Written by Ali Baldwin
Graduating from high school, college or grad school is a major (no pun intended) milestone in anyone’s life. After dedicating years of your life to academic, professional and personal growth, you can finally say goodbye to late nights spent over coursework, toss your cap into the air and celebrate your success with friends and family.
Or, are you celebrating?
I spend a lot of time researching parties at Evite, and I was genuinely taken aback by the amount of people online who post that they 1. Don’t want a graduation party 2. Don’t see the point of a graduation party and 3. Think graduation parties are an expensive waste of time. Maybe I’m biased. I didn’t have a graduation party for either high school or college, and it still makes me a little sad every graduation season when I see people planning and posting theirs. At the time, I also scoffed at the idea of having a grad party. I, too, didn’t really believe it was something that merited a party. But if Memory Of Missing Out is a thing, I def have it.
Given the at-time-of-publication status of time traveling (not possible), I can’t go back and tell past-me to celebrate my graduation(s). So the next best thing is to share why you should have a graduation party for yourself or your graduate!
Reason #1: You’re Celebrating an Amazing Achievement
Graduates, just think how many hours, days, weeks, YEARS of your lives you spent in pursuit of furthering your education and coming that much closer to achieving your goals. Take a day to stop and reflect back upon it all! It truly is an incredible moment in your lives.
Reason #2: You’re Celebrating the Start of a New Era
There’s a reason “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” remains a favorite gift to give new graduates. As one phase of their life comes to an end, the opportunities to experience whole new ones are endless. Whether your graduate is going on to further their education, start a career or explore the world, celebrate what’s to come in their life. So many parties focus on the present. This is one occasion, like a wedding or baby shower, where you get to celebrate the past, present and future. Make the most of it!
Reason #3: It’s a Celebration Shared by the Graduate and Their Family
Parents, just think how many times you were there at parent-teacher conferences. Or at the kitchen table trying to help your child with their homework (while questioning how on earth you ever handled algebra). Or driving your child to their soccer practice or high school musical debut. You, too, have experienced moments of immense pride, but you’ve also sacrificed and worked hard to help your child get that diploma. You’ve been on this journey together, so celebrate it together! Graduating takes years of hard work and dedication from both a graduate and their family—it’s important to take the time to commemorate that achievement together (and just relax and have fun)!
Reason #4: It’s a Community Celebration in General
Think about it—unless you’re from an extraordinarily small town, there are dozens, hundreds or even thousands of other graduates all experiencing this moment at the same time. Graduates, you’ll want to remember this moment with your fellow degree holders and revel in it together. You and your parents will also have grandparents, siblings, cousins and family friends who remember when you were sweating it out over your ABCs and SATs. They all, in some way or another, likely influenced and helped you get to this moment. Share this moment with them (though be warned—they’ll spend a lot of time telling you how proud they are of you!).
Reason #5: It Doesn’t Have to Be an OTT, Expensive Party
Remember—a graduation party is about celebrating a special moment with the family and friends who made it happen! While TikTok, Instagram and Pinterest are full of graduation extravaganzas, yours doesn’t have to be. Some balloons in your school’s colors and a fun photo backdrop/photo op area to set the tone (and lots of delicious sips, bites and treats to enjoy!) are all you need for a low-key grad party. BTW—Evite has a complete graduation party planning checklist to help you plan your party, no matter what vibe and size you’re going for!
Reason #6: It IS a Great Excuse for a Party
Not that you need an excuse for a party, amirite? Parties are fun, and graduations are a major life event, so really, why not celebrate?
Reason #7: It’s a Chance to Mark the End of an Era
Okay, it’s time to get a little sappy here, so I have advice/messages for you all:
Dear high school graduates,
You’ve spent nearly all of your life surrounded by the same group of friends and others in your community. Now, the time has come for you to venture out into a brave new world away from the familiar structure and environment of primary and secondary education. While what’s to come is truly exciting and will afford you the opportunity to evolve in ways you may have never dreamed of, you will be saying goodbye to an era of your life. There are close friends you’ll drift away from over the coming years (it’s okay, it happens!). There are casual acquaintances you’ll randomly remember 20 years later. There are people you maybe never talked to in school that you’ll connect with in the future and wonder why you weren’t friends in HS. And there are some lucky people you’ll still talk to regularly and reminisce about the good ol’ days with. But here’s the thing—you won’t know who is whom until much, much later. So before you head off to your future, embrace those in your present and take the time to celebrate your collective experience!
Dear college graduates and postgraduates,
You made the choice to spend even more years in school to further your education and shape your future life. But, along the way, you evolved and discovered things about yourself that high school-you may not have ever known about. Both of these achievements deserve a celebration! Before you move on to your dream career or yet more educational opportunities, pause and go out with college friends to celebrate (in addition to becoming life-long friends, they may also become an important part of your professional network!) or have a dinner party with your family.
Dear parents of graduates,
You probably already know how you’re feeling, so I’ll keep this short and sweet: Congratulations and kudos to you on helping your grad get to the diploma finishing line. They may be on to their next adventure, but they will still need your advice and support as they continue their journey. But before they (and you) take those next steps, enjoy this present state of joy and celebrate their academic achievements!
Congratulations on your graduation (and on making it to the end of this blog)! Now that you’re hyped for grad party season, check out Evite’s gold star-worthy assortment of graduation party invitations, graduation announcements and graduation eCards to start celebrating.
What makes Evite SignUp Sheets different from other signup tools?
Developed hand-in-hand with community organizers, PTA presidents, parents and teachers, Evite's signup sheets are designed to make organizing volunteers a breeze. Here are a few ways SignUp Sheets are different than other signup tools:
- 100% free: SignUp Sheets are free to use.
