Naomi M. (00:00) Have you always wanted to write a grant to gather STEM supplies but are not sure where to get started? What is the process? What should you say? And how do you even get the materials? Today I am talking with Brittany Walker, who is the Senior Community Engagement associate at DonorsChoose, and she is giving you all the insight to answer all of your questions. In this episode, we discuss what DonorsChoose is and how to get started, types of project ideas, and tips to be successful when writing a grant through their platform. Speaking from experience, if you haven't used DonorsChoose before, this is an excellent resource to use as a teacher when it comes to gathering supplies for your classroom. You're really going to love this episode and all of the helpful tips, and I can't wait for you to listen. Well, thank you so much, Brittany, for being here today. I am so excited to have you, and I know that, , our teacher audience will be really happy to hear from you too. So, <laugh>, it's funny cause you have a really interesting background in teaching, and, I'm happy and excited to hear about that. So if you wouldn't mind telling us more about yourself, your background, and then what your role is at DonorsChoose.

 

Brittany W. (00:57) Of course. So I'm so excited to be here today. First of all, I am a former educator. I actually taught science for about five years in Washington, DC. I taught at the elementary level, so grades one through four. I wore a few different hats during my time in education, as many teachers often do. I actually started as a resident teacher, you know, like learning how to do the real thing. <laugh> Yes. And shadowing others. , and that was with first grade. And then, I went on to teach science for the rest of the elementary grades. Also helped to develop some science curriculum, and led our school science club as well as like our, we had a YouTube channel and a, a whole bunch of things and that was one of my favorite roles for me cause it fostered like a real love and excitement for community engagement, and creating educational programming. And so I've been so fortunate to transition into my role at DonorChoose where I am the community engagement lead, , pie living, building, and managing initiatives, , building a community amongst our teachers and donors. So it's, it's a huge one. , get to do what I love. So yeah.

Naomi M. (1:07) <laugh> That is so cool. Like your background. And it's perfect for this podcast because we even have some science teachers who listen in the elementary space. So similar roles as you, a lot of STEM teachers in elementary, and even a lot of classroom teachers who are interested in implementing STEM. So I'm really excited to talk with you and, yeah, this is like perfect how this all works out because you're like the perfect audience. Like you're like, like our audience with your background.

Brittany W. (2:04) – I've lived it.

Naomi M (2:04) – Yeah. Yeah. So you know, you know how it goes. , so with that in mind, so you work at DonorsChoose. Yes. And for people who haven't heard of DonorsChoose, what is it, and how does it actually work? Because I've used it, and I love it, and it's super user-friendly. , but for teachers who haven't, what is the whole point of it?

Brittany W. (00:02:28) – Absolutely. So DonorsChoose is really the leading way to give to public schools. About four out of five public schools across the US have a teacher who has posted a project on DonorsChoose. What we do is make it easy for any public school teacher in need to request the materials and tools they need in order to really transform their students' learning experience and have a great education. We've been around since the year 2000, and our donors and partners have contributed about 1.4 billion to support 2.5 million teacher requests. It's been a huge help for many teachers. What they do is they use our platform to request classroom resources. Donors who feel inspired to give to certain projects or support a certain resource type are able to search the site and directly support that teacher. Each request is vetted by our DonorsChoose team, and we ship the funded materials directly to the teacher's school.

Naomi M. (00:03:31) – It is such an awesome resource, and I used it. I heard about it when I was student teaching. So at the time of this recording, what I don't know, 13, 14 years ago. So I heard about it then. And then I know for even just my experience, like checking in and like putting a request, it's really improved and really grown. And I know, like the materials that you can request, especially when it comes to STEM, there are so many different partnerships that you guys have when it comes to materials. And I love how you do all the work when it comes to ordering and then delivering it to us. And there are some really cool ideas out there, and it's literally a template, right? Like you just put in what you want.

