Clipper Readathon
The Clipper Readathon is the Newburyport PTO’s largest in-school fundraiser and takes place at the Bresnahan and Molin Schools. The goal of the Clipper Readathon is to support our district’s literacy initiative and to raise over $30,000 for field trip buses, enrichment activities, and other PTO programs. In previous years, we have also made large donations to our school libraries to purchase new books. For two weeks in March, we celebrate and support student reading. The school hallways are decorated with signs encouraging reading and cheering our students on, and the PTO hosts fun reading-themed activities, such as cozy Library Campouts at the Bresnahan, Luaus at the Molin, special guest readers, and a beloved Book Character Parade.
Many PTOs use outside fundraising companies to host a fundraiser as large as the Readathon. These companies do raise a lot of money, but they also take a large percentage of proceeds and have students compete for prizes based on how much they raise. We don’t do this. The Newburyport PTO has worked very hard to create a pledge-based fundraiser that is positive and inclusive, does not give a portion of donations to a commercial fundraising company, and does not put pressure on students to fundraise. The sole focus at school during the Readathon is READING, not collecting pledges. Every aspect of the Clipper Readathon is 100% planned and run by parent and teacher volunteers. We are very proud of this accomplishment!
There are so many ways you can help support the Clipper Readathon. The easiest is registering your child and actively participating! We also need parent volunteers to chaperone library campouts, decorate the school, lend a play tent, work on our website design, and help us get the word out. We’d also LOVE new ideas for how we can support reading and foster a love for reading during the Readathon.