A school’s student council aims to give students an opportunity to develop leadership by organizing and carrying out school activities and service projects. In addition to planning events that contribute to school spirit and community welfare, one of the most important roles of student councils is to raise funds to support the student body. Finding the best student council (or stuco) fundraising ideas that will get students excited to take part is key to the success of these events.
Here, we share the best, proven school fundraising ideas for elementary, middle, and high school councils.
Here’s What We’ll Cover
- Why Student Council Fundraising Matters
- Elementary School Student Council Fundraising Ideas
- Top Student Council Fundraising Ideas for Middle Schools and High Schools
- Sales Fundraisers Work for All Grade Levels
- Community Engagement Fundraisers
- Take Student Council Fundraising Online
- How to Choose the Right Fundraiser for Your Council
Why Student Council Fundraising Matters
Student-led fundraising initiatives foster a sense of responsibility, teamwork, and entrepreneurship, helping students develop valuable life skills. Students participating in fundraising efforts learn to set goals, plan events, and manage resources effectively. These experiences enhance their leadership abilities and build a stronger, more connected school community. Fundraising activities can range from fun runs (our favorite!) and bake sales to talent shows and silent auctions, each offering unique opportunities for students to shine and make a difference.
By organizing fundraising events, student councils can raise essential funds for school activities and projects that would otherwise be impossible through traditional school budgets.
Elementary School Student Council Fundraising Ideas
Elementary students are all about having fun! Plenty of fundraising ideas for elementary student councils are fun and welcoming for the young student body. Here are our top student council fundraising ideas for elementary schools.
All School Fun Runs
School fun runs are a fantastic way to get young students excited about being active. These popular elementary school fundraisers are also a great way to utilize peer-to-peer fundraising, which can be very lucrative for schools. Students register to participate and raise funds from neighbors, friends, and family who support their goals. Here are some fun run concepts to run with:
- Color Runs: Color Run fundraisers are fun for everyone involved. The kids wear white t-shirts to start. Checkpoints throughout the course where parents and volunteers throw colored powder make for a cheerful and exciting run with lots of surprises.
- Themed Runs: Adding a theme to your fun run adds to the fun and excitement, especially for young kids. Some fun run themes are Disney, superheroes, and historical figure-themed runs. The students that participate dress up in their favorite attire representing the theme and walk or run a certain number of laps.
- Pajama Runs: Running in athletic wear is ideal, but pajamas are the next best thing to comfortable workout attire. Students will have a reason for the well-deserved rest after the effort of doing the run.
- Physical Challenges and Obstacles: If you want to add another dimension to the run to add more excitement, consider adding physical challenges like an obstacle course. These can also help boost donations for the student council fundraising effort.
Reading Fundraisers and Challenges
Want to take the fundraising off the field and into the classroom? One student council fundraising idea for elementary schools takes the challenge to the books with a reading fundraiser. Have each student pledge to read a certain number of books or a certain amount of time. Like active peer-to-peer and school crowdfunding campaigns, students ask friends and family to donate to their reading goals.
Top Student Council Fundraising Ideas for Middle Schools and High Schools
Active peer-to-peer events are great middle school fundraising ideas and work well for high school students, too. As students get older, you can increase the challenge to increase fun and engagement.
Run/Ride Races
- Light and Neon Fun Runs: Middle and high school students enjoy these concept runs. Add fun elements to the race and after-party, such as a DJ and dancing. Light and neon runs are hosted in the dark, and laser lights, strobe lights, or glow sticks are used.
- Holiday Runs: If you want to time the school fundraiser with a holiday, there are ample themes that can work. For example, it can be Santa-themed, Cupid/Valentine’s Day-themed, St. Patrick’s Day-themed, or Easter Bunny-themed. Virtually any holiday fundraising theme will get students excited.
- Zombie Lurches: This run can either be zombie-themed or a zombie chase, where the concept is similar to tag. There are two sides: zombies and humans, who become zombies when tagged.
- Obstacle Courses Races: These challenges are growing in popularity with shows such as Tough Mudder, Spartan Race, and Warrior Dash. Have one right in the school’s backyard with obstacles that push the students to the next level.
- Dog Walks: Bring the pups along for this one! Have students participate with their families in a dog walk for a furry fundraiser with all the community dogs.
- Bike-a-thons: Does the school have an avid cycling group? Have the whole school join in on a fun fundraising affair with a bike-a-thon on local bike trails.
- Spin-a-thons: Same as a bike-a-thon, but with stationary bikes. The nice thing about hosting a spin-a-thon fundraiser is that your participants stay in one place, making logistics easier to manage.
More Active Sports Challenges
- Basketball Tournaments: Allow students and teachers to form teams to challenge each other until the last team is left standing.
- Flag Football Fundraisers: Host multiple games throughout the day to allow as many people as possible to participate.
- Hit-a-thon Challenges: If batting cages can’t be set up on-premise, research a local batting cage that can host a hit-a-thon as a school fundraiser.
Performance-Based Events and Challenges
- Karaoke Contests: Welcome students, teachers, and even parents to bring their vocal talents to a karaoke contest. Participants can pay to sing with a chance to win prizes. Create an opportunity to raise more funds by selling food and refreshments during the performances.
