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Boycott Reddit Gifts for Teachers + DonorsChoose (self.Teachers)

PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10 が 投稿 - announcement

My comment in the announcement thread got a lot of upvotes, so I thought it would be worth it to attempt getting a sticky thread made. Here's my list of reasons why this year's Reddit Gifts for Teachers should be boycotted. Feel free to add comments and I'll edit this post to reflect them.

Summary of events has been added to the end of the post.

  1. Recipients are members of DonorsChoose, not necessarily reddit. The pool of teachers donors can choose to support is selected from all DonorsChoose projects, even ones that were made prior to the start of Reddit Gifts for Teachers 2016.

  2. For teachers on reddit who wish to benefit from this, they need to make a new project. This is very time-consuming, as it takes a lot of effort to create a project page. DonorsChoose also has to approve it, which can take over a week. Some districts, as teacher /u/TheNightWitch points out, requires their employees to submit project approvals to THEM, which can take additional weeks, effectively prohibiting them from participating. As /u/i_love_your_pancake points out, some US public school districts will not allow their teachers to participate in DonorsChoose at all.

  3. No teachers outside the United States may participate, per DonorsChoose rules.

  4. This event is advertised as a reddit event, but redditors who would donate are not (in my opinion) adequately informed that their donations will not support other redditors.

  5. Donors can no longer go shopping for needed supplies. Instead, they just give money to DonorsChoose projects. This makes Reddit Gifts more like Reddit Giftcards.

  6. The organizers have stated that running the event as they have in the past was too difficult, hence their partnership with DonorsChoose. This decision seems to eliminate any work on their part, as their role is just linking to a poorly organized DonorsChoose page with no oversight regarding whom redditors are helping.

  7. Teachers who receive items through DonorsChoose do not own the items. So, hypothetically, if a teacher gets a project funded this year, then changes schools next year, she cannot take the donated items with her because they belong to the school, per DonorsChoose rules.

  8. As /u/ClutchDude points out, DonorsChoose takes a cut of all funded projects. This equals to about a minimum of $30. So most requests on DonorsChoose trend toward expensive grant-like requests (iPads, Chromebooks, field trips, etc.) and away from essentials (paper, colored pencils, etc.).

  9. Piggybacking on #8, /u/north49er suggests there might be a kickback from DonorsChoose to reddit since reddit's involvement in this will result in revenue for DonorsChoose. I want to be clear that there is no evidence of a kickback, but this observation highlights a conflict of interest: Does Reddit Gifts serve redditors or DonorsChoose? The admins and mods should be overly transparent in advertising on reddit that the donations for this will almost certainly not go to fellow redditors.

  10. DonorsChoose doesn't allow private school teachers to participate, so not even all teachers in the US are served.

  11. http://i.imgur.com/5MkPvpk.jpg

  12. /u/jgdye points out that if a redditor donates to a project that does not complete its funding, DonorsChoose may redirect the money to another project not approved by the redditor.

  13. This one is a bit selfish on our end here at /r/teachers, but this partnership with DonorsChoose is going to cause our subreddit to be flooded with spam from non-redditors seeking to use reddit to fund their projects: 1, 2

  14. /u/Angry_helper points out another unfortunate fact about DonorsChoose: part-time teachers are ineligible. Link to DonorsChoose eligibility page here.

SUMMARY: Admin /u/bluepinkblack explains here that drastic changes were made to the traditional format of Reddit Gifts for Teachers because the task of verifying each teacher was too much. This year they have "partnered" with DonorsChoose, and the official event page links to a special Reddit page on DonorsChoose where redditors can donate to teachers. Unlike in the past, however, none of the teachers redditors can donate to are necessarily members of reddit themselves. Redditors are merely be redirected to DonorsChoose and asked to donate to teachers outside our community all while being led to believe that redditors will be helping redditors. /r/secretsanta mod /u/TheOpus has explained multiple times that redditors who really care about helping other redditors can find people posting links to their DonorsChoose page over at the official announcement thread. However, like the blog announcement thread, it is filled with hundreds of people expressing disappointment at how things are being run this year. While there are people posting links to their DonorsChoose pages, there is no organization at all...it's a free-for-all of begging for the attention of donors.

I guess I should add that there's no need to be shitty to the people involved in organizing this event. We can communicate that it's a horrible decision without berating them.

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トップ新着論争中古い順Q&A

[–]jgdye 79ポイント80ポイント  (19子コメント)

As a teacher who has taken part in both Reddit Gifts and DonorsChoose, I'm very disappointed to see this change. DonorsChoose is a lot of work and, if your project does not get funded before the expiration date, the funds may be redirected to other projects. I love both programs but I've typically used DonorsChoose for larger projects and appreciated the support from Reddit for the everyday kinds of materials many of my children just don't have.

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 27ポイント28ポイント  (4子コメント)

the funds may be redirected to other projects

I wasn't aware of this. Did some research, and you're right.

[–]Zelexis 9ポイント10ポイント  (2子コメント)

That's messed up! WTF the teachers could really use even partial money no doubt!

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 15ポイント16ポイント  (1子コメント)

It's necessary for the business model. It's not done out of cruelty. But it also does not jive with Reddit Gifts for Teachers.

[–]Zelexis 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

Goes against the tenets of Reddit Gifts IMO and if they have those practices it makes the alignment all the more sour...

[–]oldentired14 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

From Donors Choose website - "If a project expires without reaching full funding, we email each donor so they can decide what happens next. We return the donation to the donor's account as credits, and donors can pick a new project to support or send a DonorsChoose.org gift card to the same teacher for his/her next project.

We send these emails the day after a project expires, and donors have 30 days to choose an option. If no action is taken in that time we'll apply the funds to an urgent project in need or send that donation back to the teacher! This way, you can rest assured that your donations will end up in a classroom in need."

[–]Princess_Buttercups 12ポイント13ポイント  (11子コメント)

Yes! Creating a project is time consuming! Plus you have to make your request interesting and justify what you are asking for. Last year I asked for stickers and other little reward type items that add up when buying them out of your own pocket. I'm not going to create a project for those kind of items.

[–]Teacher1993HS Chemistry 3ポイント4ポイント  (10子コメント)

I'm in the same boat, I'm a first year teacher with basically none of little essential things like pencils, pens, and other random supplies stocked up, but who would choose a little project like that to fund when there are so many cooler, more expensive projects, and some with way better crafted sob stories? Not to mention I'd feel guilty about all that money donors tried to donate to me going to Donors Choose instead. I read it was something like a $30 cut for them per project? (Not 100% sure on that.)

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 2ポイント3ポイント  (8子コメント)

DonorsChoose charges $30 per project, so take however much you need to fulfill your request and add $30 to it.

[–]Teacher1993HS Chemistry 4ポイント5ポイント  (6子コメント)

So if someone were to post asking for $15 of pens and pencils, donors would have to fund $45 total for the project to be funded?

