Houston Business Journal Article

School Fundraising Watts it all about?

September 30, 2009 - What school fundraising is all about is watts, thanks to a new program developed by HISD in partnership with Texas electricity providers. Just sign up with one of the providers and a portion of your electric bill will go to the school of your choice.

Parents at Wainwright Elementary School (5330 Milwee, 77092) will be at the school on Thursday, October 1, at 10:00 a.m. to learn about the program and sign up. Representatives of the electric providers will be there to assist and determine, for instance, when would be the best time to sign up in order to avoid early termination fees from current providers.

Principal John Barrera said, “This is just the sort of fundraising tool we’ve been seeking. It’s just not as safe as it used to be for students to go door to door selling candy. This way we keep our children safe, we don’t have to stock or sell a product and there’s no cost to us or our supporters. We just get parents, grandparents, alumni and school supporters to sign up for something they are already using and they could even save money on their electric bills in the process.”
Several electricity providers have agreed to offer school supporters market or lower electricity rates and make a monthly contribution to schools for each supporter who signs up through the program and designates a school.
At Wainwright there are approximately 700 students. If every household signed up for the program the school could earn about $28,000 a year, paid in monthly installments.
There is no cost for schools or their supporters to participate in the program. To join, schools may register at the Power For SchoolsTM Web site, www.powerforschools.org
School supporters can use the Web site to find information about the program, locate their school’s ID Code, and compare rates, terms, and conditions of the electric providers. After a school supporter decides on a provider, he or she can enroll through the Web site using the schools ID code to direct a monthly contribution from the electric provider to the school. Supporters may also enroll by telephone or get help in registering at their school, but they must provide the school’s ID Code to ensure the school receives a contribution.

Power For SchoolsTM is an alternative to traditional fund raising programs that usually rely on parents and other school supporters to buy products they do not want, do not need, and often cannot afford. Instead, Power For SchoolsTM offers school supporters something they need and use every day, electricity. Teachers and school staff members no longer need to spend time distributing products, collecting money, and tracking sales.
Everyone benefits. The schools receive monthly income, year round, supporters have an opportunity to save on their electric bills, and the participating electric providers can support education and enlarge their customer base. HISD has designed the program so that it can be expanded statewide to include interested schools and school districts from all over Texas.

The providers involved in the program are Champion Energy Services, Ambit Energy and Affordable Power. It is anticipated that others will join the program.

The Houston Independent School District is the largest school district in Texas and the seventh-largest in the United States with 295 schools and more than 200,000 students. The 301-square-mile district is one of the largest employers in the Houston metropolitan area with nearly 30,000 employees. As a result of tremendous academic gains in recent years, a record 200 HISD schools achieved Texas’ top ratings of Exemplary or Recognized in 2009.

For more information, visit the HISD Web site at www.houstonisd.org.