How I Raised Nearly $4,000 for my PE Program

Last year was my first year teaching and it was the first year for my school in a brand new building.  Needless to say there were many challenges and uncertainties facing me, but I was confident that it would be a successful year.  The first challenge I faced was the lack of a gym, and on top of that a lack of equipment.  Fortunately I was able to use a vacant classroom space, but it was no where near the size of a gym.  The equipment challenge was my main focus as I could make due with the space I was given.  For the first month or so I was able to string together lessons that focused on the main areas of a new school year without having too many problems without so much equipment.  I didn't know exactly how I was going to get new materials since there was no budget for PE, and I wasn't keen on grant writing and other avenues of fundraising.

It wasn't until about 5 or 6 weeks into the school year when I had heard about Donors Choose.  I middle school social studies teacher presented on his fundraiser for a projector and discussed the website and the basics of setting up an account.  Immediately following that meeting I set up an account, made a list of what I needed most, and created a fundraising project.  In total I needed to raise just under $1000.  I had no idea how long it would take, and I assumed it would be a while before I had anywhere near that amount of money to complete the project.  Well, within 6 days my project had been funded and my materials were ordered.  I couldn't believe it.  I had never ran a fundraiser before and really dove in head first hoping for the best, and the support I received was incredible.  People from all over were eager to help and donated money just so my students could have new equipment for PE.  Childhood friends, parents of friends, college buddies, families of the school, and total strangers had donated in support of me and my students.

Over the course of the rest of the school year I successfully funded two more projects on Donors Choose, and even got my 15 minutes of fame for doing so.  With an immense feeling of confidence in myself and with the amazing support of my administration and parents of my students, I felt that I could accomplish anything.  A short time after the first fundraiser was completed I started another project, this time aiming to raise a little over $1000 for new equipment.  I had no such luck with this project and it seemed dead in the water until about 5 days before it was going to expire.  Months had gone by without any donations, and I had only raised a few hundred dollars.  I went into a bit of a panic mode and desperation, and I took to Twitter to see if I could reach anyone.  I tweeted at all of the major news stations, professional sports teams, major corporations, pro athletes, and anyone else I felt would buy into what I was trying to accomplish.  This is when everything changed.  About 2 hours after tweeting like a mad man, a news anchor direct messaged me on Twitter asking if she could come to the school the next morning and interview me on my fundraising efforts and my PE classes.  I arranged for her to come a day later and was pretty nervous, but very excited as well.  I finally had a chance to reach a large audience to advocate for PE!!!  My interview lasted for about 10 minutes, she took some footage of me teaching a class, and the story aired that afternoon.  Within 24 hours my second fundraiser had been completed.  I received letters from total strangers two states away saying they saw me on the news and wanted to support my efforts.  I had tons of emails from people within the community asking me how they could send me money to buy more equipment.  In total I ended up with $600 in cash and checks that were either mailed in or hand delivered.  With this money I was able to buy even more equipment, and with the amazing support I was receiving I started and funded a third project in less than a week of my interview.  All said and done I raised about $3800 and gained recognition and support from families, the community, and even the state for all of the fundraising efforts I had made.  It felt great to be able to make such a positive impact on my school and provide for my students.

I am going to let you in on some of my secrets, and give you essential tips to successfully funding your Donors Choose project.

1. Know exactly what you are trying to raise money for.  It's easy to say "It would be great to have an extra $1000 for new equipment", but you must know what exactly your areas of challenge are, and create a list of needs to strengthen that area.  Once you have an idea of what you need, you can make a list of equipment and start setting up your project.
2. Tell your story. When you are setting up your fundraiser on Donors Choose you have to write about what you are funding, why you need it, and how it will impact your students.  Take advantage of every single character they give you to write with.  You must make your cause seem like something people can get behind, and something that they would be proud to say they helped bring to life.  
3. Social Media is your best friend.  Post the link to your Facebook and Twitter, and email it to everyone in your contacts list.  Write up a short description of your fundraiser, and let them know that no donation is too small.  Be sure to ask them to share the link and spread the word as well.  At the very least someone can pass along info on your behalf if they are unable to donate any money at the time.
4. The first 7 days are critical.  In the first week of your project Donors Choose will match any donation up to $100.  Once your project goes live they will email you a notification and send you a code that donors can type in to have their money matched. That means if someone donates $100, Donors Choose will also donate $100.  If someone donates $10, Donors Choose will also donate $10.  In the blink of an eye your donations can double and before you know your project will be funded.  This only works if someone enters the code when they donate.  If someone forgets to enter the code even if they donate within the first week, their money will not be matched, so be sure to make your code highly visible.
5. Create and maintain communication with families.  The majority of my donations came from the families of my students.  I received donations from parents, aunts and uncles, and grandparents.  Become a positive part of that family's life.  You are already a superstar in the eyes of your students, and communicating with parents about what is happening in their child's life at school and in your class will add support to your program.  Every parent wants to know their child is in a positive, educational, and successful environment, and they will only know that if you make it one.  

