Blog

“If my dreams don’t exceed my budget, I’m not dreaming big enough,” says Eric Dockery, principal of Edgar Allan Poe Classical Elementary School, located on Chicago’s South Side.

“We’re always trying to think of more learning opportunities we can provide for our students,” he continues. “And we constantly have to fundraise and find sources of revenue to deliver these opportunities.

“It takes a village for us to achieve our dreams,” adds Eric, “and we’re very happy to have Double Good as part of our village.”

Discovering a better fundraising alternative

The school had staged a wide range of fundraisers over the years, including walkathons and formal balls. “These events cost so much in time and energy for the payout you get,” Eric notes.

Then, three years ago, one of the school counselors suggested the school try Double Good online fundraising.

Exceeding expectations each day

“I had no expectations on what we might raise,” Eric recounts, “and then it just kind of took off. The first day we sold $10,000, and we wondered, can we make it to $20,000? And then we got past 50 and 60 and kept going.

“This little school on the South Side of Chicago,” he exclaims, “with only 200 students, sold $72,000 of popcorn!

“I was absolutely amazed,” Eric continues, “and I couldn’t wait for next year. And we got up to $86,000 the second year. And then the next year, dare I say $100,000? And we sold $108,000. What an awesome school community.”

Making “fun raisers” a community event

Eric enlisted all of Poe’s students and their parents in the Double Good fundraisers. He delivered a constant stream of encouragement to maximize participation and engagement.

“Every day I’d reach out to the school community through a call or social media or an email blast to parents to drive momentum,” Eric recounts. “We found that really helps. It becomes not just a fundraiser, but a school event.

“We call our fundraisers ‘fun raisers,’” he states, “because they build community.

“We make our Double Good ‘fun raisers’ fun for our student sellers by awarding lots of prizes,” says Eric. “If you open a Pop-Up Store, you get a ticket for the raffle. If you sell $500 or $1,000, you get raffle tickets.

“We give prizes for the top ten selling students and for the top classroom,” he continues. “And we have schoolwide goals—if we sell a certain amount, we’ll have a big party at the end of the year. So we have a lot of incentives built in.”

Leaderboard amps up the competition

“There’s so much friendly competition during these ‘fun raisers,’” says Eric. “Everyone watches the leaderboard. I’m on it all the time posting and encouraging, poking and challenging.

“Some of our parents are very competitive,” he laughs. “The same family has been the top seller for the past three years, and now the parent of a student who just started here has declared, ‘I’m taking you down.’ I love this kind of competition!”

Applying the funds to enriching the educational experience

The funds raised by the Double Good online fundraisers have been put to creative use.

“We had wanted to buy virtual reality glasses for years but couldn’t afford them,” says Eric. “And then the proceeds from the Double Good fundraiser made it possible.

“With these VR glasses,” he continues, “instead of just talking about the pyramids, you can go to Egypt and visit them.”

The school has also constructed a game room with air hockey, ping pong and video game consoles.

“The Double Good fundraisers allowed us to go from thinking small to thinking much bigger,” Eric reports. “Now, if a class meets certain goals, the teacher can sign them up for the game room to celebrate the achievement. It’s been such a big hit.”

Being able to say yes more often

The Poe school wish list includes a marquee on the school’s exterior which will boost community pride, posting upcoming events, spotlighting the student of the week and more.

“We’re also thinking about an indoor climbing wall,” says Eric, “and maybe building pickleball courts and a running track going around the school.

“And we’ve opened the ideation process up to the kids—what can they dream up?” he continues. “Now we can say yes to crazy ideas—and the crazier, the better.”

Online fundraising that makes anything possible

“We’re trying to provide the best educational experience possible,” concludes Eric. “We need partners in order to do it, and I really value the partnership we have with Double Good. It has allowed me and the Poe School community to dream bigger.”

Read another amazing success story, and then see what incredible results your school can achieve with Double Good virtual fundraising. Schedule your fundraiser today.