If so, yep, that totally sucks and would keep me from posting a project, or from donating to one, and it makes sense to me now why the majority of the projects I saw on there are pretty expensive - it's not worth it for someone to post a cheaper project, but those people posting cheaper projects are probably the ones who need help the most. Gahhh.

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 2ポイント3ポイント  (5子コメント)

No. From what I understand, projects have a $100 minimum. So after fees, you're looking at around $130 minimum.

[–]Teacher1993HS Chemistry 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

Ah! I see, thanks for explaining. I didn't know about the minimum. So definitely none of the smaller & cheaper requests possible like in the original exchange.

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

Again, that's my understanding. I'm not super knowledgeable about DonorsChoose, and much of my information is coming from research done today. I could be wrong, and I invite /u/DonorsChooseDOTorg to correct me.

[–]IVIaskerade 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

projects have a $100 minimum.

Can that be split between multiple donors?

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

Yes, that's actually the intention. That's what makes DonorsChoose really good for expensive requests like a class set of novels or something.

[–]eagmaloney 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

You can opt-out of the DC fees at checkout. I'm not 100%, but pretty sure the 15% fee that would apply to your donation is also deducted from the project. After you enter your donation amount, click "give" and then the blue words "optional 15% donation." Change the 15 to 0 and your entire donation goes to the teacher. If any one wants to give it a spin, here is my project link https://www.donorschoose.org/project/can-i-really-sit-there-flexible-seating/2014007/?rf=link-siteshare-2016-08-teacher-teacher_2339390&challengeid=397886

[–]dandiroar 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

I know that this probably is weird, but I would love to be able to help you out getting the basics for your classroom. I don't know the best way to go about this, but if you'd let me (and if it's not too weird/creepy) I would be honored to help you get set up with some pencils and the basics.

[–]FirstTeacher 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

I completely agree. I have only completed one DonorsChoose project, and I decided it was way too much work to be helpful to me realistically. I was stressed that I would not complete all of the components of the application process/earn the money in time (I didn't, but my mom stepped in and donated the rest before the deadline)/complete the follow up process correctly. It is good for large requests, but not nearly as helpful towards supplying common day supplies that are oh so needed and appreciated.

[–]tasharaneeKindergarten 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

This sucks. I teach at an American school on a US military base overseas. I alternate years giving and receiving during Reddit Gifts for Teachers. Both because I'm a federal employee and teach outside of the US, I'm ineligible for Donor's Choose. I'm not joining the gift exchange like this.

[–]Gigitygig 55ポイント56ポイント  (17子コメント)

I'm on board with boycotting it all. I am also super disappointed to not have the Redditgifts event this year. I just started my 4th year but in a new district and an empty classroom. I thought I had a lot of my own stuff but going in to an empty room makes you realize how much all the little stuff costs.

[–]trenbeauGrade 3/4 14ポイント15ポイント  (16子コメント)

This! Exactly this. The little basic stuff adds up so fast.

[–]Gigitygig 14ポイント15ポイント  (15子コメント)

I spent I over $100 today to get some basic things that are needed and realized when I got home I still didn't get books. There are literally no books in the classroom. Thankfully, a former coworker gave me some of her kids' old books but it's not nearly enough for a class of kids for the year. Someone actually messaged me and offered to purchase what they can to help me.

[–]trenbeauGrade 3/4 8ポイント9ポイント  (9子コメント)

Yupp! I've been hitting up thrift shops for books, but the problem is you get the second novel in a continuing series. :/ That's awesome! People can be really kind. I hope youre classroom works out!

[–]Gigitygig 3ポイント4ポイント  (8子コメント)

I was just told about these organizations! Such a great idea. Fifth street books and [books by the foot](booksbythefoot.com)

[–]captain_asparagus 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

As someone who lives within driving distance of Fifth Street Books, I both love and hate that place. They're pretty much my crack dealer.

[–]Gigitygig 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

I could see that! I lived near an amazing used book store for a while...it was amazing and awful at the same time

[–]IVIaskerade 0ポイント1ポイント  (4子コメント)

You need to include the http:// in the url of the in-text link for it to work.

[books by the foot](booksbythefoot.com) vs books by the foot.

[–]thelinkfixerbot 0ポイント1ポイント  (3子コメント)

Uh-oh IVIaskerade, it looks like there's 1 broken markdown links in your post. I've listed them below:

Fixed Link Original Markdown Fixed Markdown
books by the foot [books by the foot](booksbythefoot.com) [books by the foot](http://booksbythefoot.com)

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically.

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[–]snoopy_do 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

Thanks for the tip! I just placed an order with Fifth Street!

[–]SingForMeBitchesChoral and General Music 4ポイント5ポイント  (2子コメント)

In the thread about the new "exchange" announcement, someone mentioned the online used book store Thrift Books. I've already found a bunch of books in my subject area and students' age range. I haven't purchased any yet, but I'm hoping they'll be in good enough condition to use for a few years.

[–]thelinkfixerbot 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

Uh-oh SingForMeBitches, it looks like there's 1 broken markdown links in your post. I've listed them below:

Fixed Link Original Markdown Fixed Markdown
Thrift Books [Thrift Books](www.thriftbooks.com) [Thrift Books](http://www.thriftbooks.com)

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically.

Feedback | Formatting Help | Subreddit | Original Comment

[–]JahidinginvtK-8 Music 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

As a fellow choral director, I flippin' LOVE your username!

[–]Hami_252 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

This! It's so true. I've lost count of how much I have spent this summer, but there is always something else.

[–]tylerbrainerd 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

Check with your library for books. They occasionally have extras they need to toss and they like donating to schools

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 222ポイント223ポイント  (10子コメント)

One of the /r/secretsanta mods, /u/TheOpus, called me out for my criticism, suggesting it's not any of my business. I disagree with him, because I see reddit as a community, and I dislike it when my community is exploited. I believe it is dishonest to label this event as a reddit event. I believe the established history and tradition of Reddit Gifts for Teachers suggests things will be run a certain way, particularly that redditors will be supporting other redditors. In actuality, the organizers of Reddit Gifts for Teachers this year are using that history and tradition to redirect their donor base to a different cause. I think this is dishonest and we teachers have a special obligation to criticize this, since redditors have supported our profession so generously in the past.

[–]Brand-New-Teacher 52ポイント53ポイント  (1子コメント)

I agree with that. Part of the charm of Reddit Gifts for Teachers was that it was a community event. If they had wanted to partner with DonorsChoose, great. It's a nice organization. But I wish they hadn't tried to pass it off as the gift exchange.

[–]eamantite 7ポイント8ポイント  (0子コメント)

Reddit will delve deeper and deeper into obscurity with its censoring, policy changes, monetization and other stuff. Remember Ellen Pao? Remember Alex Scwartz? Reddit shouldn't be like it is but it do.

[–]virtuallEeverywhere 35ポイント36ポイント  (5子コメント)

I like TheOpus and modded SecretSanta long before her but became disgusted so I do not anymore. In fact every mod senior to her is no longer involved with RedditGifts (and do not even get me started with the incredibly despicable way that the founder and his wife were treated at their end). It started off great but became an absolute shitshow. I was literally told that SecretSanta was no longer accountable to the community but only to the goals of the CEO.

