School Fundraising for Teachers, Principals and Foundations

Most fundraising advice is written for parent volunteers. This page is for the staff side: classroom teachers, specialists, principals and the person a school names as fundraising coordinator. It focuses on public schools; parent-run formats are compared in school fundraising ideas. Charter and private schools often raise money through the school itself; see the charter school guide and the private and faith-based school guide for how that works.

Jump to: teachers · principals · fundraising coordinators · school foundations.

Three places school money can sit

Before anyone plans a fundraiser, staff should know whose money it will be. That decides who approves it, which rules apply and who can give donors a receipt.

If your school has no parent group yet, the guide to planning a new PTO's first fundraiser covers the bylaws, EIN and bank account it needs before collecting any money.

What teachers may and may not do

Rules for staff come from three places: state law, state ethics rules for public employees, and district policy. They vary widely, so treat the examples below as examples, not as your rules.

Usually fine, with approval

• Posting a classroom wish list for families through the channel the school uses.
• Applying for grants from the parent group, a local education foundation, a community foundation or a service club.
• Proposing a fundraiser to the principal or the parent group, and helping run a school-approved event.
• Posting a classroom request on a teacher crowdfunding site, where the district allows it and has approved the request.

Often limited or not allowed

• Asking students for money. Some states bar it in law. Rhode Island says no public school official or employee shall "solicit or exact from any pupil" any contribution or gift of money or anything of value, or a pledge to give (R.I. Gen. Laws 16-38-6). Requests go to families through approved fundraisers, not to children.
• Accepting personal gifts above a limit. In Massachusetts, the State Ethics Commission's guidance (as of October 2026) says public school staff may not accept a gift worth $50 or more given because of their position. Teachers may accept class gifts totaling up to $150 if the gift is identified only as coming from the class and the individual givers and amounts aren't revealed to the teacher; other gifts, even small ones, may need to be disclosed. The limits apply to gifts to employees, not to gifts to the school itself. Other states set different rules, and many districts add their own.
• Handling money alone. Cash collected in class goes to the office the same day, counted and signed for by two people. Personal bank or payment accounts should never hold school money.
• Fundraising during instruction. Many district policies limit fundraising activity during class time.

Classroom wish lists, grants and crowdfunding

Wish lists

The simplest classroom fundraiser is a list. Keep it short and specific, with prices, and post it twice: at the start of the year and in January, when supplies run low. Specific items ("10 sets of headphones, $12 each") get bought faster than "anything helps." Many families who skip cash fundraisers will happily buy one item. Copy and adapt this note:

Grants

Small grants suit teachers well because they fund a defined project and don't need families to do anything. Common sources are the PTA or PTO (many set aside classroom grants in their budget), a local education foundation, a community foundation, service clubs, local utilities and banks. Write one paragraph on what students will do, a budget with real prices, and how you'll report back with photos. If your parent group wants to start a grant program of its own, running a classroom mini-grant program includes an application form teachers can use. A teacher with one strong, reusable proposal can adapt it for several funders.

Teacher crowdfunding sites

Online classroom request sites let teachers post a project and let anyone give toward it. Many districts now require approval before a teacher posts one. Springfield Public Schools in Missouri, for example, under procedures last revised in 2021, requires written authorization before any crowdfunding effort, sends monetary donations to the district for deposit in a district account, treats items obtained through approved campaigns as district property, bars campaigns from going directly to the employee or being delivered to a home address, and bars identifying information about any student. Your district's rules may be similar, stricter or absent; ask before you post.

Classroom fundraising ideas for teachers

The best staff-led ideas put the teacher's energy into the activity while the money runs through the parent group or the school office.

• A classroom read-a-thon. Students read for pledges over one or two weeks; the parent group handles the money. See the classroom read-a-thon guide.
• A class art auction. One group art piece per class, auctioned at a family evening. For grants that bring a visiting artist to the school, see funding school art and music programs.
• Staff as the attraction. A staff-versus-students game, a costume-reveal challenge funded by class donations, or a teacher talent show. Staff time is the draw, and it costs nothing. Before promising a stunt, read how to choose a safe, fair principal challenge, including staff consent and safer alternatives to throwing things at people.
• A dress-down or theme day. Students give a small amount to wear pajamas or a hat. The dress-down day guide shows how to let every child take part and keep the gift optional and private.
• A class participation challenge during the school's donation drive, where classes compete on the share of families who give any amount.
• An employer-matching reminder in every classroom newsletter during a donation drive.

For school-wide ideas, the elementary school fundraising guide matches fundraisers to common purchases, and fundraisers that don't involve selling covers donation drives in detail.

Principal fundraising tips

Principals rarely run fundraisers, but they decide whether fundraising at a school is orderly or chaotic. The principal's job is approval, timing and protecting instruction. Counting and depositing money belongs with the treasurer or school bookkeeper.

1. Publish one calendar

   Collect every group's plans in late summer: parent group, clubs, grade levels and outside causes. Put them on one calendar so families never see two big asks in the same month. The fundraising calendar maker flags major asks that are too close together.