Brittany W. (00:04:13) – Definitely. So, teachers, they're able to request the exact amount of the amount of materials, the exact materials that they want. We partner with certain vendors in order to get the materials that they need. And once they select the materials, they also like to describe the need for the materials in the form of a short essay. And yeah, the process pretty much takes them straight through once, once their request is screened and, and their project is live and other donors and even like their family or friends, whoever would like to can give. We also provide teachers with templates, email templates, and graphics for social media or, just to share within their network so that their community knows about, what they're fundraising for.

Naomi M. (00:05:00) – Oh yeah. I love that cuz I think as a teacher, it can, and you probably have this experience, it can be overwhelming thinking, how am I going to write a grant? What do I even say? What do they want? Where do I even go to do a grant? There are opportunities out there. So I love how it's super user-friendly, and the templates are really nice cuz we're busy teachers. <laugh>

Brittany W. (00:05:23) – Definitely,

Naomi M. (00:05:24) – We dunno what to do. So <laugh>, it's super streamlined. And when it comes to projects, have you seen any certain ones that have been great when it comes to STEM or things that have gotten funded over the years?

Brittany W. (00:05:37) – Yes. , one, for example, we have a teacher, Mrs. Dixon, at Woodmore Elementary School, she hosted a STEM Family Fun night, and she was able to request materials for various stations such as DNA extractions. They were able to extract DNA from the strawberries. Also, kaleidoscope making, slime creation, building circuits, and balloon race cars. , and that was just for one project to support 200 students. We have, for another example, Mrs. Coates at Rustic Lane Elementary School requested programmable handheld game consoles that her students could use, with Microsoft Make code. And her students were able to really take advantage of that video game technology and be active creators of it. , and it can go from the small things like Lego blocks and magnet tiles to big things like Makerspaces and helping all of the hands-on activities that our STEM teachers love to do and get their students involved in.

Naomi M. (00:06:45) – I love that, but I would never have thought of writing a grant when it comes to community engagement when it comes to a family night. That is a really creative and great idea when you're thinking maybe you are a teacher who actually has what they need in their classroom, which you probably don't, but maybe you have a pretty well-stocked room. So that's a really cool way to utilize donors, choose to have some just more unique projects when families are coming in. I love that idea.

Brittany W. (00:07:15) – Absolutely. And what we've seen on our site is that our teachers, really think outside of the box to get these materials ready for their students. And, even if, as you said, even if their classrooms are well stopped, then they're thinking more out of the box on how to, like, create these engaging, diverse learning experiences, with new products that they may not have had a chance to do or have had access to before.

Naomi M. (00:07:40) – Oh, absolutely. And I love even that video game when you're talking about, I was talking to another STEM teacher, we were talking about just grant writing in general, and she's in a similar role like me, we've had our classes for about five years, and when you first get started, you probably saw this too when you were teaching science, when you first start, the kids like you kind of can do the same thing with a lot of the kids because they might not have used a tool before, but then as you get going over the years, they need more of a challenge, and you might have to be getting materials that are just at a higher level or just different, or it needs updates because the kids' skill levels haven't increased, which is awesome. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. So that's a really great way to extend like differentiation opportunities too.

Brittany W. (00:08:25) – Absolutely. And what we see is that many teachers write that into their stories when they're requesting items so that potential donors can, can see like exactly how they're supporting their students by providing those differentiated learning materials. And it's, it's like a win-win for, for everyone.

Naomi M. (00:08:42) – Oh, that's a really good idea when it comes. Yeah. I've never thought about that, either. Say, I'm so glad that you're here because <laugh>, you, you see a lot of these projects come through <laugh>. , so when it comes to those projects, when writing a grant, so you guys have the templates, you have examples, but do you have some recommendation with, when it comes to ensuring that a project will get funded and just the way you should word things and be very specific, what are some things that teachers should keep in mind?

