From the F1 Pit Lane to the Practice Room: How One Band Raised $70,000

About the Akins Eagle Band

The W. Charles Akins High School Band, known as the Akins Eagle Band, is a proud institution in Austin, Texas. Under the direction of the band program's leadership, the Akins Eagle Band competes regionally, performs at community events, and develops young musicians throughout the Austin Independent School District. Like most school band programs, it runs on a combination of school funding, family involvement, and the tireless work of the Band Booster organization - a parent-led group that handles everything from uniform logistics to fundraising to volunteer coordination.

The Scheduling Challenge

When the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, held annually at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, came looking for local nonprofits to staff concession booths, the Akins Eagle Band Boosters saw a once-in-a-program opportunity. Band parents would work shifts, and every dollar earned would flow directly back to band activities. The concept was simple. The execution was not.

What started as one large event quickly multiplied. The Boosters began fielding requests to staff sporting events, concerts, and other special events throughout the year. Suddenly, Tate Fincher, Director of Bands at Akins High School, found himself trying to coordinate hundreds of volunteers across multiple events, all through spreadsheets and email chains. After two months of that approach, it was clear something had to change.

How SignUpGenius Helped

Fincher searched online for a better tool and landed on SignUpGenius. He chose it over other options for its straightforward interface and flexibility in building out sign ups - exactly what a high-volume volunteer operation needed. Band mom Elisa Delph-Barnes, a member of the Band Booster Board, stepped in to help manage the platform and quickly took ownership of the volunteer coordination process.

The Boosters structured their setup around a central hub: a web button on the Band Boosters' site that took parents directly to a running list of all active sign up opportunities. New shifts posted, parents found them, and slots filled, without a flood of reply-all emails.

Over time, the team expanded to four qualified administrators sharing responsibilities across the growing roster of events. And the use cases kept widening. Beyond the Grand Prix shifts, the Boosters used SignUpGenius to organize volunteer slots for sporting events, certification classes, post-performance dessert sign ups, and more.

The Results

The numbers tell the story plainly. In just nine months of using SignUpGenius to coordinate their F1 Grand Prix shifts and beyond, the Akins Eagle Band Boosters raised $70,000 - funds that went directly to supporting band activities, including a spring trip to New Orleans. The platform didn't just make scheduling easier; it made it possible for the Boosters to say yes to more opportunities, grow their volunteer base, and keep the program expanding.

The internal chaos of reply-all threads and competing spreadsheets was replaced by a single, organized system that parents could check on their own time. Volunteer coordination stopped being a barrier and started being a strength.

In Their Words

"The site has eliminated the numerous emails that used to drive us all crazy. With this system, there is no confusion and it gets right to the point."

Elisa Delph-Barnes, Band Booster Board Member, Akins High School

"We use SignUpGenius to coordinate volunteers for all of our fundraising opportunities. We have also used it to sign up for desserts after a performance, TABC certification classes... really, anything where we need a large number of people to help."

Elisa Delph-Barnes, Band Booster Board Member, Akins High School