Why cut costs when there's so much more you want to offer your students? (Tweet this!)
There's a new division in fundraising that few schools have really taken advantage of and I want to share them with you.
In a newfound digital world of slim pickings and tight budgets, schools can now think creatively with money.
If you're like me, cutting programs and finding loopholes is no fun. It's exhausting to try to cut more from a school system that needs so much added. It's far more fun to find easier ways to get more money and create the school you really want (Tweet this!)
More money can mean more programs for your school. More money can mean more opportunities.
Some options for school leaders when the budget shrinks (which happens a lot).
Below are two programs for you to consider using for alternate fundraising options when you and your team run into financial roadblocks for the amazing programs you want to create for your school.
You can even offer these crowd-funding websites to your staff when they come to you with an idea they have to make their classroom better.
#1 Indiegogo
This site acts like Kickstarter, yet focuses on the non-profit social good realm. It uses crowd funding to allow your ideas to become funded. You can offer this site to teachers or even students who have an idea, but need either money or equipment to make it happen. Some school programs that have received funding include students publishing their writing, funding for a school/community pool, and even building a cleaner and nicer bathroom for students to use. Think big with Indiegogo and you may be surprised at what you will get.
Tip: You will need to use the skills of a teacher with filming skills or a student who is savvy with the camera.
#2 DonorsChoose
A site for teachers by teachers. This site allows philanthropic donors the ability to see and potentially interact with the programs they fund. Don't have enough pencils or laptops for your school? Consider asking for these on DonorsChoose. This site is a lot like Indiegogo, but it offers teachers the ability to ask for small things and not just high-cost initiatives.
As a school leader, I'm sure you've realized just how hard it can be to get the funds you deserve. There's no more need to solely rely on government funds, tuition dollars, or investors to cover the cost of new initiatives.
Teachers and school leaders can work together.
Here's a simple idea that empowers students:
Link a student assessment to one of these sites and offer students the ability to put together a fundraising program for a project they want to see implemented in the school.
Students will have a practical assessment that utilizes many of the Common Core skills. Students will learn digital literacies through uploading and creating the video and they will also learn the rules of rhetorical persuasion and what it take to be business savvy. Forget providing students with skills to get a job in a non-existent job market, this teaches entrepreneurship.