SCEF is raising money for mental health programs, middle school electives including band and orchestra, technology devices and tech associates, elementary music, PE, and PTA community building events. The support of family and friends is appreciated. If every student received $100 in pledges/donations, we would raise over $300,000, and win prizes too! Belmont raises over $340,000 in their Read-A-Thon. Can we top that?
To register, please click on "Not Registered For This Event?". If you have already registered, click "Already Registered?".
Register on the PledgeStar site and send out your first pledge request to receive a bag of gummy bookworms and a backpack charm!
Animal Squishy
5 Requests
Send 5 pledge requests to receive an animal squishy!
Rita's Gift Certificate
10 Requests
Send 10 pledge requests to receive a Rita's gift certificate
SusieCakes Gift Certificate
25 Requests
Send 25 pledge requests to receive a SusieCakes gift certificate
Pizza Party and Reach & Teach Gift Card
Class that sends out the most pledges at your school will receive a Reach & Teach gift card for the classroom & pizza party
Extra Recess!
Any class that has 100% participation (all students registered on PledgeStar) gets extra recess!
Jibbitz
Students who read 1000 minutes will see their name on the “Honor Roll” on the Read-A-Thon website and get a jibbitz
Bookworm stuffie!
Rotating Prize! Class with the most reading minutes at each school gets the rotating prize - the Bookworm stuffie! Every 3 days is a chance for your class to get the Bookworm!
Read-A-Thon TROPHY
The class that reads the most reading minutes overall at their school gets the coveted Read-A-Thon TROPHY and new books for their classroom donated by San Mateo County Public Library.
The site is designed with families in mind. We encourage you to enter all participants on the same account. Doing so will send a donation request from every participant at once, which will allow donors to make one donation that will be split evenly between the participants. If you want to register your participants separately, you can do so by logging out after registering the first participant. Then, register for a new family using a separate email address for the next participant. Repeat this process as needed to create individual pages for each participant.
What Happens When I Delete/Add a Participant to an Existing Account?
All donations will be automatically split between all the participants entered to your family page. If a participant is deleted from the family page, the donation total will then be split between the remaining participants. If only one participant remains, that participant will receive credit for all donations made to the family page. The deleted participant will be removed from all event reports and not receive any credit for raising any money.
Why Am I Having Trouble Uploading a Photo?
Make sure the photo is a .JPG. You may need to open the image on your computer and save it again as a .JPG before it can be uploaded. Otherwise, your image might be too large and need to be resized. Typically, a square shaped image works best.
Why Is My Picture Not Centered on the Request?
Under the "Pledge Request" section, you can click and drag the image to center it. Once the image is in the correct position, press "Save Photo" to save the position.
How Do I Enter a Text Number?
Enter 1 as the country code for phone numbers in the United States (as you would when dialing long distance). Enter the area code between the () brackets next to the country code text field. Ex. 1 (555) 555-5555.
I Don't Want to Enter the Donor Information. Is There a Donation Link I Can Use and Send to Others?
In order to share your personal link to social media, you first need to add and send a request to at least one person's contact information under the "Add Family & Friends + Track Donations" section. You can even add your own contact information to fulfill this requirement. Once you have added one person as a donor, the "Share On Social Media And Other Ways" section will appear. You can then use the Facebook and/or X button to share directly. Alternatively, you can copy the link in the same section to share on other social media platforms. To share on Instagram, you will need to send your family and friends a direct message.
Where Is the Social Media Link?
In order to share your personal link to social media, you first need to add and send a request to at least one person's contact information under the "Add Family & Friends + Track Donations" section. You can even add your own contact information to fulfill this requirement. Once you have added one person as a donor, the "Share On Social Media And Other Ways" section will appear. You can then use the Facebook and/or X button to share directly. Alternatively, you can copy the link in the same section to share on other social media platforms. To share on Instagram, you will need to send your family and friends a direct message.
How Do I Remove Donors?
Use the Help button at the bottom of the page to remove donors. In the "Submit A Help Request" section, select "Remove Donor" as the category from the drop down. Please list the donors you wish to remove in the comments section. You can also give us a call at 1(888) 598-7510 and we will help you with your request.
How Do I Opt Out Donors?
Donors may opt out at any time by clicking the "Unsubscribe" button at the bottom of the requests they receive. If you want to have them unsubscribed youself, click the Help button at the bottom of the page. In the "Submit A Help Request" section, select "Opt Out Donor" as the category from the drop down. Please list the donors you wish to unsubscribe in the comments section. You can also give us a call at 1 (888) 598-7510 and we will help you with your request. If donors are opted out they will no longer receive any information for this event or any future events.
