There is a good chance your school has one or more children who live with peanut, or any kind of nut, allergies, either mild or severe. Common in schools are "peanut-free" lunchroom tables and a complete ban on any peanut products brought into schools. But there is another food intolerance that is coming to the forefront—the intolerance to glutens. Glutens may be more invasive than nut products, since they "hide" not only in foods but in other non-food products.

In case you haven't noticed, there's a new generation of parents in school—Generation X. It began in the 1990s when Gen Xers started joining parent-teacher associations in elementary schools across the nation. By 2005, they became the majority of middle school parents, and by the fall of 2008, they became the predominant parents of high school seniors.

There have been quite a few articles published over the past 18 months comparing public and private schools. "Is there a difference in sending your children to private schools," most of these articles asked. As the recession drags along, people are looking at all their options to lower their monthly expenses. And, if there are no distinctive differences between public and private education, people are wondering why they should invest such a hefty percentage of their income to their children's education.

It's always hoped that your school will be the exception to the rule and won't suffer a loss or have to submit an insurance claim. The reality, however, is at some point in your school career you will have to file a claim. Following are the seven steps you'll need to best handle the process.

Welch's Harvest Grants for Teachers Hurry, hurry, hurry! This year, in a partnership with Scholastic, Welch's is supporting school garden programs, helping to teach the value of sustainable agriculture and healthy eating. Teachers can apply for a Welch's Harvest Grant and win a school garden package filled with a variety of garden tools, seeds, and educational materials.

Traditionally, February is the snowiest month on the calendar for the U.S. If you're located in the northeast like we are, you're probably already tired of seeing the snow clouds roll in. (Although your students are probably loving all the snow this year!) Snow presents several challenges for school campuses—and certainly a number of possible risks that you want to avoid. Here are a few tips to keep your school's walkways, parking lots, and budgets snow-day-safe.

Does fund raising look any different in a down economy? The obvious answer is yes! How do you ask people who have lost their jobs to make an investment in your school? Or what happens if a major player is forced to leave town, or even goes bankrupt? Or how do you get money from someone whose bonus was paid in deferred stock?

Once a month, a member of the ISM Development Team will answer a development-related question submitted by one of our readers. To ask a question to be addressed in future e-letters, please click here.

Many schools, at one time or another, will conduct a phonathon to supplement the annual giving letter campaign. Is yours stagnant? Not getting the results you used to? To revitalize that phonathon, you need to make sure your volunteers are well trained and have the support they need for maximum returns. Here are a few tips for a vibrant phonathon.

Teachers, Principals, and school administrators are finding themselves in a new and challenging position as legal marijuana is showing up in classrooms throughout the nation—must noticeably in California.