Her claiming that it is not a profit making venture is absolutely wrong. How many new users has reddit gained by the widely promoted Guinness World Record for world's largest gift exchange? TONS of new eyes for advertisers.

This change just makes it a project where reddit can take credit for and promote itself for people donating money and them doing almost nothing.

[–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 26ポイント27ポイント  (0子コメント)

Thank you for weighing in. This part really struck me:

This change just makes it a project where reddit can take credit for and promote themself for people donating money with them doing next to nothing.

/u/TheOpus and /u/bluepinkblack seem really frustrated by the backlash. I don't understand why. It's not like they put in any work this year beyond emailing DonorsChoose and designing a redirect page.

[–]Urano_Metria 13ポイント14ポイント  (2子コメント)

Not to mention the reddit staff so heavily grandstands the Secret Santa exchanges that new users simply sign up, fuck over a real redditor with the cheapest most impersonal garbage they can find on Amazon, and then they tailor their (sob)story to try and get free stuff.

[–]IVIaskerade 8ポイント9ポイント  (0子コメント)

Hi reddit! I teach at a poor impoverished detroit school whose dads are all battling cancer and their dogs just died and they were raised by single moms without knowing who the father was and they have to eat cardboard for school lunches so I would really appreciate a dozen ipads for my class.

[–]realmei 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

I joined because of the Guinness World Record . . . which they decided to drop without telling us about it. That's why I no longer join the exchanges. I lost trust in the system. :(

[–]yngwinGrade 4 English and Science in China (bilingual school) 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

Thank you for doing this, and supporting it with clear arguments. I've never taken part myself, though I have seen colleagues benefit from it. Knowing that teachers outside the US can no longer take part makes me sad.

コメントをもっと表示する (1 返事)

    [–]LaurensicsPre-service Chem + Bio 32ポイント33ポイント  (3子コメント)

    Could we by chance do an exchange thread? I'd like to help out, but don't want to support Donors Choice.

    [–]tacotrapMath 113ポイント114ポイント  (2子コメント)

    I think ultimately, DonorsChoose has good intentions, and Reddit can mention them to r/teachers as a possible resource, but RedditGifts should remove their association.

    This is absolutely not "Reddit Gifts for Teachers." This is "Hey teachers, here's a potential resource if you're in need. It's not perfect, but it's better than nothing. Speaking of nothing, we are canceling Reddit Gifts for Teachers 2016."

    [–]yngwinGrade 4 English and Science in China (bilingual school) 19ポイント20ポイント  (1子コメント)

    This is "Hey teachers, here's a potential resource if you're in need."

    But only if you're in the US...

    [–]magnolia7330 18ポイント19ポイント  (0子コメント)

    And if you don't teach in a private school and your district allows you to...

    [–]Brand-New-Teacher 26ポイント27ポイント  (0子コメント)

    I love DonorsChoose, and I would have fully supported Reddit doing something to encourage people to help out DonorsChoose projects. But not like this. Not by disguising it as Reddit Gifts for Teachers. I've used DonorsChoose in the past, and it's vastly different from reddit gifts for teachers. It's more of a way to get those expensive, larger projects funded.

    Reddit Gifts for Teachers has in the past helped me and so many other teachers get the little school supplies that we needed. I was so sad to see the change, because by the time I could make a project, get school board approval, and have the project approved, the "exchange" will be over. Not to mention, so many teachers outside the US (and in the US) just can't be helped through this now.

    I'm all for reddit partnering up with DonorsChoose in some other way, but I'm not happy/can't support that they did it as "RedditGifts for Teachers". :(

    [–]B_Strick24-7Secondary Math 23ポイント24ポイント  (2子コメント)

    I just PM'ed two teachers after reading their comments on Teacher RedditGift Threads about donating directly to them and it seems to be working out. If someone set up something more organized though that got people paired up, similar to last year - they'd be rock stars in my book.

    And thank you, u/PhantomandaRose for writing and compiling the research on this. Props for giving out props to other users as well.

    [–]soxfan91HS Physics | MA 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

    Thank you for reaching out to teachers! You da real MVP.

    [–]njdeatheater 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

    Good on you mate! I did the same exact thing.

    [–]_shredder 22ポイント23ポイント  (1子コメント)

    I really enjoyed this program last year. It felt very personal. I knew the teacher I was giving to. I looked up her name and city and found the school she was in. I could ask her questions, and she could respond. I knew what she needed for her classroom. She needed essentials like a pencil sharpener and books.

    Can you imagine a first grade classroom without books?

    One of the books on her list was Esperanza Rising. I'd never heard of it, and I wanted to know what I was buying (warning: spoilers ahead). I bought a copy for myself and started reading it. By the time the girl's father died, I was thinking, "This book is so dark, why would you want to make a child read this?" By the end of the book, I was in tears thinking to myself, "This book is such an important telling of something so many Mexicans went through in this country. Every child should read this." I bought 10 copies for her class room, along with the pencil sharpener and a few other things.

    My point is, the whole thing was very personal, and I knew exactly where my money was going because I bought it myself and typed in the teachers address myself.

    The way it's working this year? I just don't see the point. If I'm going to donate money to something, there's a million things on the internet I could donate to. Just because Reddit is the one that linked me there doesn't make it any better or worse.

    The site just looks like a GoFundMe for teachers, too. One of the top links reads, "My students need an Xbox 360 Kinect Bundle, 6 Xbox 360 Kinect games, a rolling utility cart, and 12 yoga mats." That's a very big difference from pencil sharpeners and books.

    I get why they had to do it. Verifying every teacher who singed up must be hell. So, I'm not mad about it. I guess they did what they had to do. I'm just really disappointed. I was really looking forward to it this year.

    Edit: Small typo

    [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 11ポイント12ポイント  (0子コメント)

    Your post really highlights an important failure on part of the organizers. They have succeeded in calling to action a huge online community to contribute to a needy population.

    Part of the "business" model of that was the personal touch.

    This partnership with Donors Choose may be successful this year, but I guarantee the loss of this personal touch will cause the donors to become less and less satisfied by their contributions. Next year will be less impressive, and the year after that even less.

    The strategy this year seems to be "how can we keep our heads above water," not "how can we be more successful this year and even more successful next year?"

    Instead of dealing with this on their own, they should have involved the community to help organize this.

    [–]Nomdermaet 17ポイント18ポイント  (5子コメント)

    I'm a high school special educatiom teacher that is preparing to spend a good deal of my own money on classroom supplies. I was disappointed to see the donors choose partnership due to many of the issues outlined above. So, if anyone wanted to help me out instead, that'd be cool

    [–]redneckrockuhtree 3ポイント4ポイント  (4子コメント)

    PM me some more details - let's talk. I've been a past donor for Gifts for Teachers and don't care for the recent change. Needless to say, I'm on the hunt for a teacher to help out.

