The McKinley Parent Teacher Club’s JOG-A-THON is the school’s BIGGEST fundraiser and your support is vital. This is the only event where the kids take the lead in raising money for their school. This year’s event will be held IN-PERSON on the McKinley campus on Thursday, October 26th.
Did you know that ALL of McKinley’s art, ceramics, dance, garden, and Spanish programs are no longer funded by the school district? The only reason our kids get to participate in these programs is because we raise the money to fund them.
Prizes
This year’s prizes are Wheel-themed and school wide goals:
- $50,000: Wiggle Walkway
- $75,000: Dance Performance
- $90,000: Extra Recess
- $100,000 – Gaga Ball Pits
The top runners and top fundraising classroom will be recognized.
Get Sponsors!
We are asking students who are able and willing to participate to get their families, friends, neighbors, and community to sponsor them in the JOG-A-THON. We are asking for flat donations from sponsors (e.g. $25 for the whole event).
Donations can be made online using debit cards, credit cards or PayPal. We can accept personal checks made out to “McKinley School Foundation” which can be turned into the McKinley PTC lock box in the front office. Please specify “Jog-A-Thon” and your child’s name/grade in the memo. No cash will be accepted this year.
PledgeStar is our web-based fundraising tool. In addition to being easy to register and use, PledgeStar takes care of sending sponsor requests via email, notifies you of donations, and sends thank you messages to sponsors.
Register for Pledgestar
- Go to http://pledgestar.com/mckinley
- Click “Not Registered for this Event?” and enter your name and email address (every family needs to register again each year.
When you finish, the system emails pledge requests to your family and friends allowing them to make secure credit card donations online. You get notified each time a pledge is made, and you can track your pledge progress online.
The Day of the Event
The kids will run laps around the track (approximately 1/6 of a mile per lap). Most students run about 8 to 12 laps, a little more for the older kids.
This year’s JOG-A-THON schedule as follows:
- ECSE: 8:30 am – 8:40 am (10 minutes)
- Grade TK: 8:45 am – 9:00 am (15 minutes)
- Grades K & 1st: 9:15 am – 9:35 am (20 minutes)
- Grades 2nd & 3rd: 9:50 am – 10:15 am (25 minutes)
- Grades 4th & 5th: 10:30 am – 11:00 am (30 minutes)
Staff and parent volunteers will be on the course to ensure that the students do not overexert themselves. Volunteer medical professionals will be on hand to help make sure the kids are okay. In addition, there will be plenty of water and orange slices to keep the kids hydrated.
Since Jog-A-Thon has many classes running together and parent volunteers helping, each classroom is assigned a color to help distinguish them from other classes.
We ask room parents to coordinate the purchase of an accessory for their class.
In the past, headbands were the most commonly used distinguishing piece of attire, however, classes have also done creative things like capes or socks.
We know many of you have been eagerly awaiting your assigned Jog-A-Thon class color, so here they are! Let the fun begin!
1st Heat – Preschool ECSE: 8:30 am – 8:40 am = 10 mins
ECSE Preschool/Braun – Purple
2nd Heat – Grade TK: 8:45am – 9:00am = 15 mins
TK/Armijo/Jimenez – Orange
TK/Zapasnik/Fuentes – Green
3rd Heat – Grades K & 1st: 9:15 am – 9:35 am = 20 mins
Kinder/Siems – Blue
Kinder/Tandy– Pink
Kinder/Blount – Purple
Kinder/MacKenzie – Orange
Kinder/Panerio – Green
1st/Mellos – Yellow
1st/Quijada – Black
1st/Trocha – Red
1st/Mills – Silver
4th Heat – Grades 2nd & 3rd: 9:50 am – 10:15 am = 25 mins
2nd/Schoonmaker/Baker – Orange
2nd/Small – Green
2nd/Carillo – Yellow
3rd/Chavira – Black
3rd/Wagner – Red
3rd/Kenyon – Blue
3rd/Som – Purple
5th Heat – Grades 4th & 5th: 10:30 am – 11:00 am = 30 mins
4th/Zdunich- Blue
4th/Wheatley – Green
4th/5th/Ghahary – Yellow
5th/Berg – Red
5th/Hooper/Kahler – Purple
Families: If your child has any physical restrictions such as asthma or other respiratory problems or even if they just don’t like to run a lot, please let them know it is perfectly okay to walk or sit down if they feel the need. Please notify the office of any special requirements. Due to the large number of children on the track during each heat we encourage families to cheer from the sidelines and not join your child on the track.
T-Shirts
All students, teachers and staff will be receiving a FREE Jog-A-Thon t-shirt to wear on the day of the event. The students participated in a t-shirt design contest in their classrooms recently and the final design was voted on by students. Students can wear their shirts to show their McKinley spirit and foster a sense of community.
Volunteers
We need a lot of volunteers to make this event happen! We need help to set up/clean up, cut oranges, help mark the kids’ laps, hand out water and orange slices during the race, and mist the kids to keep them cool. If you are able to come and help out, it really is a blast!!
If you are a Lap Counter, please submit a McKinley Volunteer Form Category B, TB Test or Risk Assessment Form and your ID card to the front office.
Visit the SignUp page to volunteer! https://signup.com/go/gzkUNXK
Email jogathonmckinley@gmail.com with questions!
Past Event Photos
page updated 10/2/23