Will Reminders Be Sent to My Donors?
Yes. The event has set up a reminder schedule. Most events send one or two reminders to donors who have not yet made a donation. Some events schedule more. Once a donation is made or "Sorry, I can't right now" is selected, donors do not receive additional reminders.
How Do I Resend Donation Requests?
To resend a request to certain donors in your list, you may go to the "Add Family & Friends + Track Donations" section, click the donor's name, scroll down to the resend button, and click it.
Why Do My Texts Say Queued?
When your text request status appears as "queued", it means the text messages are in line to be sent out. Texts are sent in batches and go out in the order entered. Text messages are sent between 9 AM and 8 PM, local to your Read A Thon. Texts entered after hours will begin sending the following morning at 9 AM. When the site has an unusually high number of requests, this process can take longer than normal.
Why Do My Requests Say Undelivered?
Please check your email and text numbers to make sure they are correct. Here are some things to check for:
Please make sure you did not add a text number or an email more than once. Donation requests will not be sent if an email or text number has been entered more than once.
Verify that the recipient can accept emails from outside sources. Some companies or networks block or quarantine emails from outside sources and will not deliver them.
The email must be entered in a valid email format.
Make sure you have entered the correct country code for the text number. The country code for phones within the United States is 1 (like when dialing long distance). Add the area code between the () brackets next to the country code text field. Ex. 1 (555) 555-5555. When the number is correct, press send.
If there is nothing obvious to correct, please click the Help button at the bottom of the page to contact support. Be sure to select the "Other" category and explain the issue you are encountering in the comments section. You can also choose to call support at 1 (888) 598-7510 and we will help you.
Why Does the Site Say Waiting For Payment but Also That a Donation Went Through?
When you see "Waiting For Payment" and that a donation went through, this indicates that there were multiple donation attempts made. One donation was successful. If the donation did not process, the donor is donating via check, the donor chose to make a "Per Rep" pledge, or the donor is submitting for a Company Match, the status of that donation will say "Waiting For Payment". Under the "Add Family & Friends + Track Donations" section, you can click on the donor's name to view the details of their transactions. If the donor has chosen to send a check, the organization will update the donor's status once they receive and log the donation check. If you see the "Waiting For Payment" status for donors making credit card donations, the transaction may have been abandoned. This means the donor did not complete the credit card transaction and needs to try again. If the donor made a "Per Rep" pledge, they will be notified via email at the end of the event about the total amount of their "Per Rep" donation. They will receive a link to complete their transaction at that time. If the donor is submitting for a Company Match, the organization will update the donor's status once they receive and log the company’s check. Company Match donations can take up to three to four weeks to arrive. Some companies only process matching donations quarterly.
How Can I See More Information About A Donor?
Go To the "Add Family & Friends + Track Donations" section, then click on the donors name to see the details of their account, including their request and donation statuses.
I Have More Than One Account, How Can I Combine Them?
If donation requests have been sent out from your duplicate account(s), they can not be combined. Doing so would break the links and render the requests sent to donors unusable. The event can combine the money for participants with multiple accounts on their reports. If an account was not used and needs to be deleted, you can press the Help button and contact support by filling out the category and comments section under "Submit a Help Request". You can also give us a call at 1(888) 598-7510 and we will help you with your request.
I Entered Several Emails for Donors and I Don't See Them Listed?
The emails were either not entered successfully or your internet connection did not allow them to register successfully. Please enter them again. Things to look out for:
Make sure they are not a duplicate email or text number of another donor's contact information.
Be sure the email uses a valid email format.
Make sure you have entered the country code for the text number. The country code for phones within the United States is 1 (like when dialing long distance). Add the area code between the () brackets next to the country code text field. Ex. 1 (555)555-5555. When the number is correct, press send.
In the "Dear _______" section, only enter a name, rather than a long message.
You will know that a request has been successfully sent once the name of the donor appears in the "Donations Request Sent" box within the "Add Friends & Family + Track Donations" section.
How Do I Enter Information in the Minutes Log?
Scroll to the "Enter Participants" section and click on the title or arrow to expand the section. Next to a participant's name click the book icon under the "Minutes Log" label. Fill in the information, then press save to update the log.
How Can I Change the Message Sent to Donors?
The event organization has created and approved the message that will be sent to your donors. If your organization has decided to allow for customized messages, you can change the message when you enter a donor's information by clicking the box next to “check this box if you would like to personalize or change the language of the donation letter”.
I Entered the Wrong Name When Registering?
You may change the information you used to register by clicking the "Account" button at the bottom of the page.
Prefer to call us? Call 1-888-598-7510
Average response time is 1 hour between business hours of 8am - 6pm PST
