Quick access to resources for Team Parents!
What is a team parent?
Every team should have at least one team parent to assist the coach with the organizational side of managing the team. This person can help with communication, event planning, tracking donations and memberships, etc. Please update Boosters with this information once your team parent has been designated so we are able to keep them informed as well. More information about team parent’s role and responsibilities can be found here.
This page contains all the information you need regarding how teams/coaches work with the Boosters in support of AHS Athletics. There are four (4) main categories that encompass what you need: team sub-accounts, Booster memberships, awards, and fundraising. More detailed information can be found down the page, but here are some basics to get you started.
Team Parent Orientation
First and foremost, the best way to stay informed about AHS Athletics and resources for teams available from Boosters is to attend the monthly meetings. We can not stress enough how much attendance will help your understanding and awareness of opportunities you may otherwise miss out on. Meetings are held the last Wednesday of each month at 6:30pm with the exception of November and December.
These are funds specific to your team. Think of it as your own bank account for your sport. This is where your team ask, fundraising proceeds, gear sold, etc. are deposited. While these are your funds to use as you see fit, there are a few restrictions/requirements:
NEVER, EVER, EVER have payments for anything made to you or the coach personally. If you do, you are not covered by Booster’s or the District’s liability insurance were something to happen. It is a HUGE risk to you and there is no reason to do it.
BUDGET – no funds may be deposited or withdrawn until your budget for the school year has been submitted and approved by Boosters. You must use the Team-Budget-Template. Your budget always starts with your sub-account balance as of 7/1 of that school year and should reflect all projected receipts and expenses.
TEAM ASK – this is the amount you choose to ask for from each of your athletes to help fund the projected expenses for the year. You may ask for a maximum of $200 per athlete for the season and must include all items that are required for participation (ex – swimsuits, sneakers, equipment, etc.) It does not have to include optional swag. Funds should be spent in that same season on the athletes who have made the contributions. These donations are voluntary and no athlete may be excluded from play for not donating.
DEPOSITS – any deposit must include a deposit request form. No more than $500 in cash can be deposited. If you have more than that you will need to get a cashiers check or money order to submit for deposit. The bank no longer accepts coins for deposits, so neither do we.
EXPENSES – any request for payment must be submitted online via the vendor payment/reimbursement form. We can either pay the vendor directly or reimburse an individual for the expense paid personally. If we pay the vendor directly we must have a W-9 on file before making payment. PayPal is the preferred method of payment/reimbursement and is processed typically within 24 hours. Checks take about 10 days and are only processed through the bank’s bill pay system. Expenses/reimbursements may only be requested by the head coach or team parent.
TRAVEL RELATED EXPENSES – any expense related to travel (hotel, transportation, etc.) must be handled through the District for liability reasons so you must coordinate with them and follow their rules for travel – Boosters can not help with this. We also can not pay directly nor reimburse anyone for any travel related expenses. We can, however, send the District funds from your team-subaccount to cover the expense. Just submit the same vendor payment/reimbursement form as normal and list the District as who to pay.
END OF YEAR – Since funds collected in any given year are supposed to be used in that year on the athletes who contributed it, the maximum carryover Booster’s will allow per team is $5,000. Everything over $5,000 is transferred to your District account. If you are saving for a future capitol expense, we understand, but those expenses would have to paid for and approved by the District when they are made anyway, so the money will end up there one way or another.
Your sub-account balance is available on the website in the monthly financial reports. You may request a detailed accounting of your account occasionally from the Booster Treasurer.
Booster memberships are requested from each athlete on each team. These funds are for Booster’s use to support AHS Athletics. They are not part of your team sub-account and should not be accounted for in your budget.
The cost is $75 per athlete per sport. For example, if you have two children who each play two sports, you are asked to purchase four total Booster memberships for that school year – one per sport each child participates in.
These funds are very important as they are the primary funding for Boosters to continue operating and supporting AHS Athletics. Your support in encouraging families to contribute is vital.
