Hello ARK Community!
We want to thank you for taking the time to write to us & Mr. Park about the concerns with the Step It Up Kids fundraiser.
First, we are deeply sorry for any confusion, upset, or drama that the fundraiser may have caused for you & your families. The goal of any fundraiser is to not just make money for our school but also foster community engagement. Your concerns with this particular fundraiser have been heard & considered carefully over the past 24 hours.
Some of the same questions & concerns are coming up again and again so we are addressing them below. If you have an item that has NOT been addressed below, we invite you to put it in the comments so that we may get to work on it.
Q: Is my data and privacy safe? Will our data be sold?
No information is shared or sold. Their full policy can be examined here: https://p.stepitupkids.com/privacy
Q: This seems like a scam/scheme.
A: The company running it IS a for-profit company but their structure has been examined and they are legit. Other schools right here in Cherry Hill have had great success with Day of Awesomeness and this was recommended to us by our friends at those schools.
Q: Why do we only get 40%?
A: That’s the liquid cash we receive. The SIUK company funds the prizes and Day of Awesomeness, and then takes the rest. Many of our fundraisers such as dine & donate contribute FAR less than 40%.
Additionally, we can make up to 50% once we surpass 30k.
Q: I’m not comfortable with this. Can we donate directly to the PTA?
A: YES! You can write a check to ARK PTA or Venmo ARKPTA with any contribution. Please say in the comments: “general contribution” and then please list the name(s) of your child(ren). Each family donating directly to the PTA will be entered to win a prize that is similar to the prizes being offered by Step It Up Kids. Hopefully this helps with feelings of missing out. The alternate prizes will be funded by the PTA directly.
Q: My child is upset because I don’t want them to participate.
A: We are so sorry and respect every family’s decision. Your child will absolutely 100% be able to participate in Day of Awesomeness whether or not they participate in fundraising. Every ARK fundraiser is 100% optional and we regret that some language making it seem mandatory was used.
Q: I saw the Golden Ticket deadline was yesterday at midnight. That’s too fast, too much pressure, and we missed out.
A: Actually the deadline for the golden ticket is February 20th! We are very sorry that the wrong deadline was communicated, we are not sure how or why that happened
Q: I have other feedback or concerns.
A: Come to our PTA Meeting! We reviewed this fundraiser last week. It’s too late to pull it now but we firmly believe that community engagement & diverse perspectives in our meetings and planning phases would lead to better outcomes. And we want to encourage a continued dialogue whenever you have feelings or questions on anything PTA related which is why we’re opening this up on social media.
Very sincerely,
Your PTA Executive Board
