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The 10 Best High School Fundraising Ideas

By Whit Hunter

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High school fundraising doesn’t have to be boring! With the help of a highly-rated online fundraising platform like BetterWorld, you can set yourself up for success with exciting and profitable high school fundraising ideas. Sign up for free and start exploring our platform at BetterWorld today!

Fundraiser Ideas for High School

Many people have set up and implemented incredible high school fundraising ideas on our platform. Here are ten of the past few years' most successful, proven, and profitable ideas.

Color Run

Color runs burst onto the fundraising scene a few years ago; now, they're a high school fundraising staple. You can support this peer-to-peer fundraiser in one of two ways: the donor pledges an amount of money per lap or donates a flat amount to the runner. Raised money is then easily collected through a branded donation website.

Volunteers are dressed in white tee shirts and line the course, throwing washable paint or paint-filled water balloons at the runners. At the end of the race, multi-colored fun pains cover everyone on the trail! Make this even more special by using paints in your school colors and hosting an end-of-run block party.

School Movie Night

Host this high school fundraising idea in one of two ways: either show a popular movie in your high school gym or auditorium or team up with a local movie theater to host a movie night specifically for your students.

Sell tickets in advance and set up a concession stand to raise money for your school. Add a layer of competition by having your students vote on what movie to show. Charge $1 per vote to boost your fundraising efforts.

Talent Show or Battle of the Bands

High schools are overflowing with talented teens. Tap into those talents by exploring fundraiser ideas for high school to help you raise money for your students, or the school itself.

To make the most of your battle, set up a fundraising website beforehand and charge an entry fee for each band or act. Use the website to sell tickets to students, staff, and family members to see the show. While at the show, utilize a mobile voting option to vote on the best act. Award prizes to the top three contestants!

School Yard Sale

This type of high school fundraiser works exceptionally well when your school has a lot of land or access to a sports field. Sell spots to sellers and vendors who want to come and sell their items. You can also ask for donated items from your community to sell at your event.

Increase your profits by selling concessions such as doughnuts and coffee in the morning or lunch items in the afternoon. Too cold for a yard sale? No problem! Move the party inside and host your sale in the school gym!

Book Sale Fundraiser

A book sale is a great fundraiser idea for high school that also ties into learning! Ask your students and staff to donate slightly-used books. Your school librarian can also clean out the library to help with this effort. Make different school gym or cafeteria sections look like bookstores and invite the community to browse your sale.

Dress Down Days

If your students wear uniforms or follow a strict dress code, throw them a dress-down day every once in a while as a fundraising effort. Students and staff can ditch their uniforms for the day in exchange for a small donation. Increase the fun by adding a theme like Decades Day or Pajama Day.

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Babysitting Nights

Babysitting nights are incredibly successful high school fundraisers for smaller teams and clubs. Advertise a high school babysitting night at the local elementary school. Parents can drop off their children for a night of supervised fun for a fee!

Invite a few of your students to volunteer as babysitters. Have snacks, games, and crafts, and set up a movie for the kids to watch. It’ll be a popular high school fundraiser that your elementary school parents will appreciate!

Fund-A-Need Campaigns

You don’t always need a gimmick to raise money. Sometimes you just need to tell people what you’re doing, which is why a fund-a-need campaign is one of the best fundraiser ideas for high school students.

Set up a fundraising website on a free platform, such as BetterWorld, to explain your need. Give a backstory about your school and detail the reasons behind your high school fundraiser. Then share the website with everyone via social media, flyers, and emails. You might be surprised how many people are happy to pitch in when your school needs a significant fund infusion for a new sports scoreboard or an important field trip to another state.

Parking Spot Raffle

Parking spots close to the school can be hot commodities, especially if your school is in a city or has a small parking lot. For a different type of high school fundraiser, choose two or three designated parking spots close to your school entrance and raffle them off to seniors at the beginning of the year. The winning ticket wins a parking spot!

Special Catered Lunch

They don’t deserve it, but we all know that school cafeterias often have negative reputations. Spice up your students’ day by raffling off the chance to win a special catered lunch from a popular local restaurant. The winning student can select ten friends to enjoy this special lunch.

Start Your High School Fundraiser

Now that you’re full of fundraiser ideas for high school, it’s time to get started! Reach out to the friendly customer service staff of BetterWorld today to learn how our free online fundraising platform can help you and your school raise the money you need to succeed.

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Whit Hunter
AUTHOR

About Whit Hunter

Whit Hunter is the co-founder of BetterWorld, the free, easy-to-use online fundraising platform. His passion for empowering nonprofits and tech expertise have shaped BetterWorld’s mission to make fundraising more accessible and efficient.

Whit's innovative vision has helped countless organizations raise more funds and reach their goals, driving BetterWorld’s ongoing success.

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