How does it work?

Tuition Reduction Incentive Program

TRIP is a year round fundraiser that raises money for Knox Christian School by using gift cards to make everyday purchases. These are purchases you make anyway, so you are able to contribute to the school without spending any additional money.

How does it work?

TRIP is simple. You purchase gift cards from the school to use at the grocery store, gas station, and other retailers you visit. The Trip coordinators purchase these cards at a discounted rate so a percentage of what you spend is returned to the school. While the individual amounts may seem small, if all of our families participate, TRIP has the potential to raise tens of thousands of dollars each year.

On our order form is a list of retailers. Next to each retailer is a percentage that indicates the amount per gift card purchase that is returned to the school as a result of your participation.

For Example: No Frills = 5%

If you purchase a $100 gift card for No Frills through TRIP, the school will receive $5.00, while you are able to spend the full $100 face value of the card.

The 60/40 Split that can help to reduce tuition costs

The $5.00 the school receives from your $100 No Frills gift card purchase gets divided. 60% of the $5.00 will go into Knox’s operating budget. You may choose to further impact the school by donating the remaining 40% into the school’s operating budget or you may designate the 40% to a family’s reduce tuition costs: yours or that of another family. So this means $3.00 to the school and $2.00 to either the school or a Knox family of your choice.

Fundraising efforts will be accumulated from the start of a given school year in September, to August of the following year. Tuition credits will be given in the fall of that year. When you receive your tuition credit notification from the TRIP committee, you can contact the Knox Financial Administrator to discuss how you want to use the credit. Some families use it to reduce each of their tuition payments over the year, some reduce one payment in a lump sum, and some save up their credits over a few years.

Since tuition reduction occurs in the following school year, the family of your choice must be in attendance to receive the amount you designated to them. Graduating families can request an early rebate calculation to reduce their June tuition payment.

Payment Methods

Simply enclose with your order of the following forms of payment:

• Cheque to ‘Knox Fundraisers’ (please contact us if you wish to post date your cheque for recurring or large orders)
• Cash
• Debit (at the school office)
• Etransfer

Things to know!

Standing Orders

You may place a standing order through TRIP. If you generally spend the same amount each week at a particular store(s), just fill out one order form, and indicate ‘Recurring Order’ at the bottom of your order form or online, indicate how you will be paying, and your cards will be ordered and delivered each week without any more work from you. You can order additional cards or make changes to your standing order at any time by logging in to your account or contacting us at orders@knoxtrip.ca

Restrictions

The degree to which you can make TRIP work for you is limited ONLY by your imagination. You can sell to family and friends. You can approach your business or church about using TRIP for special occasions such as: thank you, celebrations, or rewards.

Special Orders

We offer an expanded list of retailers for Christmas orders, and we can accommodate large/customized orders given enough notice. Some people find this helpful when they are planning large renovations or major purchases from one of our retailers.

Delivery Timing

When you place your order by Friday at 2:00pm, we will make every effort to purchase cards on time for order packaging to be sent home (or picked up) by Friday afternoon. There are sometimes cards available in the school office but we cannot guarantee inventory. For large orders or if you are concerned about delivery timing, please contact the TRIP Coordinators and we will do our best to work with you to find a solution.

Volunteers and Other People Who Make This Program Work

Aside from the TRIP coordinators, other additional volunteers give of their time regularly to make this program work. Teachers and office staff also contribute to keep things moving smoothly. Thank you to all!