This directory of funding sources and fund raisers has been compiled based upon the experience of dozens of Model United Nations programs at colleges and universities across the country. Each idea has proven to be an effective way to make money and support Model United Nations activities. Not every funding source or fund raiser will work at your school. This directory will provide you with a starting point for programs which will work for you.

I. WHY FUND RAISE?

It is only the "fortunate few" Model United Nations programs which have the luxury of relying entirely upon funding from their school to cover all the costs of attending a Model United Nations (MUN) Conference. Most schools must find other sources of revenue; otherwise, individual delegates are forced to bear the burden of paying for transportation, hotel, etc.

Many schools do rely heavily upon at least partial funding from a school-related source. However, an increasing number of students and faculty of MUN programs have, in this era of tight budgets, begun their own fund raising efforts to supplement school sources.

If your MUN program is partially or fully "funded" through school sources, you should still seriously consider outside fund raising. Additional funds can enable your program to:

• Pay all expenses, not just delegation or per-delegate fees (e.g. hotel bills, transportation, meals, social events)
• Attend additional Model UN programs, such as American Model United Nations of Chicago
• Fund activities of your club throughout the year (e.g. social events, research and copying costs)

II. USING THE MUN OR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS CLUB (IRC) AS A FUND RAISING VEHICLE

If you do not currently have an active Model United Nations Club or International Relations Club at your school, it is strongly recommended that you form one. The advantages of forming an MUN or IRC club include:

1. It will permit you to do additional fund raising, just like any other college club on campus.
2. It permits students an opportunity to gather for regular meetings, get to know one another, and socialize together.
3. It permits students to research together, bring in speakers, hold mock sessions, and practice giving speeches.
4. MUN/IRC clubs generally help members learn about international politics and international relations, while providing useful vehicles for preparation for the MUN conferences you attend.
5. Establishing an MUN or IRC club also tends to "institutionalize" your program so that if the faculty advisor or sponsor leaves school or retires, the students will have a club which perpetuates itself, and thus your program.

Setting up an MUN/IRC club is relatively easy. The following are the usual steps at most schools:

A. FIND YOUR SCHOOL'S REQUIREMENTS FOR OBTAINING SCHOOL RECOGNITION OF A CLUB.

1. Contact the student government association and/or the student affairs office at your school. Obtain copies of any applications needed to get a club recognized as an official campus organization.
2. Speak with the appropriate persons to determine how long it takes to get the club recognized and find out what the process entails.

B. CALL AN ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING FOR ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING IN THE MODEL UNITED NATIONS

1. Be sure to publicize the meeting through posters and announcements in classes, as well as by word of mouth. Remember, students outside the political science departments may have an interest in participating, so be sure notices go up all over campus, and in particular, target the journalism, business and foreign language students.
2. At your meeting, elect provisional officers and select a name for the club. Begin planning the club's activities, and prepare a calendar of events.
3. Be sure to keep your faculty sponsors advised of your activities, and have them attend the meetings.

C. GAIN SCHOOL APPROVAL

After your application is completed and approved, you will be in a position to take advantage of whatever opportunities are available to recognized school clubs.

D. FUND RAISE

1. Observe the fund raising activities sponsored by other on-campus organizations. Could your MUN/IRC club sponsor any of these (or similar) activities?
2. In addition to your other club activities, plan at least three or four fund raisers per year. Most school clubs who effectively fund raise make $1,000 or more per year. There is no reason why your MUN or IRC club cannot do the same things; dozens of similar clubs at other colleges campuses around the country make that much or more to support their activities.

III. EFFECTIVE FUND RAISING

• ORGANIZATION

1. Plan your fund raisers well in advance. At the beginning of the school year or during the summer, outline all of your MUN activities, including fund raising.

2. Appoint a fund raising committee, if you have enough members to do so. Otherwise, appoint one or two persons who will be in charge of fund raising.

3. Carefully consider the list of fund raising ideas listed below. Also, look at what other clubs do to raise money. What clubs and organizations carry off successful fund raisers? Are these fund raisers the MUN club could sponsor?

