Comments on How to be a Badass Dad: School Fund Raising and Harsh Indoctrination

It is a ridiculous fact that our schools are under...

2009-11-03T15:20:44.852-06:00

It is a ridiculous fact that our schools are under-funded. Only schools with strong PTA's (read lots of middle to upper class families) have a full spectrum of arts and language opportunities. My son is in K and so far we have had a jogathon and Xmas wreath buying fundraisers. We have two neighbors whose kids hit us up for fundraisers in the past so we hit them up for the jogathon. Our school also partners with local supermarkets who donate a percentage of receipts. If my kid comes home with a catalog like you describe I will return it with a note expressing our dislike for this form of fundraising and a check for $25 made out to the PTA.

My first grader (his first year in public school) ...

2009-09-24T09:25:01.704-05:00

My first grader (his first year in public school) came home with that same catalog...and a few days later came a scolding note from the PTA saying "It's really important that you buy something to support the PTA."

It seems ridiculous to me that the school would expect my child to go door-to-door selling stuff that nobody wants.

Add to that the fees for everything from folders to headphones for computer lab, fees to participate in "Science Week", mandatory fees for presents for teacher birthdays, and ridiculous school supply lists that have to be purchased from the PTA vendor...and frankly, it all starts to feel a bit like a racket.

Girl Scout cookies seem like the same scam - excep...

2009-09-22T18:43:43.780-05:00

Girl Scout cookies seem like the same scam - except at least people like the cookies - but they aren't very healthy.

Yay for schools teaching the values of crap.

Hi Sol--I stumbled upon your blog through a link f...

2009-09-22T14:41:33.828-05:00

Hi Sol--I stumbled upon your blog through a link from mothering.com and I've been enjoying reading through your posts (although I'm a mom, not a dad). It's always nice to hear a guy talk who has his head screwed on straight. :)

I wanted to comment here that I totally agree about the stupidity of these school fund raisers. We have the exact same overpriced cookie-dough and made-in-China-junk catalogues here in Canada too. It really would make more sense to just ask for direct donations--after all, the last thing we all need is more STUFF!

I homeschool my daughter now, but when she was in public school it was a new fundraiser of some kind every few weeks or so...got to be pretty annoying after a while. I would rather they just said "Hey, can you parents pay for some new soccer balls?" or whatever.

I'm in college, and faced that same fund raisi...

2009-09-22T14:15:23.438-05:00

I'm in college, and faced that same fund raising scheme throughout my k-12 education. My family would begrudgingly accept it each year and casually post up the order forms at work. That, in retrospect, was a poor choice. In my experience, direct contact with and support of children's teachers is far more worthwhile. "What do you need, Mr. Bob? Tissue paper? A set of books? Pencils? Alrighty then."

Know that whatever you do, the same fundraiser will probably follow your child all the way through high school, like it did with me. Try shopping with your kid for things the school really needs, and reward her with ice cream at the end. Anyway, that's my two cents, from someone who dealt with years of that crap.