The value to your team, besides the expenses Boosters covers for the athletic department, is that if you request an award from Boosters (see more detail in the next tab) you are eligible for 100% of the award to be covered if you reach 90% participation in Booster memberships for your team for that school year. If you are below 90% participation in Booster memberships for your team you are only eligible for 50% of the award to be covered.
Even if you are not requesting a reward for that school year, it is still important to encourage participation from your team’s families as without it there may not be any funds available in the future when your team does need to request an award.
An award is a request made by a team to Boosters for a specific expense to be covered by Boosters. There are limitations on what can be requested, details of which can be found on the Awards Process and Criteria.
Your award may be approved for either 100% or 50% coverage by Boosters.
- All awards must be submitted PRIOR to incurring the expense or they are automatically only eligible for 50% coverage.
- For an award to be covered 100% a team must reach 90% participation in Booster memberships for that school year.
- If a team does not reach 90% participation the award is only eligible for 50% coverage. If the expense has already been paid by Boosters at 100% the 50% that is no longer covered must be reimbursed to Boosters from the team sub-account by 5/31 of that school year.
An award may only be requested by the head coach of a team via the Award Request Form.
Any fundraising by a team that will generate funds to be deposited into your team sub-account must first be approved by Boosters. You can submit the request and details via the Fundraising Approval Form.
Before making a request for fundraising approval, you must first submit your budget for the school year which must reflect the funds the fundraiser is expected to generate.
Learn more about fundraising procedures and requirements here.
If you are considering a straight donation fundraiser such as via SnapRaise, you may use the Boosters website to conduct the fundraiser. The benefit is this way you retain 100% of the amount collected as opposed to the fee deducted from the total via other services. See the Football Friends & Family fundraiser for an example.
You can find a sample of the text used to promote donations here.
WEBSITE – Every team has a page on the Boosters website (see Sports tab). This is a very easy way for you to disseminate information, post schedules, make announcements, or share exciting news. But it is only as valuable as the information you provide us. It’s very easy to do – just contact us with the information and we will take care of the rest. See the Cross Country page as an example.
SELLING GEAR/REGISTRATIONS – If you are going to make gear available for sale for your team or need to charge for things like event registrations, you may use the Booster website to handle it. Again, just send us the information (including an image of what you are selling if applicable) and we will take care of the rest. We can send you a report at the end showing everything that was purchased. If you are going to create your own gear for your team, you can use the online store which has tons of very cool already created designs specific to individual sports. You will also receive 10% back on the order that will go directly to your team sub-account. If you choose to use a different vendor, please use the correct Hornet logo, do NOT create your own or use an old version.
ONLINE PAYMENTS – Online payments for Booster memberships, team asks, etc. are all but required to conduct online. PLEASE DISCOURAGE YOUR TEAM FROM SENDING CHECKS. We have made the online webstore very easy to use and it makes it a much more streamlined process for Boosters. We process over 2,500 transactions each year. It takes about 5x as long to process checks than online transactions, and there is a much greater chance for human error. Please encourage your families to use the website exclusively.
SCHOLARSHIPS – Boosters awards four $500 scholarships each year. All senior athletes are eligible if they meet the criteria. Head coaches are STRONGLY ENCOURAGED to nominate one senior from your team per scholarship. It is an easy process and a real disservice to your seniors to not make the effort.
Booster Membership / Team Ask Search
Search on-demand for a list of athletes who have purchased the Booster Membership and/or donated the Team Ask for the current season. Please use this feature between monthly reports to pull this information for you team.
2024-2025 AHS Athletic Boosters Meeting Dates
All board meetings will be in-person in the AHS Media Pit, and are the 4th Wednesday of the month at 6:30pm unless otherwise noted*. Team parents AND coaches attendance is requested.