4. The president of the club or the faculty advisor should make sure that all preparations necessary to hold the fund raiser have been completed at least several weeks in prior to the event. For example, if you are holding a raffle on September 30th, be sure that your raffle tickets are printed early, and that members have received sufficient number of tickets to sell at least 3 weeks in advance of the drawing.

• PUBLICITY

1. Successful programs, including fund raising activities, need at least two weeks of publicity.

2. Be sure to use every means available for publishing your event:

a. Posters

b. Announcements in the school paper

c. Class announcements

d. Radio announcements

e. Announcements on classroom chalkboards

f. Leaflets--distribute leaflets in the student center, student lounges, dormitories, in cafeterias, and in classes

g. Put notices in all student mailboxes

h. Phone calls

i. Announcements at student government meetings, and the meetings of other clubs

j. Set up an MUN bulletin board

k. Prepare a calendar of events for your club, listing all events, including fund raising activities, which can be made available to all Model UN program students, and others

• PREPARE A BUDGET

1. 1. It is extremely important to prepare a comprehensive budget for your activities. This will permit you to:
   1. anticipate expenses; and
   2. set goals and priorities -- e.g. if you need $600 to attend AMUN you can budget and fund raise for that goal; and
   3. have available your projected budget for making funding requests of your student government association, political science dept., etc.
2. The usual budget should include:
   1. Delegation fees and/or per delegate fees - for each conference you hope to attend
   2. Hotel costs or lodging costs for all delegates - Be sure to plan for more people than the number you think you will actually take, since it is possible that more people will attend than you originally anticipate. If others drop out later, at least you will have sufficient funds to cover your needs.
   3. Transportation costs - figure costs for bus, van, or car rental, or gasoline and/or mileage expenses if individual faculty or student participants drive. If you feel like you will have sufficient funding to pay for airline travel, factor in your projected costs for tickets.
   4. Food costs - can be done on an extremely low shoe-string budget. Many, many students at conferences bring a cooler and buy lunch meat, cheese, bread, chips, fruit, soda, bagels, donuts, etc. so as to save the expense of paying hotel prices for at least breakfasts and lunches. However, in your budget, you should factor in the projected food costs for each person in your delegation or delegations at restaurant prices.
   5. Social events - At most conferences, including AMUN of Chicago, you will have at least one free night to socialize. Also, many delegations sponsor parties for other delegations, since it is widely recognized that social events are an effective way to politic after business hours. Therefore, your budget should include money set aside for social events; many clubs allocate approximately $100.00 for this expense per conference.
   6. Any other expenses you can think of . . .

Remember, your actual budget can be done on a shoestring. However, when you submit a budget to someone you are requesting money from, it is sound practice to ask for enough money to cover all of your expenses, even though are not necessarily expecting your "upper limit" request to be granted.

If, for example, you budget totals $800.00, and your student government agrees to fund $600.00, you should strongly consider holding one or more fund raisers to raise the additional money to cover your entire budgetary expenses. That way, students pay as little as possible out-of-pocket.

IV. SUCCESSFUL MONEY MAKING PROJECTS

What are the simplest ways to make money?

1. STUDENT GOVERNMENT FUNDING

Be sure to check with your student government to find out when applications for budget allocations have to be made. Most schools have a deadline, and a budget process which occurs either in the late Spring or early Fall, or both. Also, be sure to check to see whether your Student Government President has access to "discretionary" funds, and see whether these might be available to your club.

2. SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION OR DEPARTMENTAL FUNDING

Most schools have some money available for programs like the MUN. Commonly, programs are funded directly through the administration, or through a particular department. Approach your faculty advisor to determine how such funding can be obtained, and be sure to get your request in prior to any deadlines which may have been established.

