Need Help ASAP

Parents Forum
1

My town cut funding for the science and art programs and literally my teachers were complaining how our textbooks are old and how we have very little lab equipment and the microscopes are not functioning. My sculpture and pottery teacher told me that she has to tell her students to do 7 sketch ideas because we do not have enough clay to supply the students.

I have been researching for the past few days because it sucks that the two things I am passionate about are not being given enough attention and I not only want to change that, but raise money to get new equipment. I looked at some articles and websites and they all have different things to say, some say to reach the superintendent, some say local government, and other state government. None of them give a clear cut process, please help me if you know what I can do to change things and raise money fast, because it sucks and I want to change this. In my bio lab last week, my group got a microscope with a broken lens and we did not have any microscopes for replacements, there are no field trips allowed for science and art this year, and we had to limit the labs to 4 per year because the funding is so low and the reason I tool bio lab is because I want to be a bio major and I was excited to learn but we dont even have the right material.

2

How much money? Do you have a Parent Teacher organization. Usually they do the fundraising.

3

Set up a tax-exempt organization for the school and ask other kids if their parents’ companies will donate/match contributions. Create fundraising events. Sell food/goods at sports events. Publicize all that in local newspapers and websites.

4

Here’s one possibility:
https://www.donorschoose.org/

5

Another website you might consider:

https://www.teacherlists.com/wishlist

6

As a kid, I think you need to go through channels. You want to ensure that a) the school won’t shut down your ideas and that b) any funds you do raise go to the areas you’re trying to help, and not help replace the lockers in the visitors locker room.

You’re going to have to narrow down your focus if you want an OK, so think, what’s your highest priority? The microscopes? The field trips? Pottery clay? You’re going to have to choose one area and address it.

It would probably help if you had some idea of the costs necessary, so after you decide on one project, hit the internet. Speak to your teachers and come up with a rough idea of the amount of money you’ll need to accomplish your goal.

Do you have an active PTA (or whatever it’s called in your school?) Do you have Student Government that does fundraising? If not, I would start by making an appointment with the principal. Yes, an actual appointment-- go to speak to his secretary, and find a time when she can fit you in. She’ll ask what it’s in reference to, and you tell her: you want to try to look into ideas that the student body can use to raise funds for _____.

Whoever you speak to, you’re going to have to have a clear idea of what you want to pitch. Do you want a GoFundMe page? (Administrators may shoot this down for one reason or another, so be prepared with other ideas.) What sort of fundraising are you considering, and what sort is likely to be a success in your area? You’ll want something that has financial transparency-- where you can account for the funds as they come in. So you’ll have to speak to someone who has done fundraising in your district to be able to counsel you on the financial end of this. You’ll want something with a real chance of meeting your goal. And you’ll have to consider the timeline-- if you’re a Senior, this may not get the funds in time to be of real use to YOU and your class. I don’t think “FAST” is going to happen, not on a project of this magnitude. (Here’s what I mean: teachers in my school got a memo the other day advising us to hand in next year’s budget numbers. This year is already in the books, we’re looking at next year’s numbers.)

Plan B, for immediate results: Could you find a Science teacher willing to do one or two Science Field trips? You could do the research, find something reasonably close and reasonably affordable. Or, far cheaper, could you look into having STEM professionals come to your school and give talks after school to the any interested students? Do you have alumni in the medical field, in research, in engineering, in architecture, in technology? Parents of current students in those fields? This would be a project you could organize now, for January or February, to benefit members of your own class.

Good luck.

7

In our town, the PTA does enrichment and an Education Foundation set up privately raises funds for certain things, often innovative programs that the school itself needs to eventually pay for.These organizations can fund field trips, visiting scientists or artists, that kind of thing.

But it is inappropriate for either organization to raise funds for what should be in the school budget. If these things are funded privately, believe me, they will stay that way. DO NOT do a Kickstarter or GoFund me either.

The school itself (superintendent and school committee) needs to fund its own science and art programs. Write a letter to both and put yourself on the agenda for a School Committee meeting. Call the media (local paper at least) and ask them to come.