- August 28
- September 25
- October 23
- December 4*
- January 22
- February 26
- March 26
- April 23
- May 28
* note alternate date to accommodate holidays
Booster Scholarships
The Alameda High School Athletic Boosters has established a scholarship program of four (4) separate and distinct scholarships of $500 each to be awarded annually. Nominations must be made by the head coach. For more information on each scholarship or to submit an application, visit the Scholarship page of the website.
Scholarship Application
DOWNLOAD THE HORNET LOGO
This is the official AHS Hornet logo. Please use this for anything related to AHS. No other versions of the Hornet should be used for official AHS gear or promotions.
To download, click the image which will open a new window of just the Hornet image. Right click on the image in the new window and choose “Save image as…” Then just save the image to your computer.
You can also copy the URL of the new window and provide it directly to the printer so they can access it themselves.
For added convenience, click here for a zip archive which contains multiple versions that can be supplied to printers and designers.
Booster % Incentives
90% player participation
Eligible for 100% award for the current school year
100% player participation
10% rebate of total Booster’s basic membership dollars from your team for the current school year
Questions? Contact...
If you have already reviewed all of the available information and still have questions, please see below on which board member to contact by category.
- Awards – Andrea Long, President
- Fundraisers – Natasha DeCourcy, Vice-President
- Insurance – Andrea Long, President
- Facility Rentals – Andrea Long, President
- Budgets – Sheila Edwards, Team Parent Coordinator
- Deposits/Payments – Beryl Ramos-Acosta, Treasurer
- Player Donations – Beryl Ramos-Acosta, Treasurer
- Subaccount Balances – Beryl Ramos-Acosta, Treasurer
- Upgrades – Sheila Edwards, Team Parent Coordinator
- Agenda Items for Meetings –Andrea Long, President
- Sting – Milly Hom, Sting Coordinator
- Scholarships – Stacey Green, Scholarship Coordinator
NEW MOBILE PAYMENT OPTION
Boosters now has a mobile payment device available for use by any team! This could increase the amount raised at snack bars and fundraisers, make it easier to collect money for gear or travel expenses at team meetings, etc.
There is only one unit, so you will need to check it out just before the event and return immediately following. It accepts:
- Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover
- Apple/Android Pay
- and has a chip reader
You do not need wifi, only a smartphone where you will need to install the CloverGo app. It’s very easy to use. Let us know if you would like to take advantage of this new option!
AUCTION SOFTWARE
Thinking of running an auction fundraiser? Or a ticketed event including an auction? Boosters has software available for your use that will make the logistics much simpler for you! Let us know if you would like a demo or to set up your event!
DEPOSITS
No deposit will be accepted without an approved budget for the current school year as well as a completed deposit request form.
CASH DEPOSITS – No cash deposits over $500 will be accepted going forward. If you need to deposit more than $500 in cash, please obtain a cashier’s check made payable to AHS Athletic Boosters before turning in your deposit request form.
COIN DEPOSITS – If you have coins to deposit, the bank will not accept them unless they are rolled. The rolls must be full, not partials. These are the banks rules, not Boosters. So to deposit coins, you may roll them into complete rolls and submit with your deposit request form, or you can send a check in place of the coins. Safeway also has a coin counting machine where you can turn it in for cash, however there is a fee associated. But Boosters will no longer accept change for deposits.
Please complete the deposit request form in its entirety including indication of how the funds should be applied in conjunction with your budget (ie – team ask, fundraising, events, etc.) You may access the form via the link above.
Team Parent FAQs
What can I do for a team versus what the coach is required to do directly?
Only a coach can:
- Submit a request for an award
- Submit a scholarship application for an athlete
- Approve a team budget before it is submitted to Boosters
Virtually everything else can be done by the team parent. It is between the coach and team parent which responsibilities will be handled by who. Those include, but vary by team:
- Creating the budget to submit to Boosters
- Submitting fundraising requests / organizing fundraisers
- Monitoring team ask and Booster memberships
- Coordinating parent-driven transportation
- Coordinating gear sales
- Communicating with parents
- Help plan Senior Day / end of year party for the team
- Coordinate donations and promotions within your team for the annual Sting fundraiser
- Notify the Boosters webmaster for any changes or information to be posted to your team’s page on the Boosters website
BOTH the coach and team parent should attend every Booster monthly meeting for the entire year, not just during your season. You will miss valuable and important information by not attending or only attending occasionally.
