Too many fundraisers, not enough cash
The months of November and December are jammed-packed with fundraisers, gifts for family and friends and broken, depressed piggy banks. Why is it around the holidays, numerous organizations, school clubs and charities ask for extra money when people are trying to buy gifts for loved ones?
For example, clubs such as Key Club, National Honors Society and Student Council strive for student participation by promising better rewards than the other clubs; pieing teachers, class points and doughnuts are incentives for students to donate a dollar for their respective event.
In just the month of November, National Honors Society, Key Club and Student Council all held similar canned food drives. The problem with too many food drives? Students donated whichever club reached them first, leaving the other two empty handed.
For the past twenty years, Student Council hosted the annual canned food drive to benefit Aurora’s local food bank, however despite backlash from SC, Key Club and National Honors Society still had their own drive. This caused many students to pick and choose which club they would donate towards. In years past, Student Council would collect so many cans, advisors would need multiple pick up trucks to transport everything; this year, SC barely has enough to fill two cars.
Moving into the month of December, clubs still want to host numerous fundraisers despite the overwhelming amount of expenses student have. Let’s break it down:
Aurora for Others (NHS) ……. $2
Dodgeball (NHS) ……. $1
Giving Tree (SC) ……. $7
White Elephant Gift Exchange ……. $10
Gifts (Parent x2) ……. $50
Gifts (Sibling x1) ……. $25
Gifts (Friend x2) ……. $30
Total (average) : $125
On average, the bare minimum a student will most likely pay during the holiday season is around $125. However, some people have more friends, siblings, or genuinely want to purchase more expensive gifts for the people they love, further increasing that total.
Within the school, about half of upperclassmen are employed while most underclassmen, due to their young age, are unemployed. This creates a financial burden for some students who try and participate in all fundraisers while purchasing other things on a budget without a steady income of cash flowing into their bank accounts.
Furthermore, teachers have also applied pressure on students to participate through class competitions. For example, teachers will reward kids with doughnuts, gift cards, ec. if a goal is met by a predetermined deadline.
Instead of having numerous options to donate towards throughout the school, why not have one big fundraiser that all the clubs endorse? Student participation will increase dramatically, and the overall outcome of the event will most likely double or triple in value. Clubs need to stop pinning each other up against one another and need to start working together to have a common goal; this does not mean clubs have to align the entire year, however just during the holiday season.
To conclude, while AHS students may have full intentions to make dreams come true this holiday season, the war between fundraisers may be the sole reason for preventing peace on earth this winter.
