school. We know that OUR kids are going to get to go on the field trips, but we want to make sure that ALL kids get to go. The fundraisers are to help the children, not to bug the parents. We don't force anyone to participate. It is completely optional.

 

[TruBlu]

and I'm not shy about complaining.

But do you actually HELP your PTA? We have lots of people who complain and "suggest" but NEVER help us. (I'm not saying that you do this. I'm just speaking from my personal experience.)

We also hated the catalog sales, so we changed our fundraiser this year to a read-a-thon. We still need to raise the funds, but this way the kids actually are doing something we feel good about.

If you get involved you CAN make postitve changes.

 

[TruBlu]

They spend a whole day singing the praises of these programs,

Wow, your school devotes a WHOLE DAY to promoting fundraisers? I'd be upset about that, too.

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

We don't participate in the school fundraisers for our public school kids. If they cut the field trips out all together that would be more then fine with me. The current principal who is a witch IMHO and wears the same yellow blazer to every school even we have decided no more out of county fundraisers. I live in a county that boarders Orange County California and San Diego County California, both great places with tons of neat things to do for field trips. Our county the best they could come up with is a farm. We used to go to Knotts and Sea World and some cool museums now it is farms that the kids complain about. So no I am not busting my butt to sell some fundraiser and then getting charged 15 bucks additional to have my kid go on the field trip. The fundraiser also helps pay for 6th grade science camp for the kids. My DD is in 6th this year and absolutely doesn't want to go with no hair straightener and no in room showers for a week or them allowing her to bring her music and phone with internet. I don't blame her I wouldn't want to go either, we aren't campers and she is at that age where her hair and clothes mean alot to her.
And OP I completely agree on your first post about school funding. I know what I pay for private high school for my son and it is probably thousands less then the public schools spend yet the education is top notch and there aren't 2000 kids all trying to eat lunch during 2 periods and the drugs and racial tensions and downright snobbiness of the kids. We live in what the people call the trash with cash neighborhood of our city. Higher incomes, rotten snotty kids.
I participate in the fundraisers at my sons school because I knew up front what I was getting myself into and most of them are for football. We are only responsible for another 200 in fundraising for the rest of the year and 100 of it can be for the wine tasting event they have in the spring. WINE TASTING Oh yeah that is my kind of fundraiser. I am so pro voucher system it isn't even funny. I think the teachers unions are running the education system into the ground. We have had both good and bad teachers at both public and private but the ones at the private don't last long. Tenure is the biggest detriment to the students I have ever seen. My MIL is a big Teachers Union Rep and she claims they can fire teachers for cause but never once have I heard of that happening here and we have some really crazy teachers currently at my girls elementary.

Perfect example of why I am changing my mind about supporting vouchers.

Quick question, how does wearing a yellow blazer relate to fundraising or even a child's education?

Downright snobbiness of kids in public school? Yet your daughter doesn't want to go on the class trip because she can't bring her curling iron and all her expensive electronics? Pot meet kettle.

 

[Pigeon]

But do you actually HELP your PTA? We have lots of people who complain and "suggest" but NEVER help us. (I'm not saying that you do this. I'm just speaking from my personal experience.)

We also hated the catalog sales, so we changed our fundraiser this year to a read-a-thon. We still need to raise the funds, but this way the kids actually are doing something we feel good about.

If you get involved you CAN make postitve changes.

Dh tried to get involved with the PTA. It was a complete non-starter. The little clique of Ladies Who Lunch don't play nicely with others. The very idea of trying a direct appeal was a personal affront to this group, where the members seem to derive a sense of self-worth from peddling frozen pies and overpriced cookie dough.

As for complaining, I don't think squandering educational time is the PTA's call. They may request assemblies for fundraiser brainwashing purposes, but it is ultimately the administration's call as to how children spend their time, so it is to the administration that I direct my opinions on that particular issue.

 

[TruBlu]

Dh tried to get involved with the PTA. It was a complete non-starter. The little clique of Ladies Who Lunch don't play nicely with others. The very idea of trying a direct appeal was a personal affront to this group, where the members seem to derive a sense of self-worth from peddling frozen pies and overpriced cookie dough.

Our PTA is NOTHING like that. We are a bunch of concerned parents hoping to make a small difference in the life of a child. Many of us work full time 40+ hour a week jobs (myself and the Pres. included). We volunteer what little extra time we have. I do "lunch", but it is usually from a brown bag at my desk.

 

[castleview]

I do think that the marketing assemblies to get the kids spun up to sell crap to win "prizes" is nothing short of obscene, and I'm not shy about complaining. .

Fortunately for me, a few parents did complain about the assemblies and the superintendent got rid of them. I am grateful for these ladies.

And to the poster who thinks teachers unions are a detriment to the education system, I think the biggest detriment is parents who would allow they're children to skip important academic events over a hair straightener!

 

[sdarwkcabemanmy]

We just turned in DS's first official school fundraiser on Friday. It was a lot of JUNK..I think we ended up selling three things.

The part that made me really mad was the prizes. The 'prizes' were not appropriate for his age level. The first level (which is all he would get) is a pen that comes with a scoll thing that you pull out. Imprinted on the scroll are different IM shorthand codes like LOL, ROTFLMAO, etc. He's 4 1/2..he doesn't even know what IM is.