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Public school teachers can request anything from pencils to digital cameras to class trips on donorschoose.org
Low on supplies? Teachers go to the Web
by Todd Johnson
May 20, 2009
Music teacher Amanda Krause describes how her donorschoose.org funded projects have impacted her students
Melanie Duppins of donorschoose.org explains how teachers can use the Web site to their advantage
WASHINGTON -- Sometimes, teachers can hustle too. Just ask Amanda Krause.
Krause teaches music at Community Academy Public Charter School in Washington.
Thanks to a non-profit Web site, Krause has been able to fill her classroom with a video projector, musical instruments, clipboards for her students to write on, and music books, just to name a few examples.Not bad for a school she says is underresourced.
"When I was in school in a middle class environment, it was on the students and families to get notebooks and binders," Krause said. "Community Academy is not that school. Ninety-five percent of our students are on free or reduced lunch. You can't always rely on students bringing notebooks and pencils to class."The site, donorschoose.org, allows teachers to create online profiles and request funding help for equipment, supplies or student projects.
Anyone can go to the site and donate.
"With a lot of grants that may be national, there's a lot of paperwork and sometimes only one deadline per year," Krause said. "For (donorschoose.org) I can go any time of the day, while I'm at school or home on the weekend. Within 20 minutes, I can create the proposal that will then be posted on the internet for anyone to fund."
Krause has used donorschoose.org to fund more than 30 projects for her students.
And she's not limited to music.
This week she had instructors visit her school and teach students capoiera, a Brazilian martial arts discipline.
"If you empower teachers to make those choices for their students, they will request the things that most move the needle for the students that they teach," said Melanie Duppins, manager of teacher engagement partnerships at donorschoose.org. "If you search the site at any given time, you will find projects for under $150 for notebooks and crayons. These are basic things that can really make a difference."
