A former ARISE High School student who was in foster care returned as a humanities teacher and benefits from a caring school community. Hundreds of Oakland teachers use DonorsChoose and similar platforms to crowdfund classroom materials. Recent surveys show 93% of California teachers and 94% nationally purchased supplies with personal funds, averaging hundreds of dollars per teacher. Common crowdfunded items include dry erase boards, pencils, crayons, printer ink and storage bins. School budgets prioritize salaries and benefits, while parent groups and grants supplement materials unevenly, leaving supply funding inconsistent and subject to cuts when budgets tighten.
Aguilar-Ceja had been in the foster care system and was moved from Oakland to Concord in the middle of her high school years. But she loved the close-knit community at her small Fruitvale charter school and didn't want to change schools. Her advisor at ARISE, who lived in Pleasanton, offered to pick her up from Concord and drive her to school.
Most of the individual projects on Donors Choose aren't asking for much - dry erase boards, pencils and crayons, printer ink, storage bins. At school districts and charter schools, the bulk of spending goes to salaries and benefits. Organizations like parent associations or community groups frequently fundraise to support classroom needs inside Oakland Unified School District, and schools can apply for grants and other unrestricted funds for supplies. But those funding streams can be inconsistent, and when the budget is tight, Aguilar-Ceja said,
Collection
[
|
...
]