By Katie
Tuesday,
Sep 23, 2008 at 10:45am
Dear DonorsChoose.org TEACHERS,
Mustaches for Kids is an annual Mustache-growing fundraiser held in cities across the country. Similar to a charity walkathon, for which participants collect donations per mile, “Growers” raise pledges for every day they grow Mustaches.
Last year, both New York, NY and Charlotte, NC chapters of Mustaches for Kids chose to give their proceeds to DonorsChoose.org. Over 175 Growers in the two cities raised over $80,000 for classroom requests at DonorsChoose.org – in just four weeks! This year, we are taking Mustaches national to raise money for your classrooms.
Why should you get involved?
- It’s hilarious! Believe us, watching the four-week evolution of Mustaches, and strangers’ reactions to them, is funny.
- It’s a modern marvel. Who would have guessed that so many men in their 20’s and 30’s would be asking their friends and family to support public education?
- It’s helping to bring dollars to your classroom! And if you get involved, you can make sure your projects get funded.
How can you get involved?
- Guys: Grow a Mustache!
- Guys and gals: Peer pressure your friends and co-workers to grow Mustaches!
- Guys and gals: Bonus points for anyone who starts a Mustaches For Kids chapter in your town (see guide for how to start a chapter)!
We have also created a Toolkit for Teachers on how to participate in Mustaches for Kids, which includes more information about Growing Season (Nov. 13th – Dec 13th), ideas for fundraising, and hilarious email templates to send to your friends.
Men, we applaud those of you who have the energy and motivation to step up and grow with us.
Men and women alike, we applaud those of you who wrangle guys they know to sport sweet ‘staches.
Word to your ‘staches,
DonorsChoose.org Mustache Team
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By Katie
Thursday,
Sep 18, 2008 at 4:21pm
Greetings lovers of facial hair and charity,
Mustaches for Kids, America’s favorite mustache-based charity organization, is back for another year of questionable grooming. The 2008 Growing Season kicks off on Shaving Day (Thursday, November 13th) and concludes mid-December.
Mustaches for Kids is a volunteer-run organization founded way back in 1999 to celebrate the joys of Mustaches and charity. Its formula is a simple one: brave Growers sprout totally sweet Mustaches for four weeks during the holiday season. They subject themselves to public humiliation and private doubt, while raising money for children’s charities. It’s kind of like getting pledges to run a marathon, without exertion, cramping or dehydration. Call it a facial hair marathon.
This year, a bunch of Mustaches for Kids chapters across the country will grow Mustaches to benefit DonorsChoose.org teachers and students, like Baltimore, Charlotte, Los Angeles, New York, Wilmington DE, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle, just to name a few.
Not yet convinced that growing a Mustache is both charitable and suave? You can read about the shenanigans from the New York chapter’s 2007 Growing Season.
Email mustachesforkids (at) donorschoose (dot) org if you’re interested in growing a ‘stache this fall. And if you want to go for the gold and start a chapter in your city, here is an inspirational how-to kit to start your own Mustaches for Kids chapter!
Word to your future ‘stache,
- Mitch Goldman, Head Grower, Mustaches for Kids Interworld Headquarters
- Katie Bisbee, DonorsChoose.org Employee and Charlotte, NC Mustache Enthusiast
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By Katie
Thursday,
at 3:53pm
Dear Winston-Salem, NC teachers,
The Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce will be partnering with DonorsChoose.org this fall to implement Grants for Great Ideas, its creative grants program for certified classroom teachers throughout Winston-Salem and Forsyth County schools.
Grants will be selected from Science, Technology, and/or Math–focused proposals submitted by October 15, 2008 on the DonorsChoose.org website. Additional guidelines are posted on the school system’s website and the Chamber of Commerce’s website.
Winston-Salem teachers do not need to do anything special - they should sign up at DonorsChoose.org and post a project as usual!
All the best,
Katie
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By Katie
Wednesday,
Aug 13, 2008 at 1:58pm
Starting this week, an anonymous foundation in Georgetown, South Carolina, challenges you to help Georgetown County teachers and students! There are many creative projects waiting for funding in Georgetown, such as Can We Please Make Something Explode? and “Super”intendent Art Award Winners!.
About Georgetown County
Georgetown, SC is the third oldest city in South Carolina, which dates back to colonial times. Georgetown is on the Atlantic coastline, and it has several rivers running through the county. Beachfronts and shorelines are quickly being developed, as tourists have quickly discovered the county’s beauty. You may recognize the names of the Murrells Inlet, Litchfield, Pawleys Island and DeBordieu communities.
