How many students do I need to mobilize in order to run Power of Change?
Prior student leaders have utilized their student council, National Honor Society or other school service groups to help run the campaign at their schools, but this service initiative is also easy enough to run with just a handful of friends. If you can't solicit the help of established school groups, consider founding your own new club to spearhead this service project.
Is the collection just for coins and only 50¢?
Power of Change will accept any student donations, whether coins or bills and in any amount! We'll take pennies, dimes, nickels and quarters. We even received a limited number of dollar coins! Of course, bills are great too! Please collect any contribution-large or small! We set a low bar as we believe that asking a lot of people for a small donation is much easier than asking a few people for a lot of money. Collectively, spare change across multiple schools can gross to significant funds for hunger relief. Every coin makes a difference!
How can I spur more generous contributions?
Create hype and momentum for Power of Change with incentives for giving, social media posts/texts, school announcements and any creative manner you can think of! Pentucket High's student council dressed up in costume last year and actively sought donations in their cafeteria! Lexington High offered a donut party to homeroom which collected the most donations. Ursuline Academy offered "dress down" opportunity in exchange for student contributions.
What about in-kind donations for incentives?
Local businesses are often very supportive of teen service projects. If you are considering an incentive to promote giving, why not request an in-kind donation (donuts, pastries, coupon for free/discounted meal, or coffee) from a vendor or restaurant in your town. Talk to a manager at that business, explain that you are running a service project at your high school to end hunger and would they be interested in donating "x" to support the cause or teen effort. Most businesses are happy to help! Once you have solicited the in-kind donation, be sure to set a date for pick-up and follow-up with reminders before the actual pick-up date.
Do we need to count all the money collected?
Yes, you will need to count and wrap all coins collected (bills may be sorted into stacks of similar denomination), but it's fun and will immediately allow you to determine the success of your campaign! Check to see if there is a TD Bank near you. Because Power of Change has an account with TD Bank, you may request coin wrappers from the bank at no charge. Take coin rolls and bills to the teller for deposit. You will need to fill out a deposit slip. Before you make a bank deposit, contact us for Power of Change's bank account number.
Is there a set start and end date for Power of Change?
Power of Change will run the whole 2016-2017 school year. The start and end date for any particular school's campaign is up to you. We do recommend fall as life/activities tend to get busier and more stressful as the school year progresses into the winter and spring.
Who benefits from the donations collected by Power of Change?
Once all participating schools have completed their Power of Change campaigns, donations will be consolidated and sent to the Greater Boston Food Bank, which serves multiple communities in the Massachusetts area. For more information about the Greater Boston Food Bank and the good work they do, please go to www.gbfb.org. If you wish your specific school's contribution to benefit a particular local food pantry, please let us know, and we will mark those donations for remittance to your designated recipient.
What if I need help? Who do I contact?
Send us an email at [email protected] or use our contacts page to send a message. We'll respond ASAP.
Prior student leaders have utilized their student council, National Honor Society or other school service groups to help run the campaign at their schools, but this service initiative is also easy enough to run with just a handful of friends. If you can't solicit the help of established school groups, consider founding your own new club to spearhead this service project.
Is the collection just for coins and only 50¢?
Power of Change will accept any student donations, whether coins or bills and in any amount! We'll take pennies, dimes, nickels and quarters. We even received a limited number of dollar coins! Of course, bills are great too! Please collect any contribution-large or small! We set a low bar as we believe that asking a lot of people for a small donation is much easier than asking a few people for a lot of money. Collectively, spare change across multiple schools can gross to significant funds for hunger relief. Every coin makes a difference!
How can I spur more generous contributions?
Create hype and momentum for Power of Change with incentives for giving, social media posts/texts, school announcements and any creative manner you can think of! Pentucket High's student council dressed up in costume last year and actively sought donations in their cafeteria! Lexington High offered a donut party to homeroom which collected the most donations. Ursuline Academy offered "dress down" opportunity in exchange for student contributions.
What about in-kind donations for incentives?
Local businesses are often very supportive of teen service projects. If you are considering an incentive to promote giving, why not request an in-kind donation (donuts, pastries, coupon for free/discounted meal, or coffee) from a vendor or restaurant in your town. Talk to a manager at that business, explain that you are running a service project at your high school to end hunger and would they be interested in donating "x" to support the cause or teen effort. Most businesses are happy to help! Once you have solicited the in-kind donation, be sure to set a date for pick-up and follow-up with reminders before the actual pick-up date.
Do we need to count all the money collected?
Yes, you will need to count and wrap all coins collected (bills may be sorted into stacks of similar denomination), but it's fun and will immediately allow you to determine the success of your campaign! Check to see if there is a TD Bank near you. Because Power of Change has an account with TD Bank, you may request coin wrappers from the bank at no charge. Take coin rolls and bills to the teller for deposit. You will need to fill out a deposit slip. Before you make a bank deposit, contact us for Power of Change's bank account number.
Is there a set start and end date for Power of Change?
Power of Change will run the whole 2016-2017 school year. The start and end date for any particular school's campaign is up to you. We do recommend fall as life/activities tend to get busier and more stressful as the school year progresses into the winter and spring.
Who benefits from the donations collected by Power of Change?
Once all participating schools have completed their Power of Change campaigns, donations will be consolidated and sent to the Greater Boston Food Bank, which serves multiple communities in the Massachusetts area. For more information about the Greater Boston Food Bank and the good work they do, please go to www.gbfb.org. If you wish your specific school's contribution to benefit a particular local food pantry, please let us know, and we will mark those donations for remittance to your designated recipient.
What if I need help? Who do I contact?
Send us an email at [email protected] or use our contacts page to send a message. We'll respond ASAP.