A Hoop-a-Thon is a basketball shooting event — most often free throws, sometimes a shooting circuit — where sponsors pledge per made shot or give a flat donation. It runs in a gym the group usually already has, needs almost no setup, and produces a countable result that sponsors find easy to understand.
Why it works
- It runs in a gym the school or club already controls, so facility cost is zero.
- Made shots are countable and verifiable without officials or equipment.
- It suits a basketball program directly, which keeps the fundraiser on-brand with what is being funded.
- A shooting circuit scales by age far more easily than a distance event.
When to run it
Basketball season, or any time a gym is free.
Planning it, start to finish
- Free throws versus a shooting circuit
- Setting attempt counts by age and skill level
- Counting and verifying makes without adding officials
- Running it in class blocks or as an evening event
- Hoop height and ball size by age group
- Turning it into a team competition without individual leaderboards
Working from a printable plan is easier than a thread — see the planning checklist and the pledge sheet template.
Hoop-a-Thon fundraisers for every kind of group
What works changes with who is running it. See guidance for PTOs, booster clubs, elementary schools and more on fundraising by group.
You are not doing this alone
Every Get Movin' group is paired with a Personal Event Coach — a former PTO/PTA volunteer who has run this before. Get Movin's company president and all of its fundraising coaches are former PTO/PTA members, teachers and volunteers. For a Hoop-a-Thon, that is someone who has run this format before and knows where it goes wrong.
Your coach:
- strategizes your budget goal with you
- brainstorms incentives that actually motivate your participants
- advises on promotion and timing
- steers you away from the pitfalls they have already watched other groups hit
You also get the FundHub Event Toolbox — 100+ guides, templates, playlists and printables. Meet the coaches.
The platform behind your Hoop-a-Thon
FundHub is Get Movin's online donation platform, built specifically for schools, teams and community groups by former PTO/PTA leaders. It carries 35+ tools. These are the ones that matter most here:
- Personalized student webpages. A parent sets one up in about five minutes, and each page raises an average of $140.
- One-click sharing to social, email and text, plus a sharing report showing how many parents are actually using it.
- Volunteer Organizer. Post positions with dates, times and headcount; parents self-select their shift instead of a chain of emails.
- Incentive Tracker. Enter your incentives and FundHub produces the distribution list by class or student automatically.
- Instant, customizable donation reports for students, classes and the whole group.
- Automatic ACH payout after the event, straight to the group's account.
See the full platform on the FundHub page, or book a walkthrough with a coach.
How Get Movin’ runs your Hoop-a-Thon
- Book a call or a FundHub demo and get matched with your Personal Event Coach.
- Your coach helps you set the goal, pick the date and choose incentives.
- Your group page and student pages go live; parents set theirs up in about five minutes.
- Families share by text, email and social; the coach checks in through the campaign.
- Event day, with volunteers organized through FundHub.
- Funds arrive by automatic ACH transfer after the event.
What it costs and what you keep
Get Movin’ groups keep 95-97% of every dollar raised. Donors pay however they want — cash, check, credit or debit, PayPal, Venmo, or Apple and Google Wallet. Automatic ACH payout after the event, straight to the group's account.
Full detail on the pricing page.
Common questions
How many attempts should each participant get?
Fifty to a hundred free throws is a common range for older students, fewer for younger. Set it so the session stays inside one block and so a participant with a low make rate is not standing at the line long after everyone else has finished.
Should sponsors pledge per made shot or flat?
Offer both. Per made shot creates the engagement, but a beginner whose make rate is low needs a flat option so their page raises properly regardless.
How do you adapt it for younger students?
Lower the hoop, use a smaller ball and shorten the distance. The point is a countable made shot, not a regulation one.
Start your Hoop-a-Thon fundraiser
Get Movin’ has powered 10,000+ events and raised more than $200 million for groups like yours since 2007, with 1,300+ five-star Google reviews.
Take a FundHub tour with a coach, or book your event. Questions first? Contact us or call 248-895-0206. Also useful: the free school grant guide, the parent and donor FAQ, and our fundraising webinars.