Are you a BTFE coordinator?

[susanktz]

:wavehi: From the posts I've read, we have quite a few BTFE Coordinators on the site. Of course, it makes sense to feed off each other and keep each other up to date.

My questions is ..... how long have you been doing this? This is my very first month as a coordinator!!! :shrug7: I could use all the help I can get. However, when I try to get ask for a Box Top Buddy..... the user is no longer registered with the site.

Let's help each other!! What do you think?? :BigHand:

[zoeys_mom]

I just signed my dd's school up and am anxiously awaiting registration to be finalized so I can start promoting the program.

I would love some insight as well! I know how to collect, but beyond that, I'm clueless!

[sbp]

I'm not a coordinator, but this week I've been unofficially promoted to be my son's school's coordinator's assistant and counter. LOL I'm known as the box top lady among all the teachers in the school.

[susanktz]

I'm known as the box top lady among all the teachers in the school.


:hysterical: :hysterical: :hysterical:

The sad thing is, so am I!! But luckily I've had sooooo much support.

I'm also very fortunate to have resources at work to run worksheets, etc to save me time and the school money for paper, etc.

[doulas3babes]

I am the newly named coordinator at our little school and I am going at it all alone......

I'm learning the ropes as I go w/out any instructions from the old coordinator, other than, here's the box, good luck and thanks!!

I signed up for the boxtop buddy, contacted them, but have yet to hear anything back. Doesn't really surprise me though, that's my kind of luck.

I went on the PTO's website and found some cute BTFE collection sheets for each month that are themed. They've been quite successful thus far in the amount I distributed to the classrooms and the amounts that have come back.

I also started a word document w/all the teachers names listed from K to 8th grade and put each child's name that contributes underneath w/the amount that the send in. Will just keep a running tab till the final collection in Feb.

[Debbieomi]

:wavehi: Howdy fellow coordinators. I guess I'm the old lady in the group. This is my 5th year coordinating, 7th year of involvement. I clipped and sorted for my first year, ran the contests and clipped my second and did it all from my third til this year. Since this is my son's last year at the schools that our PTO supports, this is my last year doing "Ca$h for Trash" for them. I get to move on to the middle school with him next year. I have a coordinator in training this year.
I have a team of clippers each year that I find through our "Three for Me" volunteer program. This year, there are 10 ladies who clip. This will be my first year with no clipping!!! The sorting of each item and record keeping is enough to do! (We collect about 10 different items.) Each of my clippers have 2 or 3 classrooms that they sort through and separate each month. They record the numbers as to how many of each item that each classroom brings in.
There aren't enough hours in the day to spend much time on the btfe coordinator's forum but it is definitely the most useful place for info. I also belong to a yahoo group. I get most info about special promos there right now. It helps to be able to log into btfe.com every day and read top postings for new info...also the admin's posts.
Because we collect so many items, I don't do btfe collection sheets regularly. I did one for our Trunk or Treat that clearly stated the btfe would not be counted towards our year long contests. I will do another during a local festival we have each April. I find a few good prizes, either freebies, cheapies or donations to use as a prize. My Halloween one was a bunch of little Halloween stuff that I got as fillers for my Walgreens deals. I added a Webkinz and a board game and the kid was ecstatic.
I could write for hours, but I got my ideas off the coordinator's board, so I'll save my fingers :giggle2: and reiterate to go there and read, read, read!

[cody82414]

I took on the coordinator position for my boys' elementary school just last October!

[cecaic0609]

How do you get into something like this, I saw my boxtops anyway and would love to be the coordinator for something like this. Do they work around your schedule or can you do this from home?

[cody82414]

How do you get into something like this, I saw my boxtops anyway and would love to be the coordinator for something like this. Do they work around your schedule or can you do this from home?

It's all you!
You decide everything - fundraisers, promotions, everything except how to spend the monies:giggle2:

I recommend approaching the principal and asking if anyone is doing the job, and if not, can you take it on.

You can even check on line to see whether your specific school has an ongoing program. Help Support Schools and Education, Create Change ? Box Tops for Education (http://www.boxtops4education.com/)

[mmandjsmom]

I am going to be our school's BTFE assistant....that's what I get for asking the asst. principal (current coordinator) if the school was going to have any sort of competition this year.

