One of the strong points of working with Alternatives in Motion this school year and in the past is that they work so well with local communities. If there is a need in your community - someone needs mobility assistance, they work closely with the school to fundraise and promote events. This is a wonderful way to raise money because the schools know where the money is going and they can see it firsthand. For us here on staff at MASC/MAHS, we've always worked with the Charity of the Year in a very different way. We facilitate the process between them and the member schools. This year, something happened that allowed us a unique interaction with our Charity of the Year, Alternatives in Motion. Below is a letter I wrote to the staff of Alternatives in Motion (AIM) today...

 Going green seems to be "all the rage" nowadays. There is big money in recycling and using less resources, plus it helps out our earth. While I'm not a green fanatic, I still think its important to be conservative and not waste. Recently my school did its first "green" fundraiser. It was a cell phone drive that collects used cell phones. I've had a lot of questions lately about this and how to put it on. Really, its quite simple. Go to www.pacebutler.cocm to request your drive packet. They send you collection boxes and prepaid shipping labels. All you have to do is get the word out, collect the phones, and ship them in. They will send you a check in a few short days. I recently sent in a big box of phones.

In one week, a school raised over $20,000 for a good cause.
Learn how they did it and how you can adapt it to fit your school.

Podcasters: Cloryssa Pennington, Troy Athens HS & Kadi Pojeta, MASC/MAHS

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Service projects and community service projects are an important part of chapters and councils. Finding new or unique projects can be hard, year after year, so share some of your ideas and get more from others!

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The Michigan Associations of Student Councils & Honor Societies' Board of Delegates voted in 2001 to create the Tonya Chmielewski Award in honor of Tonya R. Chmielewski, MASC/MAHS Director from 1997-2001. During Tonya's time as Director, MASC/MAHS saw tremendous growth in donations to the State Charities, due in part to Tonya's efforts at making sure those who had something knew they had a responsibility to help those who had less.

Each year, the Tonya Award is given to one student council and one honor society chapter of member schools that donate the greatest amount of money per enrolled student to the Charity of the Year.

Award Eligibility