Brittany W. (00:09:11) – Absolutely. We found that while it is easy to post a DonorsChoose project, we like to provide teachers with the best tools for success that they can have so that as soon as a donor sees their project, they feel moved to support it. And we really recommend four things. One is to be specific. The more specific in detail you can be with your request, the clearer it is to that donor, what it is you're looking forward to really enrich your students learning. Second, we ask, you to tell a story, and put us into your classroom. Describe why and how the project will help your class and how it will feel for your students to experience these resources, maybe even what it may look like in your classroom. , thirdly, we ask that you let your students shine <laugh>. They're the beneficiaries of these materials. And so when writing about your students and your DonorsChoose project, really focus on their interests, strengths, and dreams, not just their struggles.

Brittany W. (00:10:11) Ask yourself if your students and their parents will feel proud of themselves after reading your DonorsChoose project. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And lastly, be strategic with your project. Smaller requests are more likely to get funded quickly. We like to say that within the range of anything, , projects under $200 have a 90% chance of being funded quickly, while projects over a thousand dollars are funded only about 43% of the time. So as a teacher, you can just ask yourself, are there some ways I can lower the cost of my projects or maybe like break a project up into two or three different projects so that, when donors look at it, they are more, more pulled to maybe even like finish the project off and you know, cover the whole bid or, you know, just breaking it down and making it smaller.

Naomi M. (00:11:03) – That's really good advice, just seeing those trends on there because I think a lot of us when we're writing a grant or new materials like I need a thousand dollars right off the bat. And then you put like all the things like Lego bricks, magnet tiles, glue, and crayons. Like, so that's really smart, just breaking it apart and making it more tangible.

Brittany W. (00:11:24) – Definitely. And we see teachers being really creative with that. Just for example, back to the examples of the STEM project, they're teachers are able to like title their project, and if I'm a donor and I'm seeing something like a STEM family fun night, I'm like, Ooh, what is that? You know? So teachers really also really think out of the box on the titles and how to, , really off the bat engage donors and get them interested in their stories.

Naomi M. (00:11:52) – Oh, totally. Do you feel like STEM projects, in particular with outside donors, do STEM projects, do you feel like get funded faster or does it not really matter from what you've seen?

Brittany W. (00:12:04) – I haven't really noticed any difference, specifically for, say, STEM versus any other subject. I think it may go down to again, like, the size of the project as well as the storytelling bit and uh, yeah, if a donor more, more able to, to really like put themselves in that classroom and, and really can, can see the need for the materials. I think I think any project, uh, with a great story, engages donors all the same.

Naomi M. (00:12:37) – That's a really good story. There's so much impact in storytelling. We love stories <laugh>

Brittany W. (00:12:43) – And, I also will say I think every donor is everyone who wants to give to a classroom in need is so different. And so you may have, former science teachers who really like us, love STEM and science, have a passion for STEM and they may seek out those projects. Donors do have the freedom of selecting their resource type and subject area. So, we do see a lot of that as well.

Naomi M. (00:13:10) – Oh, that's so cool. I actually donate myself. I actually look for, STEM classrooms that I'll

Brittany W. (00:13:16) – Really

Naomi M. (00:13:16) – Back to. Yeah. Every quarter I'll go look and find some STEM projects and use some of my business funds to help other STEM teachers out there. Awesome.

Brittany W. (00:13:25) – That is so, so beautiful. Yeah.

Naomi M. (00:13:28), so when you had the projects on there, is there a certain timeframe that they have to get funded or, also, how long do projects typically get funded? I don't know if that's the same or different when it comes to DonorsChoose.

Brittany W. (00:13:42) – Sure. I think it can take anywhere from, I've seen projects funded in as little as a day, and teachers will come into the community and say, oh my gosh, I just, the this, my project just got approved yesterday after, you know, being vetted by our team. And today is, you know, I got my rocket. That's my celebratory email we sent to them. , I would say anywhere from as soon as the project goes live to two weeks, there's no, specific timeframe on, that teachers or deadline that teachers have to get their project funded. , yeah, they can, they can keep it up for as long as they need to. Ok, that's cool. Or keep requesting the items for as long as they need them.

