Fundraising News - coach resigns after report of missing funds

Fundraising News - coach resigns after report of missing funds

One thing that doesn't seem to change is fundraising money being stolen.  The thing it, it doesn't need to be stolen from your elementary school, middle school, high school, team or group!

Think safeguards. Think checks & balances.  Think preventative maintenance.

If there ever was a time to take a step back and determine if you have systems in place to avoid theft, it's RIGHT NOW!  The short answer is that there is no right time to think it through, but plenty of potential wrong times.

Stealing is a crime of opportunity.  If you want to stop it, you have to remove that opportunity.  That means that there is accountability sufficient enough to prohibit someone from believing they can get away with it for any length of time.

I have noticed that when a theft seems hard to get away with in the short term, the theft will not happen.  So, make accountability swift!  

Top 3 suggestions for safeguarding school fundraising money:

1) Have a two-person accountability team for every monetary transaction!
2) Do not allow cash to be held overnight and do not allow cash to pile up at events.
3) Have regular audits of all bank accounts, deposits & withdrawals and credit cards.

Oh wait, there's on more thing... Keep an online ledger of all fundraising activities purchases and income.  I suggest google docs for this.  Keep track of every event so that you have a fiscal record.  But, this serves a number of benefits to your group.  You will see which events worked best and have an accounting of profits vs. expenses so you know how to plan your upcoming fundraisers. 

Hey, with that I bid adieu. KEEP THAT FUNDRAISING CASH SAFE FOLKS!

Ok, until next time.

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school fundraisers

Embezzlement Happens - Resources and Articles for PTA PTO parent groups - Prevent PTA Theft!

Most likely, every school across the country as well as PTA's and PTO's will be handling large amounts of cash and will certainly have checkbooks and bank accounts.  Anything from a band concert, concession stand, school carnival or product fundraiser to writing checks for supplies or paying vendors is an opportunity.

With all this fiscal 'stuff' comes exposure to theft and embezzlement - an opportunity for a criminal act to occur.  Every school needs stringent rules and procedures when it comes to handling money and bank accounts in order to minimize risk.

Here are a few resources that can help you, your PTA or PTO and entire school limit risk of theft and embezzlement.  So, the next time that you host a car wash, fundraising carnival, fun run, rummage sale, school dance, safety fair or any other event that involves money or making or receiving payments, you'll be better equipped to keep everyone and funds safe!

Preventing Theft: Why It's Crucial

PREVENTING THEFT IN YOUR PTA

TIPS TO PREVENT THEFT IN YOUR PTA

Hopefully you enjoy the content found here and share what you've found with other PTA and PTO members as well as administrators and principals alike. There's a lot to gain from safe, smart fiscal management and money handling. Thanks for taking a look!
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Although, that last paragraph really ends this blog post, I have one more article to pass on. I didn't include it in with the list above because it doesn't really have schools in mind. The info is good and important though so, if you have a minute, give it a look...

Embezzlement Happens. It’s What Charities Do Next That Matters

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Jay Moneta is the Vice President of Believe Kids a school fundraising company supplying school fundraising catalogs to elementary schools nationwide. I love comments on my blog so please leave a comment good or bad below or follow Believe Kids at twitter.com/believekids or facebook.com/believekidsfundraising

Thanks for looking and if you get a chance, tell someone about this blog - believejay.blogspot.com

Do Students Know Where School Valuables & Cash are Kept for Safe Keeping?

Schools need a safe place to keep money.

Perhaps from fundraising efforts or petty cash or funds from ticket sales or other events. It's pretty much a fact nowadays that there will be some need for safekeeping in schools for a variety of reasons.

So, why is it that stories about stolen money continue to surface such as this one where $1,000 was stolen... I could probably find hundreds of additional examples with a bit of research as well. Take a look:

Thieves steal school kids' fundraising money

This type of thing basically resonates with me in two ways:

1) Keep all valuables in a safe and limit access to just two accountable people - then record them.

2) Prevent anyone who does not keep their valuables in the safe from complaining or otherwise going to the press or police when things go bad.

Prevention is pretty darn easy. A heavy safe, memorized combination by principal and a third party that is responsible for checking things in and out and keeping a log of contents. Maybe even have a two signature policy on the log when items are checked in or out.

Keep the safe hidden from students and watch out for hidden cameras from resourceful students that want the combination.

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Side note: Aren't there night deposits at banks where businesses leave their daily sales? Huh. Maybe a policy by which all money collected over $100 needs to be put in a drop box immediately without ever staying at the school. To the best of my knowledge anyone can make a deposit easily with just a deposit slip.

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Back to the safe and camera idea - here you have two potential security risks: the principal and the third party. Put a security camera on there in case you really want to know if someone other than the designated two have accessed the safe. Make this hosting of video files elsewhere so they can't be tampered with.