Why Helping Georgetown County Matters
The inland rural areas are thinly populated and somewhat impoverished. The majority of the school children in Georgetown County receive Free or Reduced Lunch and 24% of all children living in Georgetown County live below the poverty level. Despite the efforts of Georgetown County Schools to reduce the teacher-pupil ratio, there are many teachers who teach in high poverty schools and have basic resource needs like tables and printer ink.
About The Challenge
Our friends in Georgetown County will be putting up a $35,000 “match offer” by funding Georgetown County classroom projects half-way. Your donations to Georgetown County classroom projects will “unlock” their match offer.
Together, we can hopefully deliver $70,000 in classroom resources to Georgetown County classrooms this fall! You can click here to view Georgetown classroom requests with the matching offer.
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By Katie
Monday,
Jul 21, 2008 at 11:42am
In addition to receiving free car detailing and oil changes, customers of Don Beyer Volvo and Subaru in Virginia, Washington, D.C and Maryland are receiving DonorsChoose.org Giving Cards as a thank you for being valued members of the Don Beyer auto family. The Giving Cards allow customers to go to DonorsChoose.org, pick a classroom project by subject area or specific school, and then apply the funds towards that classroom project.
Customers of Don Beyer Volvo and Subaru have already begun to respond, supporting projects from Neat Nonfiction Nook to Science in Jeopardy to We LOVE Reading so PLEASE help us get this GREAT Novel!. These philanthropic customers have already helped over 4,349 students by redeeming their Giving Cards.
Thanks, Don Beyer Volvo, for sharing DonorsChoose.org Giving Cards with your customers! We hope this drives even more business your way.
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By Katie
Monday,
at 10:41am
The Burroughs Wellcome Fund, an independent private foundation in North Carolina, will support $25,000 in inquiry-based science and mathematics projects through DonorsChoose.org during the 2008 / 2009 school year.
These funds are only available to North Carolina teachers, so take advantage of this opportunity and submit your project today! All eligible projects will automatically be considered. See the sticky-notes below for a few project ideas that would qualify for Burroughs Wellcome Fund support.
Have fun requesting creative, hands-on resources to support your math and/or science instruction!
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By Katie
Thursday,
Jun 26, 2008 at 3:45pm
The Atlantic Region is so excited to welcome three summer interns to our Washington DC office. Below are the bios of our three interns, with added commentary from Kate Hays, Deputy Director, who heads up our DC office.
MAX KIRSCH
From Max: My name is Max Kirsch and I’m a rising senior at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, MD. I have a variety of interests, most notably web design/programming (I created my school newspaper’s website) and basketball. I learned about DonorsChoose.org during the 2007 Bloggers Challenge. I regularly read Engadget.com (a technology blog) and they were part of the competition. I read about the organization and decided to donate a small amount to finish a science project in Illinois. A couple months later I received the thank-you package complete with letters from the students and pictures of them using the microscopes that were funded. I was so impressed by the comprehensiveness of the feedback and the transparency of the donation process that I emailed Mr. Best asking if there was some way that I could volunteer in the Washington, DC area. Now I’m writing this on my third day working in the DC office and I couldn’t be more pleased with my internship. I’m eager to meet the people that make this great organization possible!
From Kate: Max has, in three days, demonstrated his range of abilities, from excel guru, to knowing more about wireless internet cards than the AT&T guy, to mastering Skype emoticons, and quickly becoming our local technology help desk.
JAMES GRANT
From James: My name is James Grant, and I am a rising senior at Georgetown University majoring in American Studies and Political Economy. I was first introduced to DonorsChoose.org by a fellow Baker Scholar at Georgetown named Greg Pope. The Baker Scholars are a select group of college students who are interested in business and community service. Each year, we visit New York to speak with leaders and entrepreneurs in a variety of fields, and the year before I was accepted, the Bakers met with Charles Best. Greg told me about the goals and ideas behind DonorsChoose.org, and I could not help but want to work for this groundbreaking organization myself. I am excited to spend this summer with a purpose behind my efforts that I feel will make a difference in this country. This will be the first nonprofit where I have been employed, but I have worked at Warner Brothers Studios and the White House during college. Through DonorsChoose.org, I hope to gain an appreciation for my upbringing, as well as a sense of hope that all students can be as lucky as I have been.