Naomi M. (00:14:23) – Does it change for summertime at all or when it comes to long winter breaks? Are there any parameters around that since we might not be around during the summer to get things delivered? Or how does that work?

Brittany W. (00:14:34) – There is, with our customer support team, we do, I believe there may be a, a slight pause in shipping certain items, but that's not to also say the teachers can't order them. Uh, it just takes maybe one extra step to coordinate the teacher in their school on getting those, making sure that those materials are delivered safely.

Naomi M. (00:14:55) – Oh, okay. So they could just still write the project. It could still get funded. Absolutely. And then, when the school year starts, the supplies can get delivered at that time?

Brittany W. (00:15:04) – Absolutely. It's, it's year-round. Oh cool. Year-round operation when getting those, uh, materials delivered to their classrooms.

Naomi M. (00:15:11) – So that's good to know because I feel like it sometimes could just feel overwhelming. I don't, I wanna write a grant, I just don't have the time Right now, it's the end of the school year. So some teachers might sit down and write it out over the summer, get it approved, and then hopefully it gets funded and then they can get the supplies mm-hmm. <affirmative> like a month or so later, which that's good.

Brittany W. (00:15:29) – Definitely. And what we've also seen is teachers are starting may start now, like in March, thinking about the beginning of next year, and they may start writing projects, so that they can already have those materials in their classroom when they open that door too, to the new school year. Some teachers are our, I will say again, our teachers are very crafty, they're very strategic when it comes to getting the materials they need for their students. So, , yeah, they, they make sure that they have what they need, and we work again all year round to make sure that their items are delivered and in a timely manner to their schools.

Naomi M. (00:16:04) – That's so good. And I, I can tell, I mean, they obviously hire teachers, you are a teacher, but, you guys are very teacher and student focused and just really trying to make the process easy because, like we said, it's hard to get materials and just knowing what to get, how to order it, just where does the money, like all that stuff is just mm-hmm. <affirmative> so nice how everything is laid out on there and just, it makes it like, takes so much stress away because, I mean, it's funny cuz us as teachers, we don't usually go to college like, oh, I'm gonna learn how to write grants. Like that's not something that <laugh> you really know how to do. It's not something you ever thought you would have to do. Especially with STEM materials, it can get expensive, and if, when you teach all the kids, it's a lot of materials. Like what I need for kindergarten is so different than what I needed in fifth grade.

Brittany W. (00:16:53) – Oh, absolutely. Definitely. Yeah. Yeah. We definitely do serve the elementary, middle, and high schools. We want it to be a space where no matter the age or grade level, teachers can, you know, request whatever materials that they need. And again, as you said, we really try to take the work out of it for them, so that, , they're not spending hours writing up a project, and they can focus on more. So telling their story and tell the story of how amazing or how transformed their classroom is about to be with these projects. I will say one example is, and I just love, we've been having like a lot of science, a lot of STEM, , examples Oh good. Mainly come through in our teacher Facebook community. , one teacher, , just shared how she's doing a unit on animals and or on animals and they are hatching chickens. Oh

Naomi M. (00:17:49) – Yeah.

Brittany W. (00:17:50) – And she showed, she shared the pictures of the, the students in her classroom, you know, playing with the, the, the, the newly hatched chickens. We could see them taking notes in their science journals. So we, yeah, we wanted to get to that with, with the teachers. We wanna be able to celebrate their rockets and make, , the heavy lifting of the grant writing. , not as time extensive.

Naomi M. (00:18:12) – I love that. That's a great grant. I did, uh, chickens when I taught third grade, and that is a great project if you're allowed to have animals in your building. Didn't

Brittany W. (00:18:21) – Didn’t know it was a thing. <laugh>.

Naomi M. (00:18:22) – Yeah, it is. So, they're so cute and soft. They're like the softest little things. <laugh>.