    [–]Blaster088 1ポイント2ポイント  (3子コメント)

    Good on you! I would love for someone to set up something more organized for people like you to help out other teachers in need. There are many of us that loved the old exchange program who are not eligible for it anymore. Thanks for helping out!

    [–]redneckrockuhtree 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

    I'd actually be willing to help with an effort like that, and it's something I've rolled around in my head a bit since reading this thread.

    The trick is how to do it to protect everyone involved and at the same time, keep the workload manageable for a volunteer group.

    My wife and I have always believed teachers play an important role in society and we believe very much in being supportive of their efforts.

    [–]sb11345 15ポイント16ポイント  (0子コメント)

    I too am so upset by this! One year I got a box of 16 tissue boxes and it was the greatest thing ever. I'm not going to go spend time filling out Donors Choose for tissues and pencils. Sad because there are so many people willing to help out given the chance.

    [–]Collin_1000 16ポイント17ポイント  (4子コメント)

    5 and 7 are the biggest problems for me. I do not own anything that I get from DonorsChoose. With Reddit Gifts for Teachers, when I asked for 36 rulers, I got 36 rulers, and I get to keep those 36 rulers.

    [–]captain_asparagus 22ポイント23ポイント  (3子コメント)

    Let's be realistic....you get to keep 25 rulers, pick up the shards of 4 that were used as swords or slingshots, find 2 in June when you move your filing cabinet at the end of the year, and wonder who took the other 5.

    [–]aerin_solHS Science 10ポイント11ポイント  (1子コメント)

    I bought a few this year that said "shatter resistant" on them. That was a mistake because then the students needed to TEST if they were truly shatter resistant.

    [–]IVIaskerade 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

    And by the time they're mature enough to be allowed metal rulers they probably have their own.

    [–]Collin_1000 10ポイント11ポイント  (0子コメント)

    Way too true. "Asking for 60 rules for my 36 students"

    [–]i_love_your_pancake 12ポイント13ポイント  (4子コメント)

    I agree with you. I'm a veteran teacher but I'm moving schools and subjects this year. My kids have totally different needs than what I've gathered over the years.

    I loved the personal touch with the gifts in the past. I didn't even get my gift last year, but seeing everyone post what they got made me feel like our roles as teachers were actually appreciated by the community.

    Also, just to add, some districts do not allow their teachers to participate in donors choose at all!

    [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 7ポイント8ポイント  (3子コメント)

    Also, just to add, some districts do not allow their teachers to participate in donors choose at all!

    Excellent point, and added to the list!

    [–]i_love_your_pancake 6ポイント7ポイント  (2子コメント)

    The district I worked in before my current one was very micro managing. You could only go through their grant program for donations. I can't imagine it was the only district like that.

    [–]thejynxed 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

    It isn't, by far - my wife's district is the same way (although they do allow Box Tops for Education). The reason for this is due to government demands/regulations on school funding, and a large part of the reason it hurts teachers (and students) so badly when governments (state/local/federal) cut regular budget funding.

    コメントをもっと表示する (1 返事)

      [–]soxfan91HS Physics | MA 13ポイント14ポイント  (1子コメント)

      I've said this in a private message to the mods, but I teach in an urban Catholic school with many students on full scholarship/financial aid. I know other teacher stuff have it worse and need things more, but there's a lot I still have to end up buying for my kids—paper, calculator batteries, writing utensils, Etc. Since I may not in public, I'm ineligible to sign up for donors choose. It's just a little frustrating.

      [–]ColorYouClingTo11th Grade English 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

      I'm in the same situation. I was so incredibly frustrated and disappointed when I looked into the whole Donors Choose thing and found out that my kids are completely ineligible. To put it simply: this sucks.

      [–]JaneEyreForceMusic 11ポイント12ポイント  (0子コメント)

      I have already replied and agreed to much of what you have already posted, /u/phantomandarose, especially the fact that there is no real connection to Redditors when someone goes to DonorsChoose even directly through Reddit.

      I think it was disingenuous to just drop this today as a suitable replacement. It should have been brought up much sooner so everyone was aware. I don't even start school for another month (though I know many are back now/the next couple of weeks), and I have held off on getting anything because on my wishlist, I wanted to provided many possibilities at different price points for a potential Santa. As we all know, any little bit can help.

      I think that fact that DonorsChoose makes one have something fully funded will see problems to come as this continues and we will see a lot of money hung up on half-funded goals.

      [–]pile_o_puppiesSocial Studies 9-12, 11 years 33ポイント34ポイント  (28子コメント)

      I'm on board with this.

      I am also on board with doing what I did last year: buying stuff for a reddit teacher and sending it to them. Staples and B&N are my favorite stores and I would love to find out about you and your classroom and what you need, shop for you, and mail you something.

      If you are an elementary teacher (K-6... sorry, they're more fun to shop for!) in your first three years (because let's face it, you have nothing really accumulated yet), let me know.

      I can pick one, maybe two people. Who needs it most and will get overlooked by DonorsChoose? Reply.

      I'll give to a new teacher in need. I will not line the pockets of DonorsChoose and contribute 'airfair to China' or to a 'class set of chromebooks'.

      EDIT

      Reply to here, or send me a PM if you don't want to go too in detail in a public post (I understand! I delete and create a new reddit account every six months, so if the /r/secretsanta mod comes here and tries to call me out for never having participated, they can suck it. I've been on reddit five years this month)

      I'll give until 9am EST Thursday 8/4 to give people a chance to read and respond and contact you back by Thursday night.

      [–]coldbrewedbrew 12ポイント13ポイント  (3子コメント)

      Going to piggy back off of your post as I'd like to help out with what I can. Maybe we can figure something out to try and help the number of folks that may respond here!

      [–]MakeWar90Spec Ed Secondary Maths and ICT 6ポイント7ポイント  (2子コメント)

      I teach at a state funded special needs school in the UK (for students ages 8-18 with speech and language impairments). The needs of the students are very diverse so having enough resources to support all of them can be very difficult. I'd be immensely grateful for any help anyone can offer and am happy to tell anyone more about my school in a private message :)

      [–]velasca 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

      This!

      I teach students with special needs in high school and my needs can range from toothbrushes to snacks to calculators to novels and anything in between! I can't write a project up for little things like that.

      [–]PahpiChulo 5ポイント6ポイント  (1子コメント)

      Today was my first day ever as a teacher, well it was prep day, but my first day in my new career. A pretty amazing dream come true in light of being 45 and divorced after 20 years this past May (she filed not me). In addition our school is a brand new charter STEM school set to open in two weeks. I will be teaching math, my dream being to make math more exciting and innovative than it ever was for me. I don't know yet what all I need. I find out tomorrow if I teach grade 4, 5, or 6, but I know I don't need pencils, I bought a box of 500 misprints before the divorce in my excitement at my dream coming true. I'm happy to provide more specifics in private message if you need any proof of this and I'm not saying I'm most worthy, I'm just excited to start this chapter!