3. DONATIONS

• United Nations Association - If your school is located near a UNA Chapter, it is strongly suggested that your members become associated with that Chapter and that you request the Chapter to assist you in fund raising. Keep in mind a UNA Chapter will have access to people, resources, and perhaps funds, that you will not otherwise have access to. Many, many MUN programs have been partially funded by their local UNA Chapter.
• Corporations and Individuals - If there are corporations in your community, and or civic-minded groups or leaders, you should attempt to identify these people and find out if any of your members, faculty, or other persons you are in contact with have been funded through requests for small-to-medium size donations from individuals, corporations, and/or community organizations.
• For example, Rotary International and Kiwanis Clubs are both organizations which have assisted Model UN Programs with funding. Also, some MUN programs have been funded through local school alumni who have in interest in international affairs and are now possessed with resources to make a donation.

4. RAFFLE

If your state laws permit raffles, you should do one. Raffles are one of the best money-makers available. One Model UN program recently held a raffle for 50 gallons of gasoline donated from a local gas station, and made over $400.00. Raffles are frequently held for the following kinds of items:

• Groceries from a local grocery store (e.g. $200.00 worth of free groceries)
• Gasoline
• Free lodging for a weekend at a motel or hotel
• A free trip donated by a local travel agency
• A gift certificate at a clothing store, liquor store, or other local merchant
• Free season passes or tickets to
  • local symphony
  • local theatre
  • local theme park (e.g. Six Flags)
  • local comedy clubs

Usually, successful raffles involve the printing of tickets and selling of those tickets for $1.00 or $2.00 each. Raffle tickets can be sold on campus, and/or at home, at work, outside shopping malls, etc. If enough members are serious about selling tickets, the club can make lots of money.

Be sure to set up a day certain for the raffle. Once the raffle is completed, publicize the results so the people who bought tickets will know a winner was awarded the prize.

Monthly Raffles - a less involved variety of raffle is to get local merchants to donate items such as a bottle of wine, a bottle of liquor, school books, a small gift certificate, a gift certificate for lunch or dinner at a local restaurant, etc., and raffle those off at your club's activities and/or at activities of other organizations on campus.

Alternatively, set up a table or tables at your campus union or other strategic location once a month to raffle these items off. While these raffles do not make more than $50.00-$100.00 each, over the course of a year you can make a substantial amount of money.

5. CAR WASH

Clubs who sponsor car washes typically make $200-$400 per car wash. Have a local fire station, service station, or merchant donate the location, water and soap. Be sure to advertise the car wash on campus and to the local community.

6. PARTIES

A WORD OF CAUTION ABOUT PARTIES:

Be very careful about sponsoring parties where liquor is involved. Most states and localities are concerned about parties involving minors. Check your local liquor laws, and be sure that you avoid any problems of sponsoring a party where minors are either involved with selling or furnishing liquor, or partaking. Also be aware that in certain states "dram-shop" liability can be incurred by any person or group who serves liquor to someone who later leaves a party and has a wreck. Therefore, you should be prepared to furnish rides home from your parties, so as to avoid any drinking and driving problems. As a general rule, if you are not sure of the rules/laws involved, do not sponsor parties involving liquor.

• Traditional 'kegger'
• Wine and Cheese Reception -- also, you might try a "wine and cheese tasting" party. Contact local wine shops or wine distributors to help you set up the party.
• "Pack Yer Bags" Party -- Get a travel agency to donate a trip for two to someplace fun. Sponsor a party and charge each person an admission price, for which they receive a ticket. Hold a raffle towards the end of the party, with the winner to be directly driven to the airport to receive their free trip.
• Breathalyzer Party -- Contact your local police or sheriff's department to come to your party and have breathalyzer tests done before people drive home. Be prepared to have sober drivers to provide rides home; many will be surprised at how few drinks it takes to be "over-the-limit". Make sure that all attendees are over 21 years old.
• International Dinner/Party -- Sponsor a dinner, reception, and/or party where the cuisine, hors d'oeuvres, and food and drinks are from foreign lands. Get members, and local restaurants, to donate the food and drinks. Charge admission.
• The "Game" Party or Tournament -- Sponsor a party and/or tournament for a game or games like Trivial Pursuit, Backgammon, Chess, Bridge, Poker, or other popular games. Charge admission and award a donated prize to the winner or winners.
• "Car Demolition" Party -- Find an old car which can be demolished, by either getting a member or someone you know to donate one, or by contacting a local junkyard and either get them to donate an old car or buy a cheap car to demolish. Select a location where the car can be smashed without creating too many clean-up problems. Obtain a sledge hammer. Hold a party at the place where the event is to be held, and charge each person for their "swings" at the car. For example, you might charge "two swings for 50¢, or five swings for a dollar". You might charge extra for the first swings at the windows or other 'fun' targets. One MUN recently made $500 on such an event.

