Booster clubs have become, especially in the past few years, extremely popular across the United States. To answer the question “What are booster clubs?” many booster clubs provide support for a variety of activities from drama to sports to academics. Booster clubs are an extremely valuable resource for communities and focuses its booster club volunteer staff on tasks like fundraising and event help. Generally, booster club volunteers focus on raising funds for different programs through the organization of events and activities that the community can take part in. A booster club is one of the most efficient and direct fund raising systems for any school department or private organization, whether it be music, arts, academics or athletics. Below, we’ve compiled a list of reasons why getting involved with a booster club based in your area would benefit not only you, but your community!
A BOOSTER CLUB VOLUNTEER BENEFITS PROGRAMS FINANCIALLY
Schools tend to hang in a very fragile balance when it comes to finances, having to split their budgets between so many different extra-curricular programs and teams. This makes booster clubs an enormously important resource for different programs, activities and athletics. One way in which you could get involved with a booster club is by being a booster club volunteer. Volunteering, allows you to take an active part in raising funds, overall management or event coordination as a booster club member allows you to make a major positive impact in the equation of a program’s success.
Booster clubs are generally run and organized by students and their parents, though at a University level, plenty of fans and alumni do their part to help support booster clubs. Being a part of a booster club is both a social connection and an experience that allows you to support student activities, raising funds to help counteract school budget cuts, and more involvement in your local community. To run any kind of extracurricular program is extremely expensive, with necessities like equipment, uniforms, and more adding up and putting a strain on any budget. This financial struggle is why things like sports booster clubs, academic booster clubs, and music booster clubs are so important to participate in. Parents and students who get involved with a booster club are valued members of the organization. Without their help, the booster club would not exist, leaving school programs without an extremely valuable financial resource.
BOOSTER CLUB VOLUNTEERS HELP BUILD COMMUNITY INTERACTION
When asking, “what are booster clubs?” it’s best to look at the environment they’re usually found in. Typically, booster clubs are usually created around a school environment with an already a well-established community that its volunteers and participants are a part of. A pleasant benefit of getting involved with a booster club, is you can’t help but get closer to the members of said community! If you are a parent who wants to help their child by supporting their activity booster club, lucky you! There will be plenty of other parents with the same objective. Uniting booster club volunteers and donors is an easy task when there’s a universal motivator. Taking an active role in your child’s activities is also a great way to bond with your child and become more involved in their academic and extracurricular life.
One last area of responsibility booster clubs take on, is giving support to the students. Being a part of a booster club means that you’ll have a direct impact encouraging students to push themselves to be better. Through organizing events like academic awards ceremonies which support all students at all grade and course levels, you, your booster club and the school honor individuals for their achievements in class and extra-curricular activities. To have such a personal stake in the encouragement and development of students is not only fulfilling, but extremely beneficial for a healthy and supportive academic environment.
BOOSTER CLUBS POSITIVELY INFLUENCE HOW PROGRAMS ARE RUN
Due to how valuable a resource booster clubs are in the school environment, booster clubs usually have some input regarding how a program is run or managed. While booster clubs don’t have full authority over programs due to the sheer amount of time, energy, and money most booster clubs put forth towards specific departments, it’s commonplace that they get a say in how certain programs are managed. When deciding exactly how to support a booster club, consider what you could do outside of monetary donations and volunteering at events!
Maybe you have a professional skillset the Booster club could benefit from, or perhaps you see ways in which a program can be improved. For instance, if you’re participating in a drama booster club and you see the department struggling with getting people to buy tickets but you have a fantastic way idea on how to improve their marketing strategy, bring up your plan at the next booster club meeting! Invite the administration and pitch your thoughts on how to improve advertisement for the plays and musicals. As a booster club volunteer, you’ve already proven that you’re an active member in the department through your own involvement, meaning your ideas will have a better chance of being heard and carried out, making you a positive influence on the program as a whole!
If you are in the process of creating a booster club or you currently manage a booster club, you may benefit from some of our blog topics around Booster Club Fundraising, Booster Club Marketing and Booster Club Management. It might also be helpful to review our guides to managing a booster club by state. As we are growing, keep in mind booostr.co is here to help!