      [–]captain_asparagus 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

      Good for you! First year teaching will definitely have its challenges, but I'm glad to hear you're going for your dream, and I hope that passion shines through for your students, too!

      [–]pumpkincat 4ポイント5ポイント  (2子コメント)

      Air fair to China? Where are these Public Schools, the Upper East Side?

      [–]pile_o_puppiesSocial Studies 9-12, 11 years 6ポイント7ポイント  (1子コメント)

      Yes, they're the Constance Billard School for Girls and St. Jude's School for Boys :D :D :D

      (I had to google it I did not know them off the top of my head)

      [–]pumpkincat 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

      I can't tell whether or not you are being sarcastic and fucking with me or this is for real, either way, I'm giggling.

      edit: I had too google it too, oooooooooh wooooosh right over my head.

      [–]peaceloveglitter 3ポイント4ポイント  (2子コメント)

      https://amzn.com/w/19DH3EH7CHIRW

      This is the link to my class supply wish list. Any little bit can help. I just started my first year teaching (2nd-4th self contained special needs) in a severely low-income area and was told yesterday that school supplies are usually provided by the teacher because parents either just don't have the time to go school shopping or don't have the money...

      [–]discoveri 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

      I got you boo. Keep an eye out for a package on Thursday. You should have another one by the 11th. Feel free to send me a message if they haven't arrived by the 11th and I will yell at Amazon.

      [–]trenbeauGrade 3/4 1ポイント2ポイント  (3子コメント)

      I PM'd you all about me! I felt weird writing personal info in the comments.

      [–]MadEyeMady 1ポイント2ポイント  (2子コメント)

      Wahaha I should have done that instead I just posted it loud and proud

      [–]trenbeauGrade 3/4 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

      Lol! I didn't mean to retroactively make you feel like I was judging you! I typed mine out and it was long and awkward LOL. Be loud and proud!

      [–]MadEyeMady 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

      It's okay lol I did mine short, because I'm the worst when it comes to talking about myself.

      [–]Hami_252 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

      If anyone wants to help me it would be truly appreciated. Honestly, I am not good at asking for handouts, but I want so much more for my students then I can financially support.

      [–]WickedWednesday 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

      I have participated, last year was my first year to teaching and to the exchange. It was amazing and my second graders loved everything. I will not be participating this year. 😢

      [–]masons21 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

      I am about to start my third year of teaching. I teach Pre-K and Kindergarten together. This year I will have 12 Pre-K in my class and 13 Kindergarten. I have participated in the Teacher exchanges the last 2 years and it saddens me to see the choice made for this year.

      My students have absolutely loved everything I have gotten in the last two years. They enjoy hearing that there are people out there that are willing to help them get things that they need. When we read a book that I have received, they get so excited!

      For my age group, books are one of the most important things, I think. It helps them to use their imagination, problem solving, cause and effect, and much more.

      There are several books that I think would benefit my classroom that I just can't afford to purchase. :( • In My Heart -By: Jo Witek • Brave As Can Be -By: Jo Witek • The Book With No Pictures -By: BJ Novak (I previously owned this book but it was stolen from me.) • Tree -By: Britta Teckentrup

      Reddit has always been supportive of teachers and it makes me genuinely so happy. Being in Oklahoma, it's difficult to find much support for teachers, so I say thank you to those who are willing to help. There are other teachers that need much more than I do, so I don't expect to be chosen by anyone. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

      [–]Alyraelle 1ポイント2ポイント  (2子コメント)

      If there's a teacher in the UK looking for supplies hit me up a PM :)

      [–]coldbrewedbrew 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

      It appears that /u/MakeWar90 is a teacher in the UK. Just in case they haven't reached out already.

      [–][削除されました]  (2子コメント)

      [deleted]

        [–][削除されました]  (1子コメント)

        [deleted]

          [–]snoopy_do 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

          This is my first year back in the classroom after a hiatus, and I'm stepping out of my comfort zone of the middle school English classroom into the role of ESL teacher for 4th through 12th graders at a charter school in Texas. Most of my students are at or below the poverty line, and I don't even know at this point what all their needs will be! I'm thrilled to work with English learners, but I'm worried because I have very few books for them (besides thrift store and garage sale finds), and I have no basic supplies for them. I'd love to have 10 marker sets, 10 pencil packs, 10 clipboards, etc. Unfortunately, I have to supply my own copy paper as well! Thank you so much for allowing us to share our stories!

          コメントをもっと表示する (2 返事)

            [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 9ポイント10ポイント  (1子コメント)

            I messaged the admin /u/bluepinkblack in charge of this event earlier today, but she never responded. I was encouraged to tag her by our friendly /r/teachers mod /u/ItsPrisonTime.

            [–]ItsPrisonTimeCA, US 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

            I have a feeling they are understaffed and while projects like these are really cool, it comes out short (around 30% are not gifted)

            Keep in the loop and pm me on the situation. Perhaps it will play out different this year.

            [–]ravencrowed 6ポイント7ポイント  (6子コメント)

            How about setting up an alternative in the old spirit?

            Strike now while the iron is hot.

            [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 19ポイント20ポイント  (4子コメント)

            I have organized online charities before with substantial amounts of money being donated, and I can safely say that it is extremely difficult. We're probably not in a position to organize it like it was in the past.

            I sincerely sympathize with the admins and mods over at /r/secretsanta in that regard. I personally would not have faulted them at all if they decided to just stop the event. My problem is their dishonesty this year.

            [–]plus_one_experience 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

            Why couldn't they allow teachers who had participated in the past and posted/thanked be vetted immediately? I've participated in two of the last three years, posted and thanked my angels (along with my kids, who love the exchange and will certainly miss their mystery box this year) - should be easy to verify? Dunno. Sad to see the exchange go. I've had a project funded through Donors Choose in the past, but the experience was negative and I will not give them my friends and families money again.

            [–]Zelexis 0ポイント1ポイント  (2子コメント)

            Maybe they need more help? I'm sure there are more in the community willing to help. Perhaps more coding systems to do auto-matching, shipping verification etc.

            [–]qqqrrtt 4ポイント5ポイント  (1子コメント)

            There was a comment saying it isn't possible because they'd have to allow the info to be seen by redditors, but you could just put a disclaimer and make the volunteers from previous donators. I wouldn't be surprised if reddit was making money off of this, considering how much the fees are and how much reddit has been trying to monetize the site recently.

            [–]redneckrockuhtree 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

            The answer to that is you have people submit an application to help, and you do some basic background checks on those individuals.

            [–]tacotrapMath 7ポイント8ポイント  (0子コメント)

            Who has the infrastructure, resources, and experience with setting up a one way of exchange of supplies to teachers from redditors? Oh wait.

