Teachers in Ohio often spend their own money to outfit classrooms. As costs rise and budgets shrink, many teachers have turned to online fundraising, or crowdfunding, attracting outside support for education.
The popular DonorsChoose.org crowdfunding website, for example, has raised funds for more than a million projects since 2000 and currently hosts more than 2,000 initiatives for Ohio alone.
A new report from the Ohio Auditor's office, however, recommends school districts adopt policies that regulate the online fundraising.
Today on All Sides we discuss the growth of crowdsourcing for classroom supplies and how to do so with caution.
Guests:
- Robert Hinkle, deputy auditor for the Ohio Auditor’s Office
- Kirk Smiley, principal director of advocacy and public partnerships, DonorsChoose.org
- Rachel Concitis, third grade teacher at Winterset Elementary School in Columbus
- Jeff McCuen, treasurer, Worthington City Schools