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By Daphra
Friday,
Jul 31, 2009 at 6:23pm
Last week, we had the opportunity to attend the BlogHer09 conference in Chicago. We knew that the BlogHer community was probably one of the most philanthropic groups of individuals online. Last year, when we challenged the blogosphere to do “good,” they delivered by raising nearly $10,000 to support classroom projects across the country. The outpouring of support by the BlogHer community was truly moving for us.
What we didn’t know about the BlogHer community, we found out last week at the conference. BlogHer is a community of diverse voices, opinions, but truly a family of women (and men!) who are passionate about politics, their children, social activism, and everything else in between. Conference topics ranged from skill building sessions (Advanced SEO), powerhouse key notes (Traditional Media Chops Meet a New Media Calling led by Tina Brown- Daily Beast, Donna Byrd- TheRoot.com and Irene Chaiken- The L Word– see photo) to a social actions lunch table, where we were sandwiched between Gloria Feldt and Lindsay Glatz, who was also representing an education-based initiative (Arts Council of New Orleans).
We even had the opportunity to participate in a roundtable discussion with White House Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison, Valerie Jarrett where she discussed healthcare and education. Two issues that she noted require innovative and ground-breaking systemic re-evaluations.
A week later, it seems like everyone (BlogHer staff included) is still processing the jam-packed weekend, but this one characteristic note from a BlogHer, Kim Moldofsky, made our trip well worth it:
“I walked away from the conference with a few sweet swag items, but one of the best is a gift card to Donors Choose. What a fantastic idea–a gift card that helps me help a teacher fund a classroom project.”
We’re looking forward to working with the BlogHer community again this October for our upcoming Social Media Challenge!
BlogHer founder, Lisa Stone with Irene Chaiken, Donna Byrd and Tina Brown
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By Kari
Monday,
Jul 27, 2009 at 6:32pm
Between July 30 and August 2, 2009, all Gap brands (Old Navy, Banana Republic, etc.) will offer customers the chance to make a difference in public schools – just by going shopping!
You can print and use this DonorsChoose.org shopping coupon to receive a 30% discount on in-store purchases made at Gap companies’ stores. After you shop, 5% of your total purchase amount will automatically go back to support students in classrooms on DonorsChoose.org.
Share the DonorsChoose.org shopping coupon with your family and friends to get both 30% off at Gap stores AND benefit DonorsChoose.org!
Happy shopping!
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By Kirk
Monday,
at 12:16pm
Through a new cause campaign, Limeades For Learning, SONIC will put more than a half million dollars into classrooms in local communities across the country, thanks to a new partnership with DonorsChoose.org!
“SONIC and our franchisees have supported schools in local communities for some time,” said Cliff Hudson, chairman and chief executive officer-Sonic Corp. “During a time when teachers need help the most, we look forward to working with DonorsChoose.org to place supplies into classrooms and ultimately help students reach their full potential.”
From August 31 through October 1, when customers purchase any small to Route 44 fountain or frozen drink at SONIC, they can go online to LimeadesForLearning.com and vote for their favorite teachers’ project. SONIC will fund up to $100,000 of projects with the most votes each Friday during the five-week campaign.
Click here to read national partnership announcement.
*Teachers who are interested in being eligible for SONIC funding are encouraged to read and share the following items:
1. SONIC Teacher Flier -
http://www.donorschoose.org/docs/SONIC.LFL.Flier2.pdf (5 MB)
2. SONIC Teacher FAQ -
http://www.donorschoose.org/docs/LimeadesForLearning.Teacher.FAQs.pdf (130 KB)
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By Kari
Wednesday,
Jul 22, 2009 at 6:43pm
Position Overview: The West Region Director will take an active role in expanding DonorsChoose.org across a 14-state region. S/he is responsible for cultivating new and existing individual, corporate, and foundation supporters, as well as developing and executing strategies for district outreach and teacher engagement. Reporting directly to the West Region Vice President, the Director position is a unique opportunity to be a part of an innovative, fun, high-profile, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the face of philanthropy and the lives of students from low income families.
Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
• In partnership with the Vice President, develop and implement a regional strategy for engaging corporate and foundation partners through DonorsChoose.org managed giving programs
• Prospect, cultivate, execute, and evaluate corporate partnerships to score branded marketing campaigns ensuring the highest levels of customer service
• Identify, cultivate and solicit high net worth individual donors via in-person meetings and/or events
• Independently structure, analyze and manipulate DonorsChoose.org data for grants, media requests, reports etc.
• Continuously track all contacts, leads, notes, and funding opportunities in our CRM database, SalesForce.com
• Collaborate across regional and national teams to share best practices and inform the systems andprocesses that will influence the future of DonorsChoose.org
Qualifications:
• A minimum of 3, with 5 or more preferred years of fundraising, marketing, sales and/or management experience with demonstrated success reaching or exceeding aggressive goals; familiarity with the philanthropic landscape in Seattle and San Francisco is strongly preferred
• Team player with a strong passion for the mission and vision of DonorsChoose.org
• Comfortable with a wide range of tasks ranging from strategic planning to tactical execution and implementation
• Entrepreneurial spirit and the ability to work in a self-directed environment required
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and strong customer-service orientation
• Detail-oriented and organized, with the ability to coordinate multiple projects simultaneously
• Desire to work in a fast-paced, startup-like environment with aggressive growth plans
• Travel (up to 50%) is required
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required; advanced degree preferred
Compensation: DonorsChoose.org offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits, which include health, dental, and vision coverage; a non-contributing 401K plan; and 5 weeks paid vacation plus national holidays.