            [–]peaceloveglitter 8ポイント9ポイント  (0子コメント)

            I am truly upset about this new change. Donor's Choose is a good resource for teachers, but not for a "teacher's exchange". I have been waiting several years for my chance to sign up for even a small gift of crayons or school supplies for my classroom because I have been working on my masters and JUST got my first job teaching. My husband is a bigger redditor than I am and every year, he mentions when the teacher's exchange comes up. I always sort of expected that when my turn came, I would have a chance to be a part of this wonderful exchange. Now I feel sort of gipped. I don't want to sound like I'm pouting or anything... It just means even more money out of my own pocket.... as a first year teacher, I think I've spent about $500 (at least- books(that was a significant portion of my expenses), classroom supplies, first year teacher expenses, etc.) out of my own pocket on my classroom and I wish I was able to sign up for the exchange for even the littlest help/act of kindness. (Un)fortunately, this year I am working with self-contained 2nd-4th grade special needs in a very low-income area, so most of the student expenses fall on to the teachers for just basic supplies.

            As a side note, a teacher friend of mine set up a DC last school year for just basic school supplies and to this day, still only has about half of her requested funds. Plus, I tried to sign up for DC and they told me that my picture of my classroom wasn't good enough because it was my pre-decorating picture. I don't have any other pictures because I don't even have my class list yet, let alone pictures of my students working.

            Sorry that this went on so long, but I really just needed to vent about this. I think this may even be the first time I've posted in r/teachers...

            /rant

            [–]Commodore_Wiley 6ポイント7ポイント  (14子コメント)

            Donors Choose was a bad choice for this event. We have all been in a situation where we have spent our own money on our students. We do it because we care. It is the little things that count, like hand sanitizer and kleenex. I would love for someone to buy me a new Lego Mindstorms kit for my robotics class, but that is unreasonable when there are kids out there who can't even afford notebooks and pencils, or they have to practice in the gym in their socks because they can't afford a pair of shoes just for use on the court.

            [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 2ポイント3ポイント  (6子コメント)

            that is unreasonable when there are kids out there who can't even afford notebooks and pencils

            or Chromebooks or Macbooks, right?

            /s

            [–]beaglemama 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

            non-teacher chiming in - I live in a place where our K-8 district has macbooks for all our 6-8 students (they had to give them back over the summer) and I really liked this exchange because I felt like I could help make a difference in some kids' lives. Yeah I could contribute locally, but part of the fun of the exchange was letting kids in _____ know that some all the way in ____ cared enough to donate _____ to help them. I'm not rich enough to fund a $500 project, but for $50 I could REALLY help some classroom - that was a good feeling.

            コメントをもっと表示する (5 返事)

              [–]kszoologist 4ポイント5ポイント  (6子コメント)

              The point I made about the Mindstorms is that THAT is what donors choose is primarily for... the big projects that teacher want to do for their kids. That's not what Reddit gifts was about. I now feel like I can't let my kids post their project because I don't want it to take away from the redditors who need basic supplies.... when it was separate it wasn't such a big deal.

              I'm in one of those schools where students can't afford pencils. I FEED 3 or more students a day because they aren't going to eat when they go home. When the office supply stores close I buy pencils by the case.

              [–]kszoologist 2ポイント3ポイント  (4子コメント)

              Since reading the announcement I have been trying to figure out how I'm telling them at the meeting Friday that the DC project they have been so carefully writing for the last 3 weeks isn't going to be posted because of this... if anyone has any advice on this I am all ears.

              [–]aerin_solHS Science 6ポイント7ポイント  (2子コメント)

              I think you should still put it up. People who want to buy basic supplies will buy basic supplies. People who want to fund your robotics project will do that.

              You're right, DonorsChoose makes more sense for bigger projects, especially considering the cut that DC takes. Don't let the fact that the teacher exchange is effectively being canceled and teachers are told to go there prevent you and your students from using the site the way it is intended.

              [–]kszoologist 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

              I'll probably let the kids decide what they want to do. They spent their last meeting plus a few hours walking dogs and playing with kittens at an animal shelter. The group I've got now really puts being a team and helping others ahead of helping themselves. I'm fiercely proud of them and the way they represent the school. I'd fund all their plans if I could...

              [–]Commodore_Wiley 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              They worked hard on it. I would go ahead and post it. What they learn from the process is as much a lesson on life as the actual program.

              [–]Commodore_Wiley 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

              You are right. I have several colleagues who have used DC to act as a sort of grant. They tell parents about it, who tell other family members, and they are able to get larger ticket items that the school district typically is wary of buying because "if we get this for you we will have every teacher asking for stuff." It is the perfect way to get $1000 worth of equipment for your Robotics team. I could use the new Mindstorms set, but I hate to compete with people who need notebooks and pencils. Donor's Choose isn't for small stuff, and this is a poor use of the platform.

              [–]diytry 6ポイント7ポイント  (3子コメント)

              The ironic thing about all this is that DonorChoose is going to get heaps of bad publicity from all of these shenanigans.

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 3ポイント4ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Maybe because of the ridiculous requests teachers put up there. But DonorsChoose will be fine. It is regarded highly by the general population.

              EDIT: But it would be amazing if DonorsChoose took notice of this response and implemented a system that allowed teachers to make small quests of basic supplies easily and for free. One of the most common problems I'm seeing is it's difficult to ask for things like a class set of coloring pencils because of the red tape and being overshadowed by more ambitious requests.

              [–]diytry 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

              Doesn't DC still need clearance from the building's administration? Teachers are doing these requests in the off season and getting sign offs for little things is a PITA.

              [–]oldentired14 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Not the case in my district, but apparently it is in some. We do have to get parent permission to use student photos though and that's not possible in the summer.

              [–]SamSlagheap 5ポイント6ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Why donate for pencils or books when there are first world problems, like not having the $76,584.21 for a trip to Spain? While it may be a great learning experience, I don't want my unfunded project money to automatically get switched to something over the top like that.

              [–]varkgirl 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              FYI - You get to choose where your unfunded project money goes.

              [–]plastic_apolloAP Lang/Comp, World Lit 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Oh wow...that's quite a thing to ask for, I suppose. I was hoping to get some pencils :/

              [–]yersinia-p 5ポイント6ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I was so disappointed to see the way Reddit is handling this this year. :\ I had been so excited to help a coworker (teaching is his main job, this is his secondary) sign up and to go shopping for my teacher, and now...? Instead I've asked another teacher who commented to PM me their info and then I'll sit down with my budget and see if I can do another.

              [–]lah_mill 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

              That's lame. Last year was my first time doing Reddit teacher gifts. My students got to unbox our new supplies and we made a huge card to send to our donor. It was awesome and made a lot of good memories for me and my students. Like you stated in your post, my district requires approval through donors choose. And it being the beginning of the year, my admin are already swamped and probably wouldn't get back to me for an additional week...

              Also I feel that donors choose is generally for big stuff (projector, tablets, field trips). I liked Reddit gifts because I could ask for the little things my students need (really helpful since $10 a year for supplies really doesn't go far 😒).

              [–]ungoogled 4ポイント5ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I love the stuff I've received in the past. It's always something fun and somehow exactly what I need for my classroom. I'm bummed about it not being the olde-fashioned one-sided gift swap it's been in the past. Also, I don't have time for DonorsChoose. Not even a second. I used it to give money to a friend once about two years ago and I remember it being a bit frustrating just to give.

