FUNDRAISING

A Participant’s service activities may not include organized fundraising, including financial campaigns, endowment drives, solicitation of gifts and bequests, and similar activities designed for the sole purpose of raising capital or obtaining contributions for the organization. Service activities that raise funds or in-kind contributions while generating, involving and/or encouraging community support may be considered appropriate and allowable, such as serve-a-thons, to the extent they are in direct and immediate support of an acceptable direct service and provided that they are not the program’s primary activity or involve significant amounts of an individual participant’s time.

Grantee Staff.

A Learn and Serve America staff member’s time and related expenses may not be charged to the Corporation or Grantee share of the grant while engaged in organized fundraising, including financial campaigns, endowment drives, the general solicitation of gifts and bequests, door-to-door solicitations, direct mail, or similar activities for which the sole purpose is raising capital or obtaining contributions for the organization. Expenses incurred to raise funds may be paid out of the funds raised. Development officers and fund-raising staff are not allowable expenses.

When charging time to the grant, staff time and effort spent on raising the match requirements should be incidental to the overall management of the Program, and should be focused primarily on developing and disseminating information to potential funders on the Learn and Serve America Program and its achievements. Staff can make presentations and educate funders on objectives, goals and accomplishments. Efforts to involve the community in support of the Learn and Serve America program, such as obtaining medical contributions or assistance at a health fair; donations of building supplies for a Learn and Serve America construction project; and coordinating community participation in and support of a serve-a-thon and service activities are allowable.