Five more fund raising ideas schools can use to replace bake sales

Traditional bake sales are no longer allowed in schools in 30 states, and other states have set rules limiting the fundraiser. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which went into effect July 2014, requires that all "competitive" foods sold at schools are healthy. States were allowed to make exceptions for bake sales, but most have not.

Schools and school groups need fundraisers to cover the costs for things the school boards' budgets do not.

To help school groups find alternatives for fundraisers, "Five fund raising ideas schools can use to replace bake sales" was published earlier. Here are five more ideas school groups can use to raise the funds they need.

A Game Night or Game Afternoon can be a great way to bring families together and raise money. Charge admission per family at the door, or, if multiple game nights are planned, allow for families to purchase "memberships" to game night. Host one large-scale game, like Bingo or Twister (paint the circles on several tablecloths to allow for a room full of people to play together), plus have various board games available for families or friends to play private games.

For a produce sale, partner with a local farm to be a satellite location for a couple of days to sell pumpkins in the fall, flowers in the spring (think Mother's Day) or whatever item may bring in sales in your community. As part of the deal, the farm shares a percentage of the profits with the school group.

Parks have sponsors displayed on bricks at the entrance on fence posts around the perimeter. Schools can yearly offer sponsorships that are painted on the school's sidewalk or along the parking lot. Sponsors can be families or local businesses. To make the idea a school beautification or school spirit project, paint the name of the sponsor in the school colors and in a symbol for the school- a paw print for an animal mascot, for example.

*Make sure permission is granted through the school administration.

It doesn't have to be a spaghetti dinner- it could be a barbecue dinner, fish and chips dinner or even a pancake breakfast. The idea is a meal that can be easily mass produced and served. Sell tickets beforehand to have an idea of how much food you'll need for the event. At the event, students can act as hostesses and waitstaff, seating diners, getting drink orders (keep it simple with only two or three choices, like cola, water and iced tea), serving the meal and cleaning up the tables.

An Avon Fundraiser is similar to other product-selling fundraisers, except that it's possibly also helping a local mom with her business. Avon provides flyers with select best-selling products, or the current catalog can be used. The Avon lady shares her profits (up to 50% of the sales-their earnings do vary) on the fundraiser with the school group. Plan with the representative who will assemble orders and how to manage delivery of orders. To find a local Avon representative, visit Avon.com.