7. SLAVE-FOR-A-DAY

Get members to agree to be "slaves-for-a-day". Students and/or professors "buy" the services of that student for the day to carry their books around, run errands, etc. Usually, bids are taken for each "slave" for two weeks or so in advance of the day on which the "slaves" will work.

8. HALLOWEEN INSURANCE

Sell "insurance" to people who may have to clean up a mess on their property after Halloween celebrations. Charge $5.00 to $25.00 for each "policy". Make the policy good for up to one week after Halloween. Purchasers might include Fraternity/Sorority houses, professors, football players, etc.

9. MOVIES

Contact your student government and find out who sponsors movies. That committee or office should have catalogues from movie companies, who will furnish movies for which you can charge admission. Popular movies, especially "cult classics" are often a great way to make money, particularly if you sponsor several movies per year. Charge $1 or $2 for admissions.

NOTE: you should be sure to use the movie companies, and not just rent the movie from your local video store. You must have permission from the company with distribution rights in order to charge admission for a movie. They will provide that permission, but you have to rent the movie directly from them.

10. SALES

• Bake Sales
• Coffee/Doughnut Sale
• Hot Dog Sale or Pizza Sale
• Plant Sale - have a local plant sales person (check with your nurseries) come to school or other nearby location and sell plants, and receive a percentage of the profits for sponsoring the sale. Alternatively, obtain the plants on consignment from the nursery or sales person. Best if done early in the fall, when students are buying plants for their dorm rooms, apartments, and houses.
• Flower Sale - can be sponsored just like a plant sale. Usually best if done with carnations or roses before Valentine's Day.
• Pumpkin Sale - sponsor pumpkin sale near Halloween.
• Ethnic Day Sale - similar to the "International Dinner", obtain ethnic foods and sell samples and/or meals at school.
• T-Shirt/Sweatshirt/Cap/Mug Sale - be creative. Find a theme for a T-Shirt sale which is likely to be popular and yet neither the school bookstore nor any other group sells items saying what your shirts/caps/mugs/etc. say.

NOTE ABOUT SALES: Never pre-purchase the goods you are selling, or you risk taking a big loss. Have someone else come in and do the sale you are sponsoring, obtain items for sale on consignment, or obtain samples of the items you will sell and take orders to be filled.

B. What "More-Involved" Fund Raisers Could Our Club Sponsor?

1. THEME PARTIES

• Casino Night - purchase or rent Las Vegas style equipment, or find a private company which you can hire to present your party for you. Charge admission. Many groups which sponsor casino nights hold some kind of a raffle or auction at the end of the party so people can use their "play money" to buy donated items.
• NOTE: Check your state and local laws before sponsoring any party that could involve gambling. Most states allow some form of gambling for non-profit organizations (e.g., schools and school clubs) but laws differ from area to area.
• Luau/Hawaiian Party - obtain Hawaiian-style decorations and food. Make mai tais, and serve a Polynesian dinner. Charge admission and sell tickets in advance.
• Halloween Costume Party
• Mardi Gras Party
• St. Patrick's Day Party - obtain St. Patrick's Day decorations, and serve a traditional Irish meal, along with green beer, Irish Coffee, Irish Whiskey, and/or green punch.
• Dances and Balls - sponsor an "International Costume Dance" or Ball. Charge admission.
• Used Book Sale - sell used books at the beginning of the year; take a percentage (e.g. 10%) for the club; the balance of the money would be paid to the students who donate the used books.
• School Directory - if your school or student government does not put together a school directory, check with your records office and obtain names of all students as they register at the first of the year and compile those names into a directory. Locate a person or business to type and/or typeset the names, and find a printer to print the directories. Seek advertising from local merchants to defray or pay for all costs.
• Profit - comes from either charging each student per copy, or charging advertisers a sufficient amount so that you can make your profit from them, and distribute the directories for free. Also, check with the administration and/or the student government regarding whether they will donate money for this effort. Remember to make sure you have the permission of the students to enter their names in the directory.