Brittany W. (00:18:31) – Oh my gosh, now I need to experience this at least once.

Naomi M. (00:18:34) – <laugh>. Oh, it's so cute. And what, this is pretty naive of me, but I guess the reason why there are different colored eggs, it's different breeds of chickens and so when they're born, Oh yeah, right. It's not like how healthier, it's just a different breed. <laugh> <laugh>. But when they're born, they hatch out, and then they try to give you different colors of different breeds of chicken, so they hatch in their different colors and it's so cute. <laugh>.

Brittany W. (00:19:01) – Oh, mg uh, okay. I need to do a YouTube bath.

Naomi M. (00:19:05) – <laugh>. Yes. They're so cute. They're cute as little things <laugh>. Uh, yeah. The great project, though. , so when it comes to anything else, is there anything that I'm missing or any other things you wanna tell teachers when it comes to, , DonorsChoose, or anything else that I didn't get to?

Brittany W. (00:19:24) – Absolutely. We are gearing up for our Teacher Appreciation Week. It's always a huge thing at DonorsChoose. , which this year it falls from May 8th to the 12th. It's one of the biggest times of the school year for donations to school projects. We're hoping to help teachers fund up to 10 million on DonorsChoose projects that week. Wow. Right. Huge goal. But I know we're gonna get it done, and teachers can sign up for a DonorsChoose account, join the community and follow us on social media to get the latest about funding opportunities during Teacher Appreciation Week. And just to give some more insight on our teacher Facebook community, we do have a, it is called DonorsChoose Teachers Community, and we have about 30,000 teachers who are in the community. They share tons of tips for project funding and project creation, and they share important updates like the chicken hatching and <laugh>, like the family fun nights, and just the awesome activities and projects that they do with their classroom. We get to see the materials that they got funded through DonorsChoose in real life and, it's an amazing community.

Naomi M. (00:20:38) – Oh, I love that. I'm gonna link all of this in the show notes and this will definitely be playing thank, you before teacher appreciation. So that's really good to hear. And that's just really cool how you guys are just trying even outside the grants, just building a community and giving that inspiration and just seeing, that's the whole thing we love about teaching is like, what is the outcome of this and the story and how is this impacting our students? And, that's really cool that you guys get to play a role with that and really make like just really powerful experiences happen and, just really cool activities.

Brittany W. (00:21:12) – Yes. And one more thing, this summer, we always encourage teachers, again, as I said before, to get a headstart for the next school year. Most of our DonorsChoose teachers will start posting the resources they need for the 2023 –  2024 school year as early as June or July. So we recommend that as the year starts coming to a close, start thinking about some of those projects, head of the mind before the school year closes out, just as a, a friendly reminder.

Naomi M. (00:21:40) – Oh no, that's perfect. We need all those reminders <laugh>. We do, we do <laugh>. No, I love that. Well, I appreciate you so much and all of your knowledge and just explaining the background of that, of DonorsChooseand how, , you and your team helped support us in the classroom and just making it just sound very easy and it is like based on experience, it's very easy to do. Yay.

Brittany W. (00:22:05) – Love that you have that experience.

Naomi M. (00:22:07) – Yes, it's very easy and just, it's actually kind of fun too. And, just a great way to get started, especially if you've never written a grant or even if you have mm-hmm. <affirmative> just getting better at that writing piece, and Yeah. , telling that story. And again, of course, getting those awesome projects in your classroom. So thank you so much for your time today. Definitely.

Brittany W. (00:22:27) – Thank you for having me, <laugh>.

Naomi M. (00:22:29) – Awesome. Well, we will post everything, and I'm sure you're gonna see a lot more projects coming your way. More STEM projects soon.

Brittany W. (00:22:36) – Yes. Bring them on. Bring them on. <laugh>.

Naomi M. (00:22:39) – Well, thank you again, Brittany.

Brittany W. (00:22:41) – Thank you.