Over the past few years, a staggering lack of attendance at dances and other school events has been detrimental to both school spirit and class fundraising efforts. Low ticket sales led to both the cancellation of the Class of 2025’s Spring Fling and the Class of 2026’s Winter and Spring Dances just last year.
Seeking a solution to both the lack of student engagement and Parent Teacher Association (PTA) membership needs, the idea of the One Pass Falcon Fund emerged. The program asks for a donation of $100 per student per year, which will cover both the fees for certain event tickets and provide other benefits.
The fund aims to better distribute donations while consolidating requests for financial contributions into one convenient request, as opposed to potentially overwhelming or contradictory requests throughout the year for various fundraising purposes.
However, many fees throughout the year, including tickets to sports games and performances, fees for field trips, and other costs aren’t included in the fund and must be paid separately. Regardless, a major barrier towards students attending dances and events is the act of purchasing the tickets themselves–meaning that the One Pass could make it more inviting and easier for students to participate in school events.
According to Dr. Hatzis, the money from the fund will be split between the PTA and student government roughly 50-50, allowing for both the PTA and students to benefit from the shared fundraising effort.
Many of the details surrounding the specific benefits for students from purchasing the One Pass Falcon Fund remain undecided or unclear. Prom will not be covered by the Pass in its entirety, but there will be a potential cost reduction to the notoriously expensive ticket price. Some events may be made free for everyone, but the specific events have not yet been decided. However, some events may be free only for participants in the One Pass program with additional ticket sales for outside guests or non pass holding students.
When deciding to contribute to the One Pass Falcon Fund, parents should consider both the benefits given to their child and to the community. For example, every new student was given a free t-shirt at orientation this year, an effort to welcome them to the Ludlowe community.
The One Pass is by no means all inclusive, and the specifics of what events and benefits it includes are still subject to change. According to Dr. Hatzis, these decisions are entirely dependent on the level of participation in the program, and he encourages all parents to contribute so everyone can have the best experience possible this upcoming school year.