2. CREDIT CARD SIGN UP

Contact a major credit card company and agree to sign up students for credit card applications. Companies will provide the chapter a percentage for each person signed-up as your profit.

3. WALK-A-THON/RUN-A-THON

Members sign up sponsors for your members to participate in a walk-a-thon and/or run-a-thon. Donate part of the proceeds to charity, and keep a percentage for your club for sponsoring the effort.

4. GOLF / BASKETBALL / VOLLEYBALL / CHESS TOURNAMENT

5. TRIVIA GUIDE

List Information related to your school, including: a calendar of school events, your club's calendar for the year, the school's athletic team's calendars, a list of professors and departments, a list of school and club offices and phone numbers, a list of area eating and drinking establishments, information on local stores and merchants of interest, including book stores, housing information, etc.

Distribute to students at the beginning of the year. Similar preparation as for the school directory. Obtain advertising from local merchants to pay for costs, and locate a typist/person to typeset, and locate a printer.

As with school directory, profit is either generated by advertisements or from sales to students, or from donations by the student government and/or school administration for your club providing this service.

6. COFFEE / DOUGHNUTS / BAGEL / HOT DOGS / PIZZA SALE FOR SCHOOL

Sponsor a weekly or daily sale of one of these or other food or drink items. Be creative! See if a local company, e.g. a pizza joint or doughnut shop, will deliver the items. Alternatively, have a reliable member pick up the food items for each day you are sponsoring the sale. Also, set up a reliable means for obtaining the money from the sale each day, or obtain a locked metal box for students to put their money in on an honor system.

Be sure to check with your school to see whether they have any regulations regarding long-term sales. Sometimes the local school food service will have an exclusive contract, which does not allow groups or clubs to do anything except short-term sales (e.g. bake sale for a day).

7. SILENT AUCTION

A silent auction is an auction without an auctioneer. Obtain items to be auctioned from local merchants (e.g. bottles of wine, free haircuts, lunch or dinner for two, clothing store or other gift certificates, etc.). Also, obtain advertising from local merchants for their business.

Obtain a room for a party which will last about two or three hours. Place all items to be auctioned on tables. Next to each item, place a sheet of legal-sized paper with a description of the item to be auctioned, and a minimum bid at the top of the sheet.

Number 1-20 on the left side of the paper, where persons making bids can place their name and the amount of their bid.

After the party begins, call out the time remaining, counting down from one hour to thirty minutes, to ten minutes, to five minutes, etc. If the party is successful, at the end of the bidding time, buyers will race around the tables or try to outbid each other.

Also, charge for drinks and or food at the party. Consider having a minimum admission charge.

Add flair to your silent auction by obtaining items from professors and school deans. For example, get professors to donate lunch or dinner for two with the professor, autographed copies of publications by the professor, the "crazy tie" worn by a notoriously bizarre professor etc.

This list only begins to provide you with ideas; there are many, many others. If you have any questions, or need additional assistance regarding fund raising ideas, the American Model United Nations staff would be delighted to assist you.

Also, if you have successfully used any ideas that are not included in this guide, please let us know so they can be included in future updates.
 

<small>Please note: the information in this directory is copywritten (1998) by American Model United Nations, Inc. and can be found on their site as well.</small>