How does a team get an award?
- The head coach completes the online award request form PRIOR TO incurring the expense. Awards are not approved retroactively.
- Once submitted, the Boosters board will discuss and vote on the award, typically within a few days.
- Teams with 90%+ Booster membership participation for the current school year are eligible for up to a 100% award. Teams below 90% Booster membership participation are eligible for up to a 50% award.
- Other factors considered are the teams available funds, recent awards given to the team, longevity of the award item, etc.
- Once approved, Boosters can either purchase the item directly with a proper invoice and current W9 from the vendor. Or the team can pay the vendor and submit for reimbursement via the online form.
- Any items covered by a Booster award must remain with the team, not the athletes.
What is the difference between the General Fund and a team sub-account?
The General Fund is the Booster’s account. Teams do not have access to these funds accept through award requests. They are used to run the organization as well as for awards.
Team sub-accounts are team specific and for the use of the team as they see fit.
What is the difference between the team’s sub-account with Boosters and their district account?
Team sub-accounts are funds held by Boosters on behalf of a team. They are not limited for use with approved vendors only, they do not require a PO, and they are not restricted by fiscal year budget approval timing. You are able to access them all summer and use any vendor you choose. Boosters does require a W9 from any vendor we pay directly.
Boosters may not pay directly for any travel related expenses (transportation, hotel, etc). All travel related expenses must be handled via the District for liability reasons. Boosters can, however, send the funds from your team sub-account to the District to cover those expenses. To do this, the head coach needs to submit a vendor payment/reimbursement request via the online form noting the District as the payee.
District accounts are held by the District on behalf of the team. They do roll over year to year, but are not accessible over the summer. They also require using an approved vendor only, and all expenses must be submitted via a PO for approval prior to incurring.
Boosters can send funds on behalf of a team to the District. District can not sends funds to Boosters.
At the end of each fiscal year (June 30th), any surplus of funds over $5,000 in team sub-accounts will be sent to the District on behalf of the team.
How do we access the funds in our team sub-account?
Submit the online vendor payment/reimbursement form to pay for expenses.
Before any funds can be deposited into your sub-account, you must have an approved budget for the year on file with the Team Parent Coordinator and Treasurer.
Team sub-account funds are for use by the team as they see fit and are not subject to Booster board approval. However, since the funds are deposited and withdrawn from the Boosters account, we do have the right to request additional documentation or explanation before accepting or disbursing funds.
How do we access the funds in our District account?
Contact the Athletic Director with your request PRIOR TO incurring the expense, and that you are using an approved vendor.
Why do we have to give Boosters a budget for our team?
Boosters is a 501(c)3 organization. Since teams deposit and withdraw money via our account, we are responsible to have proper documentation on record for tax purposes.
As a non-profit, we also must be responsible in use of the funds deposited in our account. Therefore we can not allow teams to carry over high balances from year to year unless they are saving for a capital investment.
What is the District process for booking hotels?
If the hotel is for a school sponsored event, it should be paid by the District, not Boosters. Since the Principal must sign-off on these events, they are District sponsored and thus needs to be paid by the District.
The District will work hard to make this as painless as possible. Reimbursements are done three (3) times a month by Eric and if it is a hotel, the coach can use the District credit card.
District Credit card procedure:
- Coach makes reservation at hotel
- Coach gets Credit Card Authorization form from the hotel
- Coach fills out dates, confirmation code, room number, etc as needed and sends it to Eric
- Office Manager submits a requisition to use the credit card
- Eric fills out the credit card information and sends it back to hotel once PO is issued
- Coach sends hotel invoice to Eric for credit card reconciliation
This way the coach does not need to be out of pocket. For additional questions, please contact the Athletic Director.