Fundraising ideas: class trip dinner theater

In a recent post, “Class trip crowdfunding: Fundraising for the digital age,” we highlighted crowdfunding as an effective way to raise money for your class’s educational tour. Crowdfunding utilizes the Internet to collect small donations from a vast pool of supporters, anywhere in the world.

The principles of crowdfunding, however, have existed long before the digital age. Traditional forms of fundraising—bake sales, car washes, school performances, etc.—employ the same community concepts, just on a local, rather than global, scale.

We asked two Group Leaders of our Explorica educational tours to talk about how each fundraising model—online crowdfunding and tapping your local community—can benefit the class trip kitty. The moral here is that neither is necessarily better. In fact, a balance of both could maximize your class’s potential to reach its monetary goal.

Dinner and a show will get you to your destination

Justin, an Explorica Group Leader, says dinner theater has been a great way for his class to raise funds.

“We live in a small town that doesn’t have much entertainment,” Justin said. “So giving the community something to do is always good.”

Charging $20 at the door, Justin and his class aim to make sure people get their fill of good food—traditional Southern cuisine with a “creative flare”—and laughs, he said.

The local restaurant where his class performs is very intimate. This allows the perfomers to involve the audience, uniting school and community. The community gets an entertaining, firsthand demonstration of what Howard’s class is all about. (They’re going on a London Theater tour this year.)

	London Theater Step into one of the grand Romanesque or Victorian theaters in London’s famed “theatreland” to see a modern-day play and travel back in time to learn what it takes to put on a Shakespearean play in the open-air Elizabethan Globe Theater.

When Justin’s class performed “And They All Lived,” the big bad wolf lurked through the crowd scaring guests. A woodsman chased after him to bring happiness back to the people. The cast-audience engagement really allowed his kids to shine, Justin said.

“If you can entertain and involve [the audience], they will buy into your cause,” he said. “And it teaches the students a valuable lesson in hard work.”

Fundraising 2.0

The benefits of traditional fundraising—in this case, dinner theater—are pretty straightforward. The class involves its community. They inform the audience of why they’re going on the trip, through performance, while actively engaging them to donate. Plus, it’s fun!

Although, what happens when you’ve exhausted your local community’s resources?

It may be time to go online, where you’re no longer restricted to a zip code. Finding the right community on the Internet, however, can be overwhelming. The World Wide Web is your oyster, yet too many choices can seem like a prison. In short, a bottomless donor pool is worth little with no vantage point from which to launch a fundraising campaign.

Enter DonorsChoose.org. Launched in 2000, DonorsChoose.org makes it easy for anyone to help students in need. According to the site, American public school teachers can post classroom project requests online, allowing anyone to contribute any amount to their cause.

DonorsChoose.org clearly defines this mission on its About page. It’s backed by A-list celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Stephen Colbert. And its transparency of use lets donors know where exactly their money will be allocated in the teacher’s project.

Furthermore, fieldtrips get funded 14 percent more often than comparably priced projects, according to an infographic from Column Five.

Explorica group leader and DonorsChoose.org Director of Teacher Engagement Walter successfully funded seven international class trips for his Harlem, N.Y. students, via the online platform.

“The site makes it easy for teachers to spread the word about what they are trying to accomplish,” Walter said.

Since there’s no minimum donation, DonorsChoose.org allows classes to set smaller, more attainable fundraising goals online.

“Don’t try and raise all the money with one event or online proposal,” said the seven-year veteran of New York City public schools. “Instead, break up your lofty goal into smaller projects that will quickly add up!”

Since teaching in NYC public schools, Doyle went on to work for DonorsChoose.org full-time. He founded the Kids n’ Culture program which allows inner city students to travel abroad and conduct global cultural research.

If you’re interested in immersing your own class in world cultures, learn more about these enlightening Cultural Immersion Tours…

	French Culinary Tour This tour will expand your mind and entice your tastebuds, unveiling the secrets of the highly regaled French cuisine to every cook and foodie on your tour.
	Insider’s Italy This Florence-to-Rome tour captures the art and architecture of Ponte Vecchio, Il Duomo, Trevi Fountain and the Sistine Chapel among its can’t-miss stops. As you go, paint a fresco, toss a pizza and experience the monuments like no history book can cover.
	New Zealand & Australia in Depth Explore the beautiful South Pacific on this whirlwind tour of New Zealand and Australia. Visit Auckland, the largest and most populous city in New Zealand, and visit the rich cultural sites this cosmopolitan cultural center has to offer…Hop on over to Australia and explore Queensland, traveling to the Sunshine Coast, Fraser Island and Surfers Paradise.

Browse a complete list of Cultural Immersion Tours…