[jessiesaves]

Great to hear some ideas that other schools do. I've held the position for 2 years now. My school does nothing to compete, or anything. They have collection bins in each grade's breakout area, and then the alp program from the highschool end of the building "sorts" the items collected (BTFE, box tops, tyson etc) I've thought about bringing up a change, but that hasn't worked in the past.
Last year I was the PTO president, and I'm pretty sure I made some enemies. I was 24, walking into a group that has been running things since I was in that elementary school. Lets just say our meetings were spent in heated discussions with basically nothing accomplished by the end of the year.
I was able to stay on as CLFE coordinator because they think of it as a crap job. I've attended a whole 2 meetings this year. I hate to pull away, but butting heads wasn't getting anything done. I send in reports on label counts & balances, help with the bookfairs, and bring dishes to conferences. At this point, hopefully keeping my foot in the door will pay off when the current group learns to accept new ideas or they retire!

Good luck to all you other coordinators, I love the job. It gives me a night a week to veg out in front of the tv while I clip points and glue them on collections sheets. (that way I can still follow the storyline w/o losing count!)

[jessiesaves]

After re-reading my post, I'd like to add that there are many things my pto does accomplish.

Buy all school supplies for k-5 (not including backpacks)
pay for all fieldtrips
pay for alllyceums
pay for all author visits
Feed all teachers k-12 four times a year on conference nights
Run Bookfairs
Take all high AR scoring kids to a movie at the end of the year (this program works great, over the past 4 years its gone from 20 kids to having to attend 2 different showings! Not bad for an elm school of under 400!!)

I do still volunteer when I can, I just don't sit thru those meetings!

[mmandjsmom]

Wow, jessisaves! We'd love to have you help our PTO. Too bad people aren't interested in new ideas at your school. We are always looking to shake things up & pulling teeth for some fresh volunteers.

[~~Who,Me?~~]

I do it for my son's school. He goes to a very small school, only about 60 kids. He started last January, right after the holidays. I knew they collected but I was never receiving any info about it, so I volunteered to do it. Turns out they didn't even have a coordinator!

I am very proud to say that for all of last year, the school earned........$90. No, that's not a typo, it was $90.

For this year, just for the collection period that ran through October...$700! :smile: I did $225 of that myself, just in catalina deals and trades. Just making people aware and running small, silly contests works.

On my blog, I have a page (http://lisasbargainalert.blogspot.com/p/box-tops-for-education-links-info.html) dedicated just to BTFE. It contains a whole bunch of links to the various BTFE printable sites plus some other resources. Makes it easy to have it all in one place. I have it set as one of my favorites and I use it all the time.

I also have a blog just for the school and btfe, but I don't keep up with it. With just 60 kids, we are able to make copies & send home in backpacks.

[CW&M Mom]

I'm fairly certain I am one of only a few that send them to my school. And this year most of mine will be going to the Joplin School District instead. For as much as our school needs them...Joplin is only about 30 minutes from my kids school and they need them way more. Since they lost But there are some special point system catalina's that a store does here...that Joplin can't use that I will continue to collect for my kids school.

Joplin School district basically lost 260 classrooms. So everything that were in those classrooms including all the teachers personal supplies were destroyed and the insurance does not cover there personal supplies.

[cody82414]

this will be my third year (starting in October)

here (http://www.hotcouponworld.com/forums/daily-living/310874-10-316-btfes-collected-thank-you-hcw.html) is the thread from year one. Total collected was just over $3000.

year 2 the school collectively made $3611.00 from BTFEs alone.

And this year I have set the goal at $4334.00 :BigHand:

[cody82414]

for the first 2 weeks of school
I sent out an introductory letter that went home with every student.
On the backside, I printed a 10 BTFE collection sheet.
got 125 sheets back in those two weeks!!
Student count just under 400.

I chose two random entries
one boy and one girl
and gave them each a tshirt with the BTFE logo ironed onto it.
They were awarded at this morning's assembly.

When we return to school on Tuesday
I am beginning a challenge between grades.
I have not done this sort of competition before,
so I am hopeful to get the interest of some who have not yet participated.

We will have something special for the grade that collects the most
at the Halloween parties at the end of October
just in time for mail in!!!


I hope that everyone's campaigns are going well
and that this is another successful year for you all :wavehi: