Frontline teachers know best what their students need to recover from COVID-19 disrupted learning. By partnering with DonorsChoose, state education departments can efficiently offer every public school teacher in their state the chance to receive the learning resources that their students need to get back to normal during the 2021-2022 school year. Education leaders in Delaware, Hawai’i, Nevada, Utah, and Oklahoma are paving the way for these state-wide initiatives, and have already created incredible impact across classrooms.Interested in learning more about how your state DOE could work with DonorsChoose? Connect with Ali Rosen, our Head of Foundation Giving at DonorsChoose.org/State-Leaders to learn more.
Delaware
In 2020, County Executive Matt Meyer, a former public school teacher, came to DonorsChoose with the idea of directly funding teachers’ projects with pandemic relief funds. In 2021, he dedicated $1.3 million in CARES Act funding to fund classroom projects from more than 1 in 5 teachers across Delaware.
- 1,617 teachers with projects funded
- $1.3 million in CARES Act funding deployed
- 6 weeks from announcement to funding allocated
Nevada
Nevada DOE was the first state department of education to channel federal relief money through DonorsChoose, launching their campaign in 2021. They dedicated $8 million, and more than half of the teachers in Nevada participated in this initiative.
Hawai’i
The Hawai’i DOE used their own funds to support teachers through DonorsChoose. Instead of tapping into pandemic relief funding, they launched a $3 million public-private partnership Salesforce Chair & Co-CEO Marc Benioff and his wife Lynne. Because so many teachers were enthusiastic about this partnership, Hawaii dedicated $1.5 million, and the Benioffs, who have strong ties to the islands, gave $1.5 million to match funding from the state.
- 1,960 teachers with projects funded
- $1.6 million in funding deployed
- 4 weeks from announcement to funding allocated
Utah
The Utah State Board of Education allocated $12 million in federal relief funding to champion the efforts of teachers to support the various needs of Utah’s K-12 students and find creative ways to address the impacts of COVID-19 on learning. With this investment, 12,000+ Utah educators will receive up to $1,000 in funding to support their classroom projects.
Oklahoma
Starting on February 4, the Oklahoma State Department of Education will apply up to funding to Oklahoma classroom teachers’ projects requesting resources to support students in response to COVID-19.
DonorsChoose District Partnerships
Dozens of Local Education Associations (LEAs) have partnered with DonorsChoose at the district level to help their teachers and colleagues leverage DonorsChoose more effectively. By joining our no-cost District Partnership Program, district leaders receive exclusive benefits, including early notification of funding opportunities from corporate donors, technology guidelines, and robust reporting to monitor trends in the resources teachers are requesting. To join, complete the brief form and a member of the DonorsChoose team will reach out to you with next steps.
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