Those are my top 5 tips.  Your story will be unique, and they way you raise funds may be unique as well, but following those 5 tips will put in a position to be successful.  There are many other ways to raise money for your school and for your PE program, but for me Donors Choose has been my go-to.  

Overcoming Adversity

I am a short four weeks away from starting up the 2015-2016 school year.  This is very exciting, and terrifying at the same time.  Last year my PE space was the 8th grade classrooms, however there will be an 8th grade class for this coming year so that space is unavailable.  There is no other large open space inside of the school that is suitable for PE.  Last year I was teaching K-7, and this coming year I will have K-5.

To overcome this adversity I was presented with a great opportunity by a local Boy's and Girl's club.  They offered to allow the school to use their gym facilities and outdoor field space for all PE classes, and for the athletics program.  They also have transportation for the school, which is great because the school currently does not have any transportation services.  The major problem with this situation is the budget,  If I had PE every single day at the gym, the school would need to budget close to $30,000.00 for transportation costs, and that is not option.  I have been given a budget that is much lower than that.  My administration has offered the suggestion of only using the gym during the coldest winter months (January and February), and having all other PE classes outdoors, or in a large open gathering space in the school.  This plan has potential to work, however the gathering space is open on either side directly into 7th grade and 2nd and 3rd grade classes, and the noise level would be immense.  I could use the outdoor space, however if it rains that will cause a big issue.

I feel stuck in this situation.  I have a great opportunity to partner with the community, but I don't have the funding to fully take advantage of the opportunity.  This scenario limits the PE time with my students, and worries me that I won't fully be able to teach to the maximum of my abilities.  I am feeling that I will be teaching to the space constraints and won't have the space to be as creative as I typically could be with a full gym, or even with an independent, consistent PE space.

At this point my plan is to go through my curriculum and decide which units have got to be taught in the gym, which units can be taught outside, and which units fit best in the gathering space.  The plan is to only utilize the gym for a period of time that will cover the gym units, and the rest will be done outside or in the gathering space.  I am very concerned about weather problems since I don't have a space to fall back on that is indoors when it is raining.

I know this experience will force me to grow as a teacher and I will have to be extremely creative in how I approach my classes.  There will definitely be some difficult obstacles to overcome, however I am confident I will be able to overcome these obstacles.  I am sure I will be posting updates as this will be a one-of-a-kind year for me. Any tips or advice are greatly welcomed!!

My First Year Experience

This year has been absolutely incredible.  This was my first year as a full-time teacher with my own classes, and it has been exciting, challenging, exhilarating, exhausting, and everything in between.  

I had the privilege of starting a PE program from the ground up at my school.  I work at a brand new charter school in Charlotte, NC, and this is the second year in existence.  Last year PE was taught through a nearby organization, and this year everything fell on my shoulders.  I must say, when I first learned that I would essentially have free reign over the program I was extremely excited and had so many ideas and different goals that I wanted to achieve for the school.  After all of the excitement had settled and I took a good look at the situation, I was terrified.  I was going to be a brand new teacher, at a brand new school, and the expectation from the rest of the teachers, and especially the parents of the students was extremely high.  I knew I needed to make an impact, and I had no doubt in my mind that I was capable of doing so, but the task would not be easy.  I set many goals for myself, my students, and the school.  I knew going in, that many of the students had never experienced a quality PE program.  My challenge was to teach quality PE to just under 600 students in grades K-7, all by myself, for 185 school days.  Overwhelmed doesn't even come close to how I felt.  