If you want to get really tricky, record the safe without the knowledge of the two folks in charge of the safe :)

Bada bing!

Anyone who get's their fundraising money stolen from then on who doesn't check it into the safe is out of luck and they should not turn that crime in to police. Just sweep that theft quitly under the rug.

If you know you will have large amounts of cash on-hand, have a plan, then have a backup plan, have insurance, hire a security guard if needed. Just make sure you don't leave large amounts of money around in a compromising location - EVER!

Don't let students follow the cash around and don't leave them in charge of it. Don't let them count it. Don't keep thousands of dollars in one location where a thief can walk up and snatch it:

Teen Suspected in Fundraising Event Theft

I bet the thieves in both of these stories saw that money go into the 'hiding place' it was stolen from which means that in both cases, these thefts were completely avoidable.

If you leave your fundraising or event money laying around for people to follow you are creating a temptation. A temptation can become a crime very easily from that point if there are no real barriers remaining to them having the money.

Create barriers!

• Plans to hide money are barriers
• Safes are barriers
• A few hand-selected people in charge are barriers
• Recording devices are barriers
• Security guards are barriers

If you don't do some of these suggestions or even consult an expert, when money is stolen, the story shouldn't be about the awful criminal that needs to be brought to justice. Hey, I am not even remotely saying that I condone the thefts and I absolutely know it's wrong any way you cut it.



But if you make it this easy, the story should be about how you failed to protect the money.

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Jay Moneta is the Vice President of Believe Kids Fundraising. I am not a security expert, nor am I even up to snuff on security policies at schools. I also don't know all of the details involving these cases so if my facts are inaccurate I apologize. I really feel that in many ways, schools and groups should take their responsibilities up a notch in areas such as this. If you read blogs and news stories, you will see this type of thing over and over again. I sincerely hope that one person changes the way they think about how to protect themselves from theft at their school - just one.

Thanks for the opportunity. I can be reached on twitter - twitter.com/BelieveKids or via comment on this website. If you like what you read here, please pass on a link to this site - www.believejay.blogspot.com

Thanks!

School Fundraisers that Flop! How to Avoid Fundrasing Efforts that Don't Perform..

Have you been involved with a failed endeavor?

Have you thrown a great party only to be disappointed at the turnout? Have you had a garage sale only to make just a few dollars? Have you wasted your money on a purchase of a product that you didn't particularly want or need? As a child did you play an instrument or sport that you didn't excel at and your interest just fizzled? Have you thrown away perfectly good food because it sat too long unopened?

Yes, we've pretty much all done a number of these things. All these examples, even though they are quite varied, all have a common thread:

We've all done things that don't quite turn out.

So, as a school administrator, PTA or PTO member, coach or group leader, you're responsible for offering fundraisers for your group. But it's not as easy as it seems. It is actually quite easy to take on school fundraising efforts that flop!

After all, you've got to manage the interests of students, parents, administrators and the community. You've got to educate or have fun or make money depending on a particular goal. You've also got to consider ego and politics and manage volunteers. The thing is, you can't make everyone happy and you and your group needs to arrive at a goal that is best for the group, not every special interest in that group.

What's more is that everyone tends to complain about what is working and demand things that are new and different. It's hard to make everyone happy!

OMG! How do you do it?

How do you go about hosting effective fundraising efforts without creating confusion, a burden for parents or too much work for the PTA, PTO or parent volunteers?

• Have a goal!

Simplify the process by discussing amongst the group what the motive is. If it's the most money you can raise in a short amount of time, air it out. If it's to entertain kids or educate parents on safety or to create a re-occuring event or consistent income stream, you're better off knowing what your main objective is before you go much further.

You may want to draw a diagram that estimates the financial reward of the activities the group is considering and see how many fundraisers you will actually need to reach your goal. If your goal is to have one fundraiser per semester, then work within that constraint to make that one fundraiser the best it can be!

• Keep it simple!

The overall goal is to create a sense of community and inclusion amongst parents. Your calling here is to not overwhelm parents or the community with offers or requests. If parents at the school feel hit up for money too often, they will rebel and skip out on fundraisers. I've noticed this quite a bit as schools try to do more and more to make up for missing money. It backfires and schools get less support overall including volunteer hours in the classroom as a result. Consider balance here and keep it simple!

• Consider your reputation!

Yes, you are likely a group of volunteers. No, you don't have to be organized as one. Keep your reputation intact by picking simple projects and then working hard to support each individual area of that simple project. Try to avoid picking complicated endeavors unless you are positive you can tackle each individual action area with excellence.

• The devil's in the details!

