Illustration by Winnefer Wu
New policies are poorly timed, unorganized
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The district school board has recently enforced new policies regarding fundraisers, which were announced for the first time during the Inter-Club Council meeting on Aug. 21. As a result of the sudden announcement, along with how strict the policies are, many campus clubs have been unable to fundraise efficiently. Although the policies are meant to protect students, they should have been introduced and implemented in a more gradual manner—rather than one month into the school year, interrupting many planned fundraisers.
These policies include the mandatory acquisition of a permit for on-campus fundraisers that require a table, the requirement of an adult chaperone at off-campus fundraisers, and an automatic 5% withdrawal from fundraiser sales. Permission slips also need to be completed by cabinet members to attend off-campus fundraisers. More policies will likely be enforced in the future as the district is trying to ensure student safety during fundraisers.
The school district needs to plan the roll out of new policies more strategically in order to allocate enough time for school administration to inform club advisers of said policies. By doing so, clubs on campus would be able to promote and host fundraisers without any complications.
In addition to the unexpected policies, they are also unnecessarily strict. Because off-campus fundraisers now require a chaperone, many will not be able to happen because club advisers will not always be available or they will not be able to stay for the duration of the fundraiser. If the corresponding club adviser is not available, it may be difficult to find a willing replacement to supervise the fundraiser. Considering that various clubs need fundraisers to keep their treasury afloat and to keep their club functioning efficiently, these events are crucial to the maintenance of a running extracurricular ecosystem. Requiring an adult chaperone to attend off-campus may also cause superfluous difficulties, possibly preventing students from even trying to set up a fundraiser.
When implementing new policies like this, the school district should keep student needs in mind and be more organized in terms of disseminating information to the administration. Students should also have more input in policies that directly affect them because new policies, although implemented with good intentions, can be detrimental to the success of a club.
