New resources will provide school leaders with a better understanding of how crowdfunding can support innovation for other strategic priorities.

RESTON, VA—Today, DonorsChoose.org, the leading non-profit crowdfunding platform in K-12 education, and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), which represents nearly 20,000 school leaders around the country, have announced a partnership to support strategic crowdfunding for schools. The two organizations are coming together to educate principals on the topic of crowdfunding, and to foster helpful collaboration between school leaders and teachers — to both encourage teacher-driven innovation, and to ensure alignment with school and district goals and initiatives.

“Most schools remain under-resourced to meet the learning goals to which students aspire, but the success of DonorsChoose.org reminds us that a well of public generosity is available for projects that are well-articulated and connected with larger goals,” said NASSP Executive Director JoAnn Bartoletti. “This NASSP-DonorsChoose.org partnership will make the most of that opportunity by connecting teachers’ and advisers’ projects to the principal’s overarching vision for the school, increasing the projects’ chances for success.”

To date, more than 80,000 public schools across the U.S. have received $750 million in funding through DonorsChoose.org.The partnership includes the creation of an online toolkit for principals to leverage DonorsChoose.org to support their school’s priorities. The principal toolkit will help to spark conversations between principals, teachers, and advisers through case studies of principals who have been creative in bringing resources into their schools.

“Teachers often find the best success when they have supportive administrators who provide encouragement, inspiration, and opportunities to align on school goals,” said Charles Best, founder, DonorsChoose.org. “We’re excited to collaborate with NASSP to help public school educators make the most of DonorsChoose.org for their school communities.”

DonorsChoose.org will also provide direct support to the schools led by the NASSP 2018 State Principals of the Year, and schools with National Honor Society or National Student Council affiliations.

About DonorsChoose.org

DonorsChoose.org is the leading platform for giving to public schools. Teachers across America use the site to create projects requesting resources their students need, and donors give to the projects that inspire them. Since its founding by a Bronx teacher in 2000, more than 3 million people and partners have given $750 million to projects reaching 30 million students. Unique among education funding platforms, the DonorsChoose.org team vets each project request and ships resources directly to the school. Every donor receives photos of their project in action, thank-yous from the classroom, and a cost report showing how every dollar was spent. DonorsChoose.org was the first charity to make the top 10 on Fast Company’s list of the Most Innovative Companies in the World. Visit www.donorschoose.org to learn more.

About NASSP

The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the leading organization of and voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and school leaders from across the United States. The association connects and engages school leaders through advocacy, research, education, and student programs. NASSP advocates on behalf of all school leaders to ensure the success of each student and strengthens school leadership practices through the design and delivery of high-quality professional learning experiences. Reflecting its long-standing commitment to student leadership development, NASSP administers the National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society, and National Student Council.