The first challenge I had to tackle was organizing the existing equipment to see what I had available.  There wasn't much.  I had a few frisbees, some beat up hula hoops, a parachute, some basketballs, a few footballs, an OMNIKIN ball with no bladder, some whiffle balls and some foam baseball bats.  That pretty much encompassed my entire equipment stock. There wasn't even a ball pump on hand.  I had my work cut out for me.  In addition to a low supply of equipment, I had a unique teaching environment to use.  The school was built to house grades K-8, and since it is only K-7 now, I was given an 8th grade classroom to use for an indoor space.  This space is roughly 800 square feet with a 10 foot ceiling.  Options are limited in the space, but it is not impossible to work with.  Creativity was a must for this school year.  The outdoor space is a public park that doesn't get many visitors and has a baseball field with a large grass field beyond the baseball diamond.  The park is about a 5 minute walk from school right next to campus, which isn't terrible.  On the plus side, the school doesn't have to worry about maintaining the field at all since it is a public park. The major thing that I was, and still am missing, is basketball hoops.  In an urban setting, not having basketball hoops is like showing up to the plate with no bat in your hands.  The students have asked me every single day since the first day of school where the hoops are, and when are we getting them.  Despite this challenge it really has not affected the PE program negatively, and the students have learned many new games they had never experienced before.  

Since equipment was minimal I found myself getting through my first two units pretty well, but as I planned for the future it became harder and harder to come up with ways to modify games and equipment for all of the units K-7.  I needed an "ah-ha" moment, and I got one right when I needed it.  At a staff meeting one week early in the school year another teacher spoke about how he had raised money to get a projector for his classroom using Donors Choose, and it only took a few weeks to raise the funds.  I knew this was my way to raise money for new equipment, so I went home that afternoon and made an account, and then made a fundraising project.  With support of my administration and other teachers spreading the word, I raised just over a $1000 dollars within 6 days of the fundraiser going live.  I was able to bring in some much needed equipment.  I have been extremely fortunate and successful using Donors Choose, and I have started and completed 3 fundraising projects, totaling just under $4000 raised for new equipment.  I highly recommend Donors Choose.

Another goal of mine was to provide opportunities for the students, their families, and the staff to come together and enjoy being connected through school.  Fortunately I work in a city that has two professional sports teams, and those sports are a huge part of the community and love working with schools.  I was contacted by the Charlotte Hornets and asked to host a school night at a Hornets game.  My administration was all for it, so I went ahead and planned it out.  I met with a representative from the Hornets, picked a date, and sent out the info to families and staff.  I ended up bringing over 600 people to the game ranging from staff, students, families, and friends.  Organizing this was not easy but it was an incredible experience.  The students were able to go on the court during pregame ceremonies, and we were all allowed to shoot a free throw after the game.  I totally drained mine and can now say I have made a basket in front on Michael Jordan, who was watching from his owner's box! This event was my pride and joy, and made my mark.  In addition to this event, I have taken students on a golf field trip, assisted in bringing NFL Play 60 to the school, and I took a select few to the CIAA to learn about college opportunities and we also watched part of a college basketball game.  Overall I believe I have made a big impact on the school and the students, and I have met my goal.

Most recently, I just had an amazing opportunity presented to the school.  A local boys and girls club offered to allow the school to use their gym and facilities for the athletics program and PE classes.  This is beyond amazing.  They want to put the school logo on their gym floor, provide transportation, and essentially partner with the school to make their facility ours for using whenever we need.  This fills a major need, especially going into next school year when there is a lack of indoor PE space.  We will also have 7th and 8th grade sports to start up next year, and the boys and girls club facilities will allow us to have those options available to the students.  I have incredible adminstrative support and we plan on taking full advantage of this opportunity.

Overall this year has been absolutely incredible.  I can honestly say that I know the first and last name of every single student in the school, and most of their parents.  I have formed great relationships with colleagues, become a strong liaison between the school and parent committees, and I have kept expectations high for by myself and my students.  I have failed, grown, succeeded, and accomplished goals.  With all of the struggles of a first year teacher, the struggles of a brand new school, and the workload of teaching so many students every single week, I have exceeded my own expectations, and I cannot wait to start fresh next school year!