Once you have decided on one primary goal or mission, work out the details. If, for instance, your goal is to have an amazingly effective fall gift catalog, calendar and organize your thoughts around marketing that particular fundraiser to the students, parents, faculty and community. Make sure you have areas of promotion covered. You will want to create copy for the newsletter and principal's email list for example. These two areas just mentioned could improve your fundraiser substantially so don't get to the end of the fundraiser and think to yourself, boy I really should have mentioned the fundraiser in the school newsletter.

So, to wrap this thing up, let me just say that I believe PTA's, PTO's and other groups have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders. Schools really need a simple parent group that can handle just a few things with excellence.

School fundraising is one of those things a parent group can excel at. If a parent group can maximize revenue on just a few fundraisers that work and not take huge chances on fundraisers that will flop, everyone wins!

Have a plan, keep it simple, consider your reputation, calendar your promotions and pay close attention to the details. Consulting a professional is also a good idea but you can read a lot of information online these days that will give you helpful hints.

If you have a simple fundraiser and you get the word out effectively you will have a streamlined and effective process that will create fundraising successes over and over again.

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Jay Moneta is the Vice President of Believe Kids Fundraising. I encourage comments of any kind here on my blog and I can also be reached via twitter - twitter.com/BelieveKids Thanks so much for looking and if you found the information valueable, please forward on a link to a friend!

Crushing School Fundraising Myths - A Not So Nice Take on a DIY Fundraising Idea

I just read a post about fundraising on a parent group message board. It was from Kris. Here is an excerpt about what she had this to say:

"Times are tough for parents. There are children that their parents can't afford hot lunches. They are not going to buy over priced wrapping paper, cookie dough, candles, etc."

She goes on to say that if they had a haircut night the school could charge $5 per haircut and the school can get 100% of the money using volunteer hair stylists. She offers some additional revenue by combining this effort with a bake sale by selling baked goods also and she finishes up with this point:

"Everytime you have a fundraiser company involved, they have to make their money too. Your going to be paying 4 times the amount the product actually costs."

Ok, Here's the Real Deal!

First off, parents will buy over priced wrapping paper, cookie dough and candles and so will their friends and coworkers and relatives if the cause is worthy.

Secondly, Kris would have you believe that a $5 per haircut plus bake sale proceeds would raise money - It won't. Take just a moment to stop think about it for a moment. I think you will discover for yourself why this is not effective.

If you haven't stopped reading, get ready for the spoiler: at $5 per participant, you can't make any money. If 25% of students show up you'd make $437 on a school of 350. The bake sale may contribute to things a bit but freshly cut hair and baked goods don't mix. Without bragging about our numbers, let me just say that a catalog sale will consistently generate many, many, many times this in profit.

By using a fundraising company and paying them for their products and service, schools benefit from the programs, promotions, experience and proven systems that not only make it easy but make it many times more effective than fundraisers held on ones own.

Here is an example. Let's say you want to travel via air without using an airline. You can learn to fly and you can rent a plane but it's not going to be easy, cheap or efficient.

Here are Kris' assertions against fundraising companies:

• Nobody can afford to buy over priced stuff
• Companies charge more than items are worth

Here are her reasons for hosting ones own event:

• Can host your own events without expenses
• Adding a bake sale will improve revenue
• Volunteer hair stylists will be interested
• It's easy to host your own event

Yikes, at this point it kinda sounds like I'm being mean doesn't it? It's not my intent. It's just that the rational doesn't work.

I know some things about how Kris thinks. It's because I have a tendency to do the same exact thing.

I am always thinking I can do something better or cheaper than a company that charges money for their products and services. I am a perfectionist and an artist and I like to create things. In the end, I know now that in most cases, it's not worth it. I can rely on others to create things so I don't have to start from scratch and learn everything from square one, making all the rookie mistakes along the way.

In the end, if you are able to create and host a successful event, I have all the respect in the world for that. I absolutely love seeing a 10th annual event. It's a marketing powerhouse and it works. Creating a successful and repeatable event takes work and consistency but if one picks the right combination of simple factors, your event can be tremendously successful.

When it comes to saying that product fundraising doesn't work then suggesting an event that without a doubt would be difficult with a good chance of failure, I just gotta step in to say that there is a reason fundraising companies offer value - because the fundraisers we produce are proven successes. They raise more money with less work than the vast majority of fundraisers ever run. They are consistent and are improving. I can only speak for my company when I say that product quality and value to the consumer are improving consistently.

Here are some fundraising truths:

• People buy fundraising products
• Sales averages are often much higher
• Fundraising companies offer value-added services
• Product fundraising requires less volunteer help
• Typical retailers don't give margins away (let alone 50%)

I guess what I am saying is be careful what you believe. I'm not advocating you use my fundraising company, it's not about that. Here it is... Don't let someone lead you down the path to an under-performing event fundraiser because they don't understand the value that a company provides.