To Apply: Please email a resume and thoughtful cover letter, outlining how your skills and experience meet the qualifications of the position and stating how you heard about this opportunity, both in Word format. Address application to Carolina Martín and submit to carolina(at)donorschoose(dot)org and feinberg(at)glocap(dot)com with the subject line “West Director Position.”
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By Katie
Wednesday,
at 12:31pm
We had the pleasure of having Cheryl Dorsey, President of Echoing Green, visit our New York office last week as part of our DonorsChoose.org Speaker Series. Cheryl gave us the story of her amazing background, and she answered our many questions about social entrepreneurship. We enjoyed thanking Cheryl Dorsey in person for the amazing contributions she has made to DonorsChoose.org as a member of our national board.
You can read more about Chery Dorsey here and about Echoing Green here.
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By Alex
Wednesday,
at 12:21pm
In the past year alone, the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation has provided more than 11,000 high-need South Carolina students with musical and other resources to enhance their education through DonorsChoose.org.
Hootie & the Blowfish is again showing support for students in their home state, by asking you to fund classroom requests from South Carolina’s high-poverty schools along the I-95 corridor. You may remember that President Obama turned America’s attention to just one of these schools, J.V. Martin Junior High School in Dillon County, S.C., during his first State of the Union speech.
The Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation will fund 50% of eligible projects if someone like you provides the remainder. By completing this project, you will double the impact of your donation. Learn how this Double Your Impact grant works.
See all eligible projects.
About The Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation
The Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation, established in 2000, is a private non-profit organization that was created in conjunction with the Hootie and the Blowfish Monday After the Masters Golf Tournament and benefits children of South Carolina through education and supporting school music programs nationwide.
Throughout their career, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, Darius Rucker, and Jim Sonefeld have stayed true to their roots and worked hard to give something back to the community that has always supported them. By establishing a fund with the Central Carolina Community Foundation, Hootie and the Blowfish is creating an opportunity for grants to benefit the education of South Carolina’s children of today, and well into the future.
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By Candice
Monday,
Jul 20, 2009 at 1:51pm
Thirty-five rising high school juniors are participating in the Bay Area CORO Exploring Leadership program this summer, taking part in internships, skill building workshops and community service projects. In July, CORO holds its Philanthropy Day, bringing together Bay Area nonprofits, businesses and foundations to engage and practice networking skills with the students.
As an added bonus to this program, these bright young minds are given a grant and the opportunity to select classroom projects on DonorsChoose.org, present the merits of their chosen projects and debate which projects should receive funding. Among those projects that received funding are Isn’t Issac Newton a Cookie? and Readers are Leaders!
Thanks so much to the CORO students who brought these projects to life!
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By Karina
Friday,
Jul 17, 2009 at 4:36pm
For all projects fully funded in the 2009-2010 school year, teachers will be required to submit classroom photos digitally through their teacher accounts. We’ll update this blog space regularly with new information and tips for teachers who are making the transition to digital photos.
WHY MAKE THIS CHANGE?
By relying on digital photo submissions for 100% of projects, we’re ensuring that we can continue to serve teachers and donors effectively. Here’s how:
- We’re aiming for a 30% annual increase in the number of fully funded projects. That would be great news! But it means we’ll need to process that many more Thank-You Packages for our teachers and donors. When teachers upload their own photos, it saves us about 1 minute per project—that translates to 921 hours of staff time in the 2009-2010 school year alone which can be redirected to other efforts that further our mission.
- Going 100% digital will save us $3.5 million over the next 5 years—money that will be used to support more classroom projects and help make our organization sustainable.
- With digital photo submission, all donors who fund a project – regardless of their donation amount – can view photos of the project in action.
WHAT IF I’M A TEACHER AND I’VE ONLY SUBMITTED NON-DIGITAL PHOTOS?
For all projects fully funded in the new school year, you’ll no longer receive a Thank-You Kit from DonorsChoose.org. Your Thank-You Instructions will be available online, through your account page. On the Thank-You Instructions page for each project, you’ll be able to:
- Write your impact letter online;
- Digitally upload classroom photos of your students using the donated resources;
- View instructions to have your students write letters, and access a printable pre-paid mailing label to send us your student letters.
STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES AND TIPS TO MANAGE THE TRANSITION TO DIGITAL PHOTOS!
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By Kari
Thursday,
Jul 16, 2009 at 2:08pm
Between July 30 and August 2, 2009, GAP (along with Old Navy and Banana Republic) will be offering their customers the chance to make a difference in public schools – just by going shopping!
On July 28, we’ll be posting a DonorsChoose.org shopping code here on our blog. Use it to get 30% off at GAP stores. Then, allocate 5% of what you purchase to classroom projects on DonorsChoose.org.
Happy shopping!
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By Kirk
Wednesday,
Jul 15, 2009 at 7:45pm
DonorsChoose.org founder and CEO Charles Best is headed to St. Louis! Next week, Charles will help Build-A-Bear Workshop honor 12 young people from across the country and Canada who have been selected as “Huggable Heroes” for their outstanding community service projects. You can learn more about the Huggable Heroes here.
Charles will address this year’s award winners on Thursday, July 23, and on Friday he will participate in a service project at an elementary school in downtown St. Louis that has benefitted from using DonorsChoose.org. DonorsChoose.org is excited to help Build-A-Bear Workshop celebrate these inspiring and successful young humanitarians!
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