School fundraisers are some of the most popular and successful campaigns on Mightycause. We’ve seen everything over the years: dance-a-thons, read-a-thons, or PTA fundraisers. And while it seems that many schools have moved their fundraising efforts online, more old-fashioned school fundraisers are perennial favorites. Having students sell wrapping paper, candies, Yankee Candles and other items, collecting proofs of purchase, are mainstays at many schools. But who benefits most from these fundraisers? The school, the students … or the company making the products?
Doubts About Popular School Fundraisers
Analysis of these product-focused fundraisers show that the main beneficiaries are the companies. The Washington Post published a story that delved deep into popular fundraisers like Labels for Education, Box Tops for Education and Project A+. While these programs are beloved by teachers and parents, experts have long worried about the efficacy of these fundraisers.
“It’s just another form of junk-food marketing to kids,” Colin Schwartz, a senior nutrition policy associate at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, told The Washington Post.
Health Concerns
These school fundraising programs are pretty simple at face value. Students and their families purchase eligible products. Then, they clip off the proofs of purchase and bring them to the school. The school then collects a small amount in cash for the school for each proof of purchase. But when you dig deeper, these school fundraising programs are a little less simple. And experts point out that many of the products don’t even meet the health criteria for being served in schools.
In the case of General Mills, many of the eligible products are sugary cereals, cookies and potato chips. For Tyson’s Project A+, students and their families must provide proof of purchase for products like breaded chicken nuggets.
“The vast majority of these products can’t be sold in schools, so they shouldn’t be advertised in schools,” Schwartz told The Post.
Questionable Payout
Despite the enthusiasm schools put into these fundraisers, the payout is often small. General Mill’s Box Tops for Education program has an average payout of $750 per year, per school, according to The Post. Each “box top” proof of purchase is worth 10¢. A box of Cheerios, one of the eligible products for the program, costs $3.83 at Walmart. That means the school receives 2.6% of the purchase price of the box of Cheerios. The rest of the money? General Mills and Walmart take it.
Fundraising or Marketing?
When you consider all of this information together, it seems less and less like these kinds of school fundraisers are about schools at all. Whether it’s box tops, candy, or burritos, many school fundraisers seem to emphasize moving product more than education. With small payouts and profits generated for the companies that host the programs, it’s natural to wonder whether these are legitimate school fundraisers or marketing campaigns.
“There’s a reason companies want to get kids when they’re really young,”Jennifer Harris told The Post. Harris is a researcher at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut. “When aimed at children, whose minds are still developing, marketing can create lifelong preferences and habits that contribute to obesity and other conditions.” (Just to prove Harris’ point — any adults in the 25-40 age range have a soft spot for Pizza Hut because of fond memories of BookIt?)
These programs are also especially popular at low-income schools without much money to go around. Given that schools see less than 5% of the money parents sink into purchasing the products, are these school fundraising programs actually predatory? It’s a tough question without an easy answer.
School fundraising on Mightycause
Many schools turn to fundraisers because they desperately need the money. Even an extra $750 can mean new supplies, extracurricular support, or updated technology. Unfortunately, traditional fundraisers like selling wrapping paper or collecting Box Tops take a lot of time for very little reward. There’s a better way that requires less effort, has a bigger payout and most importantly does not require buying any products.
Mightycause’s online fundraising platform helps schools raise more money with less hassle and keeps the focus on education instead of product sales.
That’s practically the inverse of the Box Top for Education program, where schools see just 2% and General Mills and the stores where their products are sold take home the lion’s share. Think of all the money parents and grandparents are spending on snacks to collect box tops. Now imagine 93% of that money coming directly to your school, instead of just 2.6%. That’s the Mightycause difference.
Easy Fundraising, Easy Donating
Not a tech expert? No problem. Mightycause is designed so any parent or teacher can set up a fundraiser in minutes. No coding, no design experience required.
Compare that to the effort of a traditional fundraiser: approvals, fliers, tracking purchases, collecting proofs of purchase, sending them in, and waiting months for a small payout. Online fundraising through Mightycause is so much less time, and so much less hassle.
On Mightycause, parents and family members can donate to school fundraisers with a few clicks. Mightycause is mobile-responsive, so they can seamlessly donate from their phones. And they can easily set up recurring monthly donations to support their child’s school year-round.
Flexibility
The best part about fundraising with Mightycause? You’re not limited to one fundraising model. Schools use Mightycause to power:
- Fun runs & walkathons
- Read-a-thons and spelling bees
- PTA/PTO campaigns
- Class competitions
- Hybrid or virtual fundraising events
- And much more!
With event and team fundraising, schools can create class or grade-level competition, encouraging friendly rivalries that boost donations. Instead of pushing students to sell candy bars or candles, the energy and excitement stay focused on supporting the school itself.
Fees/Costs
On Mightycause, schools can fundraise without strings attached. We believe that nonprofits shouldn’t have to break the bank when it comes to making a positive impact in their communities. That’s why we guarantee your school or PTA will never see more than an overall rate of 1.99% + $0.30 in donation processing fees — and most organizations pay even less!
Donors also have the option to cover these fees at checkout, which means schools often keep 100% of the money raised. Any 501(c)3 nonprofit, public or private schools can use Mightycause to fundraise and it’s free to start!
Grow With Mightycause Year-Round
Mightycause isn’t just for one-off events, it’s a platform your school can grow with all year long. Beyond a single fun run or read-a-thon, schools use Mightycause to build sustainable, repeatable fundraising strategies that support students month after month.
With advanced features built right in, you can:
- Encourage recurring giving so parents and grandparents can support your school automatically every month.
- Use embeddable donation forms to accept contributions directly from your school’s website, newsletters, or emails.
- Manage donor relationships through our built-in CRM (Contacts), making it easy to track who gave, segment supporters, and thank them personally.
- Launch peer-to-peer campaigns for class competitions, sports teams, or clubs.
- Leverage integrations with tools like Mailchimp and Zapier to simplify outreach and reporting.
Instead of starting from scratch every school year, your school can build on past campaigns, engage donors year-round, and scale fundraising efforts as your community grows.
Talk to Us
Are you ready to move away from popular but questionable school fundraisers at your school? Let us know! If this is the first time you’ve considered online school fundraising, or you’re getting ready for your next big online campaign, we can help. We’re here to brainstorm, help with strategy, provide technical guidance and more.