Feature photo by Jorion Marshall: Chips are one of the many unhealthy snacks sold around the school. Some snacks that are for sale by a multitude of students.
Almost all kids that attend Rangeview High School participate in some sort of fundraising. From one club to the next, the students take responsibility in being the backbone of the revenue produced for Rangeview’s extracurriculars. Fundraising is something that nearly every public school around the nation takes part in, but at Rangeview, there is a heavy abundance of it. With so much money passing through the hands of sellers, administrators, and third-party suppliers, one can begin to wonder; where does it all go?
The majority of fundraising money that you see is either found within handheld candy boxes, door to door sales, or any type of junk food that you can find. The currency that you may not see is that which is being distributed to the original sellers, the school, and the activity itself.
One of the most popular fundraisers at Rangeview High School, and around the nation is World’s Finest Chocolate. The chocolate they produce is well known by the students, and there is never a question as to what candy comes in each box. One important fact that many are not aware of is where their money spent actually goes to.
World’s Finest Chocolate in particular only allows the school itself to gain a 40-50% profit from the fundraiser itself. This implies that most of the money earned does not actually go to the school itself. The low profit from the school can also explain why one would see individual students selling multiple boxes at a time as a requirement.
There are many different opinions on this subject, coming from students who fundraise, and the variety of people who purchase from them. Some individuals may share a more positive outlook, but it is clear that most people know fundraising is not in vain.
Sophomore Andres Marquez states, “Fundraising teaches students to work for something they want/need to do. It teaches students to broaden their horizons by talking to people they may not normally talk to and challenges them socially by making them convince people to actually purchase a product from them.” Marquez also makes it clear that fundraising means more to him than just selling candy as he continues, “Fundraising also shows how much you can trust students and their work ethics so yes I believe fundraisers are worth the work a student puts in.”
Another student, Tola Nemomsa, shares a similar outlook upon fundraising stating, “I believe that fundraising is a beneficial act performed by students,” states Nemomsa, “Because of the fact that there is always a cause in which we fundraise, whether it be for a charitable cause or for funds to support a club.”
Tammy Strouse is the director of the leadership class at Rangeview, and is responsible for the majority of fundraising buzzing in the school hallways. Leadership handles more than $100,000 of fundraising money a year, but looks may be deceiving.
“Not every fundraiser is a success,” stated Mrs. Strouse, “Leadership tends to break even or less due to the expenses of the project at hand.”
Students in leadership work hard, and understand the requirements at hand; although, one of the biggest misconceptions of fundraising, is that the effort is in vain.
For example, one of the current goals the leadership class is pursuing is to upgrade the locker. Mrs. Strouse stated, “The funds from the Locker are going towards the improvement of Locker furniture and design.”
This is a large task, and with every snack or item one would buy from the locker on an off period throughout the day, the proceeds would be going towards the betterment of the school store.
From chocolate boxes to school events, fundraising has drawn a great deal of confusion and assumptions. Although fundraising may be a battle, the management is in the hands of Rangeview’s administrators.
Whether from a seller or buyer’s perspective, Rangeview’s fundraising prevails through unpredictable struggles.