I suggest raising a general issue concerning funding, but also compile a very specific list of what you think is needed to be adequate. In our state, there are certain basic levels of funding that are required and your description would seem to suggest that the school is not funded at that basic level. So, 70 microscopes? Clay? What would it take to make the programs function. (Unfortunately ancient textbooks are common but many schools are now not even using textbooks.)

In Massachusetts, we do override campaigns, which are to “override” the 2.5% limit on property taxes. I have personally run three campaigns and won all three. PM me if you are in Massachusetts and I will help you with that. First step is to get town meeting to approve the request for more funding.

So get yourself on a school committee agenda and call the paper to start!!

8

Are you able to go to a Board of education meeting? They are usually held each month. Get other kids to come along. Start talking to kids at school. Talk to the student body council. See if a teacher will mentor your group, though they might be reluctant if they aren’t tenured. This is a really great idea and worth pursuing. You should go as a group to the BOE meeting and ask if there are other cuts that can be made so that more money can be made available for art and science. Alert a local journalist who will probably be delighted to cover a local story like this. Raising awareness of the issue is key, so anything that helps get the word out is good. Maybe create a facebook group. You can create a wonderful opportunity to get involved and help your school and the students.

9

It may not seem so now, but this is a great opportunity for you to be an active problem solver which will help you in many ways throughout your life. Above posters have given you several great ideas. Get organized and get out there.

There’s a huge difference between being an activist and a victim. Hard to appreciate at your age, but I would lose the “This sucks” approach immediately as lots of things in life, some quite devastating, suck (family or friend with a grave illness, parent losing a job, house falling into a sinkhole - actually has happened around here, etc.). How you respond to the circumstances is the important thing.

Whether or not you are successful in solving the funding issue, this will be a great experience and will be quite useful for you as you grow. College admission essay topic, perspective on overcoming hardship, experience in dealing with difficult circumstances when you are in the workforce, etc.

Best of luck in your efforts!

10

School Committee and Board of Education are basically the same thing fyi, different terminology in different places and for towns versus cities

11

Do some googling and see if any of the colleges and universities within roughly 1.5 hours of you have any outreach efforts. I am thinking of something along the lines of this physics show https://www.physics.umn.edu/outreach/pforce/

What kinds of bio and tech companies are more or less in your region? Often they have charitable foundations with grant cycles. You may be able to get some funding from them or even used equipment. Here is an example of a corporate foundation https://www.donaldson.com/en-us/about-us/company-information/community-involvement/

For your own education you will need to be proactive. Look into summer programming such as https://apps.carleton.edu/summer/science/ and http://www.sea.edu/voyages/High+School/all-topics/Summer+2018/all-destinations

The programs with the best financial aid review applications sooner than you would think. If you message me or post information about your year in HS, financial need, minority status, GPA, geographic region - I can send you a few options. edited to add also gender and special status such as first generation to go to college.

12

My school does not have a PTA but they have a Science honor society and biology league and I was wondering if through them I can organize fundraisers to raise up money? do you think that would work?

13

Ask them. And there are great ideas above. Explore some of them.

14

You deserve better and so do the other students in your school. Good for you for taking action. Definitely enlist the help of your bio and art teachers. Tell them you are willing to raise money and ask them to help you formulate specific goals. Donors Choose, listed above, is one way to get funding for a specific endeavor. I’ve given to teachers through them in the past. Setting up a GoFundMe page is another idea. The key is to have a specific goal, such as more clay for 20 students or a certain microscope, not just a nebulous “we need money” plea.

You should also contact your local paper and consider writing an article on how the budget cuts affect your classmates. Decades ago, I helped to get funding restored to my swim team by writing a letter to the editor of my local paper. Civic engagement works! Best of luck to you.

15

You know, at my kids’ school we pay lab fees and clay fees etc. This is a not quite title one public with a magnet program. Do you have those fees at the beginning of the year? I don’t pay much attention but we did have to pay for clay and we have lab fees for every science class with labs.

16

Please do NOTdo your own fundraising or seek funds from private organizations. These things need to be funded publicly or the public schools will never fund them again. Your school has a School Committee or Board of Education. Go to their meeting and alert the media that you will be raising the issue.

The impulse to do private fundraising for what should be provided in a public school is a big problem. If you want to take care of students coming after you, please don’t do it.