- Dance-a-Thons: With all of the latest trending dances, from flossing to the Milly rock, why not do it for a good cause? Host a dance-a-thon and see how long students last making their best moves.
- Talent Shows: The talent show is a classic student council activity. A talent show can be competition-style or showcase-style. In a competition, the audience pays a small fee to vote for the winners.
- Spelling Bees: Test your students’ spelling acumen with a spelling bee, but with an added flair. Make it a peer-to-peer spelling fundraiser with an open invitation and sell tickets to parents.
Socializing Events
These events bring the school community together to enjoy themselves while raising money. Be sure to add refreshments and raffle ticket sales to boost revenues.
- Local Business Night: Support a local business and host a night out at the establishment in exchange for donating part of the proceeds to the student council fundraiser.
- Trivia Night or Bingo Night: Playing trivia and bingo never gets old. The trivia topics can be trending subjects, such as “Do You Know Your Memes?” and “Top Radio Hits.” Bingo can be played along the theme of “Know Your Teachers” with fun topics such as “Drives a Motorcycle.”
- Car Wash or Dog Wash: Car washes are another classic student council fundraiser. Why not add in a dog wash on the sidelines?
With these enjoyable ideas that will generate excitement from the student body, the calendar for your elementary, middle, or high school student council fundraising will quickly fill up.
Sales Fundraisers Work for All Grade Levels
Product sales are always a popular school fundraiser, especially when adding a sales contest with prizes for top fundraisers. Why not sell school spirit wear that everyone wants? Cookie dough and chocolate fundraisers, frozen pizza, popcorn, and coffee are popular food fundraising sales.
Offer a great shopping experience with our free online stores. Features of our Simple Stores include:
- Individuals and classrooms can sell for your student group by enabling peer-to-peer functionality for your store.
- Sales tax and shipping can be added to items.
- Administer promo codes for discounted sales.
- Fundraising thermometers track sales progress and excite supporters.
- Promote fundraising sales via our free Text to Give feature.
Here are some more sales-related fundraising ideas:
- Online Auctions: Auctions can be standalone events or an addition to other events. If sponsors can support the student council with high-value items such as theme park tickets or an all-inclusive dinner at a local restaurant, these can be auctioned off. Another spin on a school auction is to allow students to have fun with their favorite teachers and staff. Auction off an opportunity to pie the principal or dunk tank their favorite teacher.
- Community Yard Sales: This popular fundraiser allows students and staff to do their spring cleaning and donate used home goods and clothes to the fundraising goal.
Community Engagement Fundraisers
Community engagement fundraisers are an excellent way to bring together students, parents, and local community members while raising essential funds for your school. These events can help foster a sense of community, promote school spirit, and provide opportunities for students to develop valuable life skills.
These events can be tailored to suit your school’s needs and can be organized in collaboration with local businesses, community groups, and parent-teacher organizations. By engaging with the broader community, student councils can build lasting relationships, raise awareness about their school and mission, and generate essential funds to support activities and projects.
Some popular community engagement fundraiser ideas include:
- Charity Runs: Organize a community fun run or walkathon where participants can raise funds through sponsorships. Unlike school fun runs which are held during the school day, these events are on Saturdays so that the whole family can attend.
- Food Festivals or Bake Sales: Host a food festival or bake sale featuring homemade treats and dishes from the school community.
- School Carnivals or Fairs: To attract families and community members, plan a carnival or fair with games, rides, and food stalls.
- Silent Auctions: Hold a silent auction of baskets donated by each classroom, stocked full of items donated by local businesses.
- Restaurant Partnerships or Spirit Nights: Partner with local restaurants to host spirit nights where a portion of the proceeds goes to your school.
Take Student Council Fundraising Online
Our virtual fundraising platform has the tools you need – for free! There are lots of innovative features that work for easy online fundraising:
- A fundraising home page that links to all your school fundraising campaigns and events
- Live Stream video platform for virtual fundraising events
- Text to Donate (US organizations and phones only)
- Ability to incorporate peer-to-peer fundraising into more campaign types, such as online sales campaigns and raffles
- Donor perks can be given to crowdfunding donors at pre-defined levels (i.e., donate $100 and get a free t-shirt)
- Support for digital wallets via ApplePay and GooglePay
How to Choose the Right Fundraiser for Your Council
Choosing the right fundraiser for your student council can be a daunting task. To ensure success, consider the following factors:
- Align the Fundraiser with Your School’s Goals and Values: Choose fundraising ideas that reflect the values of your school and student group.
- Assess the Interests and Preferences of Your Target Audience: Understand what types of events or products will appeal most to students, parents, and the community.
- Evaluate the Potential Revenue and Expenses: Consider the costs of organizing the fundraiser and the potential funds it can generate. See more on the most lucrative fundraisers for schools.
- Consider the Level of Involvement and Commitment Required: Ensure the fundraiser you select is manageable for student council members and other participants.
- Research and Explore Different Fundraising Ideas and Platforms: Research various fundraising options and choose the ones that best suit your school’s needs and capabilities.
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