              [–]Pi_MakerMath & Geology, US (CA) 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

              i was going to join again this year, but was turned down because i'm not a US Public School teacher.

              I'm a math specialist (teaching mostly math, some science and a bunch of mixed academic art classes) to homeschool, independent study, and charter school kids. I have to pay for most things out of my own pocket because i'm essentially a contracted, self-employed teacher.

              Now, I do get some donations from small business owners (cuz they're parents of my students) for random papers, pencils, markers and that kind of stuff. And, most parents are pretty ok with providing their own supplies most of the time. But, still, there's always a few students that don't have the same access to supplies, and i hate that they get singled out because of it (super small class size makes it hard to hide stuff like that).

              I'll join the boycott train.

              [–]somethingmorethan 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

              I mean, it's not like I have a choice in the matter, seeing as I'm disqualified for being a private school teacher? But yes, I agree. This year my supply budget is $0, and I was just looking forward to some basic supplies, which I was happy to receive last year.

              [–]AbruptlyBlue 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Let's organize one here!

              [–]brioche74 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Aw man, I was going to participate for the first time this year. All I needed was some clipboards, not really a Donors Choose kind of thing.

              [–]beetsbattlestar5th grade- ELA & SS 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I'm not going to lie, I'm a little disappointed that this changed so dramatically. Donor's Choose is great and all but I teach in a school where 90% of the students get free lunch/20% are ELLs. I've spent all summer wondering what I was going to do in terms of school supplies and how I can make my first year successful for myself and my students. Also IIRC, don't I need permission from the school to do a Donor's Choose project? I don't want to make any waves during my first year with having a ton of supplies sent to the office :\

              Props to /u/PhantomandaRose for all of this- I feel like I've upvoted everything you've said. Hopefully this changes back to how it was soon. (Also, I've done the Secret Santa two years in a row and I'm strongly considering not doing it now.)

              [–]plastic_apolloAP Lang/Comp, World Lit 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              As a teacher who has benefitted tremendously each year from the teacher gift exchange, I'm so disappointed by this... I remember crying last year when I got my big box in the mail! Paper, pens, pencils, high lighters, tissue papers and Lysol wipes...and a wonderful note with kindness, to kickstart the year. Yes, I'll still purchase my supplies myself, but there was a greater sense of community and giving beyond the supplies themselves. It benefits me in that it saves me money, but ultimately, everything that I've ever been given in a teacher exchange has stayed at my school, because it's not MINE. Two years ago a gifter gave me 20 or so books I needed for my classroom (I taught at a low-income school at the time), but when I moved across the country, I didn't take those books with me: I left them there for the future students' use next year. Sure, they were gifted to me, but they belonged to my students. The gift exchanges are supposed to be redditors helping redditors...but this one, at its heart, is redditors' helping students, and this just leaves me feeling sad and cut out of the process.

              [–]sarcastnickSecondary Maths (NQT) 2ポイント3ポイント  (1子コメント)

              As someone who has just qualified as a teacher, I was hugely looking forward to this. However, I'm a teacher in England, so can't join in. This could have given me and my department supplies for years and given our Pupil Premium (those on free school meals/in care) kids a bit of a boost by giving them essential supplies such as calculators. Admittedly, England isn't a third-world country or whatever, but my state school is a bit hard-pressed for funding and little things like this do help.

              [–]klemoyne 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I posted this comment on the main thread, but I think it's an idea worth exploring: Out of curiosity -- is there a "random acts of teacher gifts" type thing somewhere? Seems like that might be a better fit than redditgifts at this point (if the redditgifts mods are calling it too much work)? I know for Random Acts of Christmas, the onus is on the giver to ensure they're giving to someone truly in need -- if they made the system such that gifts could only be shipped to schools / school district offices, that might alleviate the burden of proof....

              EDIT* To answer my own question, I just went through six (6!) pages of listsings of "Random Acts Of..." subreddits (and there are way more NSFW ones than I could have imagined....), and the closest one appears to be: Random acts of school supplies

              It's a tiny little sub, with very little traffic -- but maybe it could be a replacement for all the teachers and redditors who are bummed by this change?

              [–]OnceNFutureNick 2ポイント3ポイント  (3子コメント)

              I'm a first year teacher and when I saw the announcement, I got really excited about possibly getting some help with classroom essentials. Then I read the details about these changes and just closed the window.

              [–]LittleCowGirlStudent teaching: EC-6 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

              I'm a first year teacher too! For the past two years I've been optimistically looking forward to being part of the teacher exchange, because I know what a struggle it is to start out with nothing, and having to pay for it all. Right now I have no income until the end of August, but I'm supposed to establish my classroom with $150 from my district. I didn't expect the teacher exchange to completely take care of my things, that would be silly, but I was really looking forward to the help.

              [–]OnceNFutureNick 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

              Are you a south Florida teacher? Because that is word for word my exact situation.

              [–]LittleCowGirlStudent teaching: EC-6 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Nope, central Texas! But I imagine it's a fairly common circumstance.

              Add to that, I was hired for second grade and all my university experience was 4th-6th!

              [–]redneckrockuhtree 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              As a past donor (not a teacher, just a parent of four) I've participated the past four years and given to four teachers.

              For me, I'm not interested in Donor's Choose for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, while they're a quality organization, if I buy everything myself I can put 100% of what I'm spending towards helping a teacher. Doing it myself, I can also personalize what I'm sending and ask questions to maybe include something the teacher didn't specifically ask for, but can use. I've also always included a book of some sort, because kids need books. Also, being quite frank, I find some of the projects on Donors Choose to be ridiculous and having to wade through them while looking for a project that really "speaks" to me is a bit off-putting.

              I've already reached out to a teacher in this thread for more information; if it's a good fit, I'll help that teacher. If not, I'll find another teacher. I've seen others doing the same in this thread and hope it continues.

              [–]oldentired14 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I have been on Reddit and participated in Reddit Teacher gifts for several years and just started with Donors Choose. I will say this - I will definitely miss the relationship with my donors on Reddit. Even though we didn't technically know one another, they chose my requests and usually went above and beyond my requests - can't even tell you how much that was appreciated! Although I understand your concerns - they make sense - I really hate to see people boycott. That just hurts kids and teachers. Since I currently have a half funded project, I was excited to see Reddit partnering with Donors Choose - gave me hope my project would get funded by the time school starts. I am hopeful that people will still care about kids, schools and teachers and perhaps make suggestions for how this new partnership could be improved going forward.

              [–]Matchboxx 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Out of curiosity, why doesn't /r/teachers try to sanction something themselves? Obviously, trying to stand up the infrastructure Reddit Gifts has with a fully functioning website is going to be too much to do in the next month, but can the mods of this sub somehow verify teachers, give them a verified flair once ID has been provided, then maybe do a request for people who wish to give, flair them, load both sets of usernames into Excel and just let Excel do a quick matchmaking? I may be oversimplifying, but I feel like with the energy behind the boycott, this could be feasible. Nothing about RedditGifts.com is that special besides that ID is verified. Mods here can do that. Everything else is hands-off, we mail all the stuff ourselves.

