Getting Fundraising Support from the Principal

How to go from a supportive to an involved principal.

Getting your students excited about winning prizes for selling items out of a brochure at your kickoff assembly is vital to the success of any school-wide sales campaign. This can appear to be relatively easy. Gaining the backing of your parents and teachers is also important but often a little more challenging.

Yet, if you want to affect your sale, the person to focus on is the principal. Since they're probably the most influential person in the school, it's evident that having their fundraising support can make a big difference. Having them approve your sale is one thing, but if you can get them involved somehow, your sale can benefit. Here's how you might be able to get your principal to participate.

Gaining Principal Support

If you want the principal to support your efforts, you must sell them on your purpose. Hopefully, you have already talked to people about what the school needs. When it comes to approaching the principal, we recommend that you do the following:

1. Request an appointment. This will give you more time to solidify your goals and objectives.
2. Show up prepared. Write down the things that you plan to discuss. Principals are busy, so make wise use of your time.
3. Dress for success. Make a strong impression by dressing professionally.

Getting them Involved with Your Fundraiser

One of the goals at your meeting should be to ask for their involvement. The principal can unite the entire school toward your sales goal. They can also help you promote your kickoff and make daily announcements. You should correlate their involvement to increased sales. For example, you can create a condition for the students that if the school reaches its goal, the principal will agree to do something in return. Here are some examples:

• Spend a day on the roof.
• Come to school in their pajamas.
• Dye their hair.
• Kiss a frog.
• Dress up as a ____________.

These things shouldn't take up too much of the principal's time. Once the principal understands what you are trying to accomplish, they may also think of their ideas. Ensure that the ideas discussed will be both fun and entertaining for the students; otherwise, it may not motivate them to want to bring in more sales.

See our brochure fundraisers.

Author Bio

Clay Boggess has been designing fundraising programs for schools and various nonprofit organizations throughout the US since 1999. He’s helped administrators, teachers, and outside support entities such as PTAs and PTOs raise millions of dollars. Clay is an owner and partner at Big Fundraising Ideas.