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Jay Moneta is the Vice President of Believe Kids Fundraising and is feeling rather bad about bagging on Kris' ideas so badly. If you want to leave a mean comment for me here on my blog, I would totally understand. I can also be yelled at on twitter - twitter.com/BelieveKids for my lack of understanding or barraged via my homepage at www.BelieveKids.com

Choosing A School Fundraiser - Ease, Protitability & Timing

Choosing a fundraiser is a bit tougher these days. With everything going on in the fundraising industry along with budget cuts in schools and a flailing economy, schools have some tough decisions to make now that will determine their fundraising success in the fall.

Here is a list of considerations that will help you in choosing your next fundraiser:

1) Consider fundraisers based on profitability.

Most schools have a main fundraiser that is their heavy-hitter. This year, focusing more effort on this fundraiser is your best bet. Promoting a number of small fundraisers this year will detract from the one that is responsible for the largest revenue.

The biggest fundraisers for fall 2010 will be a fall gift & wrap catalog, frozen cookie dough and well-promoted events such as auctions or a-thons. Stay consistent - if you have been building a successful fall auction for 3 years for instance, stick with it! This fall is not the year to take a chance on something new or un-tested.

• Fall Catalog - A gift catalog includes gifts, magazines, jewelry, candles and a bunch more all designed to have a high participation rate and sell-through rate. A fall catalog is preferable to any single item fundraiser because it offers options. All-in-all, anyone opening the catalog can find something they can use or give as a gift.

• Cookie Dough - Frozen cookie dough has been a top-seller because it is a commodity - food. Food is always in demand so it is easy to make top-dollar. With a cookie dough fundraiser, there are some concerns on delivery day - you will need volunteers to help sort and distribute the product. Make sure to make parents aware of the delivery day anyway you can so they come and pickup the frozen product. With a reminder, the vast majority of parents will be there to get the goods. You may need just a bit of frozen storage for just a few parent orders.

• Large Events - auctions, carnivals and a-thons (walk-a-thon, jog-a-thon, read-a-thon) offer the opportunity to raise large amounts of money. The most successful groups have a repeatable event that they host year after year. This way, the fundraiser offers consistency and improves a groups chances of getting folks out to the event. Be careful when starting a new event because you may have a difficult time judging the outcome. In general, marketing the event becomes critical. The downside of hosting an event is that it requires a ton of volunteer hours.

There are a number of other fundraising ideas out there including single product fundraisers such as trash bags, batteries, candles and if you are considering one of these fundraisers for a school-wide fundraiser, you will really want to compare. It's very likely the sales for these little fundraisers, will not be what you expect.




2) Choose based on ease of use - volunteerism

Some schools have a lot of volunteer support and some struggle a bit with getting help. If it helps you to think of fundraising in terms of ease of use, the easiest is a catalog sale which needs no volunteers, next is cookie dough where help is needed on delivery day and finally any event in which case planning and execution both need volunteers. I know it sounds pretty obvious, but if you know you won't have proper support, don't launch a new event.



3) Choose based on timing

When it comes to timing, fall is where it's at. The fall fundraising season extends roughly from September - November and is responsible for the vast majority of fundraising revenue. Any of the fundraisers will work well during this period of time but there are a few things to consider where timing is concerned.

Are there any competing fundraising efforts around the same time? Consider this... If you promote something right before your big fall fundraising effort, you will likely have less of a response on your fall fundraising efforts. Understanding how this works is simple.

By way of example, let's take a movie night - if 100 people were to show up on a Friday night and you added a viewing on Saturday night as well would you expect 200 people? Unfortunately, you'll really have the same pool of interested folks perhaps with the addition of just one or two that couldn't make the Friday. So, you'd be looking more like 52 per night.

Point is, even though you may get a few more participants, you'll also lose some who will just wait for the next fundraiser. Without writing a book here, let me just point out that the less fundraising you do around the time of your big fall fundraiser, the better!



4) Choose based on benefit to the community.

This one is a bit more challenging to explain. You may want to occasionally offer a fundraiser that benefits the community at large instead of purely being focused on the financial rewards.

There are times where supporting a foreign country in distress (such as Haiti), a local firehouse fundraiser, cancer awareness, perhaps you get to hold a safety fair or something like that and finances are not the main consideration, don't make visitors feel like you have a hand out. Try not to make it seem like the school is doing the fundraiser wherever possible. There is a difference between the school raising money and a donation drive being done at the school if you catch my drift.

If it is a local event, hold it for fun and educational sake in support of the cause. Leave the fundraising to the larger fundraisers wherever possible. This is your chance to strengthen the sense of community and they will be more willing to help you when the main fundraiser comes along.

Tread lightly here only with respect to item 3 above. If you are focusing on a community event around the time of your fall fundraiser, you will likely hurt the sale you are counting on for the majority of the years income.