DonorsChoose: Weighing In

If you'd prefer a more positive approach to fundraising, here's another post to highlight a specific project, one of many that are asking for funding to meet depressingly basic needs. In this case, the proposal is titled "Weighing In", which is pretty accurate:

Our 7th & 8th graders from our classes in Buffalo, NY are in need of scales to develop their measurement skills in science.

My project needs 3 Triple Beam Balances.

This is a high-poverty district (80% qualify for free lunch), and they're looking for $420 to buy scales for a science lab. You wouldn't think they'd need to go begging for something that basic, but that's where things are these days.

They're $292 short of the goal. If you're interested in supporting really basic science education, think about sending them some money. Or choose one of the many other fine proposals in my challenge entry.

More like this

tags: DonorsChoose2008, education, public school education, fund raising, evolution education, nature education, bird education Today is a special day because today is the first day of my DonorsChoose Challenge. DonorsChoose is a fund-raising campaign where the public can help classrooms…
tags: DonorsChoose, science education, teaching, fund-raising, poverty How many of you are Harry Potter fans, or know someone who is? How about all those millions of kids in the United States who are crazy about Harry Potter and his amazing owl, Hedwig? So don't you think this makes owls a…
We got off to a strong start in the Sciencewomen Reader Challenge 2008. In the first 48 hours, we attracted 9 donors who gave a total of almost $400 to our DonorsChoose projects that fund impoverished public school science classrooms. And then we plateaued and our ticker hasn't budged a milimeter…
I can't begin to thank the people who have donated to the DonorsChoose campaign enough. As of today - four days into the campaign - we've raised $1045. That's more than was contributed during all of last year's 15-day campaign. That's absolutely fantastic. As of now, all four of the projects…

Government surplus.
sciplus.com, etc.
Mechanical postal scales.

Do you want product or do you want process? A highly ranked university went to electronic thermometers ostensibly to avoid mercury hazards. In truth, its average undergrad could not make sense of analog scales.

Rather than foster brilliance, we allocate for its suppression. Charity for the undeserving!