From Kate: If James had been at our staff retreat, his factoid might have been that he was a 2008 College Jeopardy Contestant. He’s also an aspiring novelist, prospective law school student, lover of DonorsChoose.org thank-you packages, and soon-to-be Mustaches For Kids guru. [James! Didn’t I tell you you’d be required to grow a mustache to fulfill your internship requirements?!]
ADAM ARONOW
From Adam: I’m Adam Aronow, a rising sophomore at Tufts Unversity, and I just started as one of the DC summer interns. I had heard about DonorsChoose.org from my parents and went to the DC office’s Open House in May, where I found out about the internship. As I learn more about DonorsChoose.org, I regularly admire the innovation and creativity that accomplishes much needed results for classrooms. As for myself, I spend my free time practicing Tae Kwon Do and photography. On the days when I’m not here, I volunteer at a Spanish Senior Center, where the old women flirt with me or make fun of my Spanish, and sometimes, when I’m really lucky, both at the same time. I’ve enjoyed my first day and I look forward to the rest of my time here.
From Kate: Adam, as you can likely tell, has a fine sense of humor, and some of his computer artwork today indicated a healthy spirit of competition and fun that clearly demonstrates he deserves his slot on the Atlantic Team (or as we like to call ourselves, the A-Team). He also says that our copier is a lot snazzier than the Spanish Senior Center’s.
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By Katie
Thursday,
May 29, 2008 at 2:00pm
Below is a press release that Washington DC Mayor Fenty and Deputy Mayor Victor Reinoso issued about our partnership. A big THANK YOU to the Mayor’s office for its support!
You can also hear Kate Hays, DonorsChoose.org Atlantic Deputy Director, talking to NPR about our efforts in Washington DC.
__________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 19, 2008
Government of the District of Columbia
Executive Office of the Mayor
Washington, DC - Mayor Adrian M. Fenty and Deputy Mayor Victor Reinoso today announced a partnership with DonorsChoose.org, an innovative program designed to connect district teachers and students with local philanthropists. DonorsChoose.org puts individuals directly in touch with teachers seeking support for educational tools ranging from school supplies to field trips. Since the start of the school year, 28 District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) have received over $137,000.
“I am excited about this partnership with DonorsChoose.org because it provides an opportunity for individuals to review teacher proposals, fund projects, and see firsthand, how exactly their money is spent,” said Mayor Fenty.
“This partnership encourages innovative teaching by providing a simple way to fulfill small, teacher-directed needs,” said Deputy Mayor Victor Reinoso. “This exciting opportunity will help bring more resources to the city’s teachers and students.”
DonorsChoose.org invites teachers to submit a proposal for school supplies and projects that support the healthy development of students. Individual donors can search teacher proposals on the DonorsChoose.org website by areas of interest, learn about the classroom needs, and fund projects that they find most compelling. Students and teachers have a direct connection with their donors and often send thank you letters along with photographs of the projects.
CONTACT: Dena Iverson
202-727-6914 (office)
Below is a picture of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty:
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By Katie
Thursday,
May 22, 2008 at 3:00pm
Warmest congratulations to Bob Heck and Paige Tatum!
Bob Heck, Maryland Public Television’s “Bob the Vid Tech”, on-air host of MPT’s Kids and Family programs, has been a strong advocate for DonorsChoose.org in Baltimore City among teachers, parents and community members. Bob was recently nominated for a Capital Region Emmy for Program Host / Moderator. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for Bob that he will win on June 14th, and add to the eight Capital Region Emmys awards that he has won since 1996.
Paige Tatum, Executive Producer of Fox News in Boston for the 10 o’clock and 11 o’clock shows, helped our Northeast Team coordinate an awesome segment this fall. As the daughter of a school district superintendent in Virginia, Paige is passionate about public education! On May 10th, Paige received a Boston / New England Emmy for News Producer; you can see her accepting her award here. Paige now has a total of two Emmys!
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By Katie
Wednesday,
May 7, 2008 at 11:00am
We are excited to announce that Verizon will be supporting Virginia teachers this spring by funding $10,000 in literacy projects through DonorsChoose.org. Verizon’s goal is to inspire teachers to think creatively about literacy education, and to distribute innovative literacy resources to teachers across the state.
The post-it notes below represent ideas for literacy tools that Verizon would fund through this grant. Verizon is looking for Virginia teachers to build on these ideas and customize them to best meet the needs of their students.
Virginia teachers should request supplies they need for innovative literacy instruction by June 1st, 2008, to be eligible for funding from Verizon. Any questions? Email VerizonVA (at) donorschoose (dot) org for more information on this opportunity!
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