- Ad-free: No popup ads ever! Our signup sheets remain clutter-free, keeping your volunteers focused on signing up.
- No extra login required: Seamlessly use your Evite account to create and manage your signup sheets, keeping all your events in one convenient location.
- Automatic reminders and notifications: Stay on top of your event with automated reminders and notifications for you and your participants. Perfect for busy parents, teachers and anyone juggling multiple commitments.
- Customization options: Tailor your signup sheets to your specific event, whether it's a school fundraiser, potluck, volunteer opportunity or team activity. Add custom tasks, time slots and requirements for smooth coordination.
- User-friendly experience: Our intuitive interface makes creating and sharing signup sheets simple for everyone, regardless of tech experience.
- Real-time updates: Get instant notifications whenever someone signs up or makes a change, so you always know where things stand.
Choose Evite SignUp Sheets for the easiest, most streamlined way to get volunteers and signups for your next event!
What is a signup sheet?
Signup sheets are the perfect way to streamline scheduling, volunteer recruitment, class parties, snack duty, potluck organization, parent-teacher conferences and more! You can think of them as your digital assistant for coordinating events and tasks and ensuring that your event is a success.
Evite SignUp Sheets offers parents, teachers and event planners customizable online forms that organizers and volunteers can access and update effortlessly. Volunteers can choose their preferred time slots, sign up for tasks or indicate what they'll bring to the event. It only takes organizers a few minutes to create a signup sheet and send it out with a shareable link, so they can get the word out via text, email or social media—whichever way they prefer!
Long story short, signup sheets save everyone involved tons of time, avoid scheduling headaches and ensure everything runs smoothly before and during the event.
How do I create a signup sheet?
Creating a signup sheet has never been easier than with Evite! Here’s how to create a sheet that’s sure to make your event an absolute success:
- Go to Evite SignUp Sheets and choose the template that best fits your needs. Evite offers multiple signup sheet templates perfect for every occasion, including:
- Signup sheets for one day events (without different time slots), perfect for when you’re organizing a class party, potluck or end-of-season party.
- Signup sheets for single or multiple day events (with time slots), perfect for when you’re organizing concession stand volunteers, fundraisers, parent-teacher conferences, meal train, post-game snack duty or during appreciation week.
- After selecting your sheet template, create a title for your signup sheet and add the date, the location, the time (if applicable), who the organizer is, the organizer’s phone number or email and an optional note describing the event to your volunteers. You can also change your signup sheet background and title image if you wish!
- Next, create slots for your signup sheet. If you aren’t logged into your account, you will need to do so at this point, but luckily, you can use your existing Evite account (no need to create yet another login!). What you’ll include here will depend on what your event needs, but you can include a list of what’s needed (along with optional descriptions), how many volunteers are needed, and dates and times.
- After creating your slots, you can then add a wish list from any retailer or include supply suggestions from Evite’s retailer partners. These are to help your volunteers find and purchase supplies quickly and easily.
- Finally, review your sheet, copy your shareable link and send it out to everyone on your list! Every time a volunteer signs up for a slot on your signup sheet, Evite will email you. We will also send reminders to you and your volunteers before your event so no one will forget about it, and we’ll even let volunteers know if you remove their slot or cancel your event sheet so you don’t have to!
What information should be included on a signup sheet?
When it comes to signup sheet information, there are some essentials to include regardless of what you’re organizing:
- A title for your signup sheet. Tip: Aim to keep your signup sheet title concise but clear. You want volunteers to read it and have a general understanding of what your event is about, and also make it easy for them to look for later if they need to reference your sheet again. You have the option to include a more descriptive note in a different field about your event, so save the more in-depth details for that!
- When and where the event is taking place.
- The organizer’s name and phone number.
- Slots for volunteers to choose from. Once you choose the SignUp Sheets template that fits the occasion, the slots you’ll need for your sheet will be right there and ready for you to add the relevant info, such as dates, times, items to bring and tasks to complete.
When adding your slot information, clearly define what people are signing up for, especially for a what-to-bring list or role assignments. If you want someone to bring healthy snacks for kids to enjoy after a game, specify that. You want your volunteers to feel confident in what they’re bringing and to make it easy for them to know what’s expected of them. It will save them time and stress (and you, too!). That being said, if you make your ask too specific (for example, asking for a hard-to-source item or something expensive), you may not end up with a volunteer for it. So be clear about what you expect, but also be reasonable!
Aside from providing the basic signup information, you can also add optional descriptions to both your entire signup sheet and individual slots. While not required, they can help guide your volunteers further and provide more information. You can add information about allergies, preferences and general info about the event. You can also add a wish list to make it easier for your volunteers to bring exactly what you need!
What are the benefits of using a signup sheet template?
Signup sheet templates offer a ton of advantages for both organizers and volunteers and with Evite SignUp Sheets, you'll enjoy even more benefits than other digital and paper signup sheets! Some benefits our signup sheet templates offer include:
- A 100% free experience (no subscriptions required!).
- Shareable links for quick and easy sharing.
- No need to create another login—you can use your existing Evite account.
- The option to add a wish list to help your volunteers out.
- Automatic reminders—we’ll remind everyone on your behalf.
- An easy-to-use experience with eye-catching guided templates.
- Clean, modern designs with no pop-up ads.
With Evite SignUp Sheets, you can enjoy organizing and coordinating all your events with ease. Signup sheets streamline the signup process for everyone involved, ensuring that everything will go to plan on the day of your event while saving you precious time in the process.