2. Use one approval form with a lead time

   Require every group to submit the school fundraiser approval form weeks ahead, so there is time to check district rules before anything is announced.

3. Keep money duties separate

   The person who approves a fundraiser shouldn't be the person who counts its cash; the cash handling guide sets out the two-person count and deposit steps.

4. Check contracts before anyone signs

   Vendor agreements for product sales, fundraising companies and online tools often need district review. Make sure a parent volunteer isn't signing for the school.

5. Protect class time and every child

   Limit assemblies and announcements, keep participation voluntary, and make sure no child is left out of a reward or event because the family didn't give.

6. Thank people and report back

   Tell families what last year's fundraising bought. A short report in the principal's newsletter reaches more families than any flyer.

Fundraising coordinator duties

Some schools name a staff member or a parent as fundraising coordinator to keep groups from colliding. The role is different from a PTA committee chair: a parent group's fundraising committee runs that group's own events, while a school-named coordinator answers to the principal and works across every group in the building (parent group, clubs, grade levels and outside causes) without running any of their money. If that's you, this is a reasonable job description. The school fundraiser planning checklist gives every group the same phases to work through, with an owner and a date for each task.

• Keep the master fundraising calendar and share it with the principal, office staff and every group.
• Collect approval forms, confirm they're complete and send them to the principal on time.
• Know the district's policies on fundraising, gifts, crowdfunding, food sales and student selling, and keep copies handy.
• Check food fundraisers against the state's Smart Snacks limits on school-day sales (how the food rule works).
• Make sure each fundraiser has a named money handler and a deposit plan before it starts.
• Keep a contact list for vendors, sponsors and grant funders, with what was promised to each.
• Track results: gross, costs, net, participation and volunteer hours for every fundraiser.
• Coordinate thank-yous and donor acknowledgments with the group that received the money.
• Write a half-page debrief after each fundraiser and keep a folder the next coordinator can inherit.

Starting a school foundation

A school or district foundation is a nonprofit created to raise money for one school or a whole district. It makes sense when a community wants to give larger gifts, fund teacher grants across many schools, support a capital project, build an endowment or apply for grants that require a separate nonprofit. It is more work than a parent group, and it doesn't replace one: parent groups run community events, foundations raise bigger money. The phases of a school capital campaign show how a foundation runs a building project from approval to dedication.

1. Agree on the purpose with the district

   Meet with the superintendent or principal first. Write down what the foundation will fund, how gifts will reach the school, and who approves projects. Many districts put this in a written agreement.

2. Form the nonprofit under state law

   Usually that means filing articles of incorporation with the state and adopting bylaws. Recruit a board with a mix of parents, community members and people with finance, legal and fundraising experience.

3. Get an EIN and a bank account

   Apply for the foundation's employer identification number directly with the IRS, then open a bank account in the foundation's name. Set up two-signature controls from the start.

4. Apply to the IRS for 501(c)(3) recognition

   Most new foundations file Form 1023. The shorter Form 1023-EZ is available only to organizations that pass its eligibility worksheet: among other tests, gross receipts not projected to exceed $50,000 in any of the next three years, not over $50,000 in any of the past three years, and total assets of $250,000 or less. Schools, colleges and universities described in section 170(b)(1)(A)(ii), and organizations seeking classification as a 509(a)(3) supporting organization, can't use it, and it can be filed only electronically. A tax professional can tell you which form fits.

5. Register with the state, if required

   Many states require charities to register before asking the public for gifts. The state attorney general's or secretary of state's charity office can tell you whether the foundation must register and when.

6. File every year

   Recognition is the start, not the end. Expect an annual return to the IRS and, in many states, an annual charity report; your accountant can tell you which forms apply at your size.

School foundation fundraising ideas

• An annual appeal to every family and alumnus, with a clear list of what last year's gifts funded. Some schools concentrate the ask into a school giving day of 24 to 48 hours, with a matching donor and volunteer ambassadors.
• A teacher grant program that donors fund and teachers apply to. It's the most visible thing many foundations do.
• A signature community event, such as a community fun run or a dinner, open to residents without children in school. The community fun run guide covers events open to the public.
• Business partners who fund a program for several years; see school sponsorships.
• Named gifts and memorial funds for a scholarship, a library collection or a classroom.
• Planned gifts and an endowment once the foundation has a track record and investment policies.

Sources

1. Gifts to Public School Teachers and Staff, Massachusetts State Ethics Commission (accessed 2026-10-30)
2. R.I. Gen. Laws 16-38-6: Restrictions on commercial activity and fundraising in public schools, State of Rhode Island General Assembly (accessed 2026-10-30)
3. Crowdfunding Procedures, Springfield Public Schools (School District of Springfield R-12) (accessed 2026-10-30)
4. Instructions for Form 1023-EZ (Rev. January 2025), including the Eligibility Worksheet, Internal Revenue Service (accessed 2026-10-30)