Class Activity Fee 2021-22 FAQ

  1. How is the Class Activity Fee different from the Bear Fund?
    Class activity fee – a one-time charge to pay for students’ transportation to field trips, class activities, and things like field day t-shirts. This is not a tax deductible donation. These are fees asked for by the school. We ask every parent to pay the class activity fee, except families who may not be able to due to hardship.  The Bear Fund – the annual fundraising campaign run by the HSA as a primary source of revenue. These funds support HSA programming that directly supports Lafayette. Bear Fund contributions are tax-deductible donations.
  2. Why do you collect a class activity fee?
    Collecting a one time fee reduces the amount of times a teacher asks students to bring money into school, reduces the amount of cash and accounting for teachers in the classroom, and provides a budget for the entire grade level to spend over the course of the year on field trips, transportation and other grade-level activities.
  3. Why do some grade levels have rollover balances and others do not?
    Grade levels differ greatly in how many (and the types) of field trips they take each year. As the size of the class increases or changes, the need for an additional bus can also add expenses. There have also been years when grade levels have not been able to take a planned field trip dues to COVID or other unforeseeable events.
  4. Who decides how the class activity fee will be spent? The HSA or the School?
    Teachers and the grade levels make decisions about how the funds are used. The HSA simply provides the accounting and the administration of the account (writing checks, etc).
  5. Are there parameters on how the class activity fee can be used?
    Yes. There are parameters about what kinds of things can be paid for using the class activity fee. 
  6. What happens if I can’t afford the class activity fee?
    No problem. Just notify your child’s teacher or an administrator. There is a scholarship fund supported by the HSA for those families facing hardship.
  7. When is the class activity fee due and who collects it?
    The class activity fee is due by October 31st. You can pay online, or send in a check to your child’s teacher made out to “Lafayette HSA”.
  8. Will there be “rollover balances” next year? If so, what happens to them?
    Hopefully not! The idea of the class activity fee is that each year, every grade level will spend down the class activity fee to a $0 balance. If there is a balance remaining for the grade level, it will be spent on grade level supplies and materials as determined by the teachers (books for classroom libraries, etc).
  9. Will my class activity fee change next year?
    Probably. Next year the fee won’t have the “rollover balances” included, the number/types of field trips change, and the class size can change. 
  10. What happens if there is a shortfall in the Class Activity Fee funds?
    All grade levels have been given a budget. If the funds are not collected and/or not available, the money will not be spent. Thus, it is imperative for the funds to be collected in a timely manner so grade levels have funds to spend!
  11. How do you know if everyone has paid?
    School staff will work with families to collect the fees. Regular updates will be provided by the HSA finance team as well. 

Click here to pay your Class Activity Fee.