Two Ways to Support Teachers’ Summer Professional Learning – Digital Promise

Two Ways to Support Teachers’ Summer Professional Learning

April 17, 2018 | By

As a former teacher, I know how precious (and short!) the summer break is, and that it’s also a great time to engage with colleagues in professional learning experiences not available during the school year. With our Digital Promise Challenge Institute coming in 2019, we thought it might be helpful to suggest leveraging online funding platforms to support this or other incredible learning opportunities you might have your eye on. Both of these platforms will help you fund your registration fees, hotels, and even travel to directly benefit you and your students while minimizing your out-of-pocket expenses.

1. DonorsChoose.org – A platform only for teachers that has a strong network of donors.

On DonorsChoose.org, more than 75 percent of teachers reach their funding goal. This is achieved by tapping into your own personal networks and the strong network already in place of donors and corporate partners who are looking to support teachers. Just last month, Ripple gave a donation of $29M funding all open projects on the platform!

When you add your request, you can include for your conference registration fee, as well as up to $30 per day for food, up to $100 per day for lodging, and up to $150 per project for transportation.

DonorsChoose.org will even pay your conference fee directly so you do not have to wait for reimbursement.

2. GoFundMe – A broader crowdfunding platform that leverages the strength of your personal network and social media.

On GoFundMe, you can easily use social media to share your “campaign” far and wide. You can also create your fund request as a team, which extends your reach to include your team mate’s connections. For the Digital Promise Challenge Institute you can register as a team to work on relevant and shared challenges.

And, even If you do not reach your full goal, you can still use the amount you were able to raise towards your summer learning.

Both of these platforms offer guides and support to help you create a successful campaign. If you want to attend the Digital Promise Challenge Institute in 2019, we have put together a sample outline for your narrative. Good luck with all of your summer professional learning endeavors!

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