              [–]TheGreenBastardsEAL, 9th grade ELA 4ポイント5ポイント  (1子コメント)

              After reading this and understanding the difference between the old system and this new proposed system, I am in favor of a boycott.

              Things is, I still rely on donors for the small, neat stuff I use to support my students. Can we set up a system that's nearly (or just as) reliable as the existing one so that we can still use the exchange process, but not this new one?

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 9ポイント10ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I don't think this is realistic without the support of /r/secretsanta.

              I really wish they had asked for volunteers to run it if they were overwhelmed, because I have no doubt they would have found the help.

              [–]ItsPrisonTimeCA, US[M] 2ポイント3ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Mod here.

              Stickied and letting the discussions run it's course. Will be making a continued part 2 discussion thread summing up the contents here.

              Also, I'd be open to discuss with the mod team about featuring Donorschoose projects that are made by redditors at /r/teachers in weekly threads and then combining the sum of it into one megathread. Possibly contacting other subreddits to help promote that.

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

              I think the idea of promoting Donors Choose projects and partnering with other subs is a clever idea. I would love to see thematic weekly threads. Like partners with /r/pcmasterrace, /r/apple, /r/google, etc. for a special "fund my 1:1 project" week.

              Otherwise, just having a constant megathread for DonorsChoose will turn into a ghost town since probably no one on /r/teachers is going to donate to another teacher's project.

              [–]ItsPrisonTimeCA, US 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Lets continue this discussion in the 2nd discussion follow up post with the thoughts from your thread. (maybe a few days from now, remind me if i don't)

              It'll be just in time for the admin to respond.

              I'm a mod at /r/sanfrancisco and a few other subreddits, so getting feedback on partnering with other subs should be quick.

              Perhaps having reddit teachers donorschoose projects matching the theme of the corresponding subreddits. /r/science with science type stuff, ect ect.

              [–]sweetworld 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

              Devil's advocate here: I've signed up for the teacher exchange 3 times, got paired 3 times, but only received supplies once. It seemed like redditors were signing up for their non-redditors friends and flooding the market. At least DonorsChoose requires a more rigorous verification process.

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 3ポイント4ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I totally understand that. This has been discussed in the past (as I'm sure you're aware).

              I suggested a solution here upon being asked by one of the mods at /r/secretsanta for my input. I think this would have done a lot to fix the issues with the previous system.

              [–]ILuffhomer 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I agree with you 200%. It has been lovely to see the generosity of fellow redditors today though, as I've gotten a few PMs from people wanting to help.

              [–]kszoologist 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              I'm a second year teacher... I was so looking forward to this because last year my Santa backed out on my classroom. I teach Biology and Earth space science in a high needs school district and am working towards my masters. I loved my first year teaching because I learned just as much from my students as they did from me. I never know what I need for my classroom so I was looking forward to seeing what a redditor thought could benefit high school science students. My curriculum is constantly changing to reflect the world happening around my students. I'm sad that yet again they won't be able to benefit from this program. I've done the donors choose thing when I discovered that our microscopes were horrific... no one in our area really donates because no one really can. I was lucky that #bestschoolday came about because that's how we got the microscopes for this next year. My robotics kids are looking at setting up a donors choose to get some Lego mindstorm kits so they can go to elementary schools and teach robotics... from what I've read here I have a feeling that's a project that wouldn't be funded where as if this merger hadn't happened they may have had a better chance. That makes me sad cause my kids have spent all summer meeting and planning how they can help others this next year.

              I just wanted to add that this is my first time commenting with this account... a few years ago I had some issues with some local users offline.

              [–]tiny_lannister 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              As a junior high science teacher at a low income school, I loved the Reddit Teacher event. I've gotten a couple projects funded through donors choose and received some nice things for my classroom and unfunded Science Olympiad team. However, #8 and #7 always bothered me about donors choose. #6 the $30 fee you can't avoid, but you can select to not have part of your donation go directly to donors choose, because in addition to the $30 fee part of your donation doesn't go to lowering the project completion cost- instead if goes to donors choose. You can elect to have 100% go to the project but you can to set the donation to donors choose to zero. It's very complicated and its seems like donors choose gets a big cut. So, the donation dollars won't go as far to directly help teachers. A request that cost a redditor $100 last year, costs $200 through donors choose. Hopefully what I am saying is clear enough, typing on a phone and science teacher- not English. ;)

              I'm sad to see that the traditional event won't happen this year. I was looking forward to maybe getting a match and some basic supplies like pencils, colored pencils, glue, etc. These basic requests seem to get lost on donors choose with all the crazy requests on there.

              • 6 to 8 - #8 is not just $30, each project has an additional suggested donation to "help donors choose reach" more classrooms or something like that. However you have to opt out of their blanket additional donation.

              [–]ArguingWithAssholesSocial Studies 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

              None of this really matters. Why bother boycotting?

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              To pressure reddit to go back to way they ran it before.

              [–]sakurachild 1ポイント2ポイント  (4子コメント)

              Two more points you could add:

              Not every district in the US allows their teachers to use donor's choose. Both the district I am currently in and my previous district are like this.

              Also note that principals can choose not to let you keep the materials that get donated through Donor's Choose. They get sent a lost of what you received, and can keep it from reaching teacher's hands.

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 0ポイント1ポイント  (3子コメント)

              Both are already on the list. :) #2 and #7

              [–]sakurachild 0ポイント1ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Guess I should learn to read more closely......... (you'd think I'd know how to, being a reading teacher and all.) 😅

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

              It's my fault. The list is a hot mess, but I'm too busy reading comments and replying to people to really focus on writing well. I might clean it up for the second topic /u/ItsPrisonTime wants to make.

              [–]ItsPrisonTimeCA, US 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

              The list is fine. Thanks for taking the time to put together something so thoughtful.

              [–]SquirreI[UK] Secondary Computing NQT 1ポイント2ポイント  (3子コメント)

              Thanks /u/PhantomandaRose for doing this. I left my comments on the /r/blog/ thread but you've put an action behind this which was really needed.

              [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 1ポイント2ポイント  (2子コメント)

              Thanks. I sincerely hope that /u/bluepinkblack and /u/TheOpus understand that I and the rest of us respect their previous efforts in helping teachers and aren't boycotting to make them feel bad. We love reddit and we want to see more cool community events. But /r/secretsanta needs to understand why we do not think passing the event to DonorsChoose makes this a reddit event anymore.

              I also hope that the admin/mods over at /r/secretsanta are open to a discussion with us and others about how Reddit Gifts for Teachers can continue in the future without consuming their free time that they generously contribute to making these cool events happen. It seems redditors would rather have relaxed verification procedures and in the past redditors have called for eligibility requirements and blacklisting, so I think this is a conversation worth having. It does not seem to me that Reddit Gifts has explored all options before going the DonorsChoose route.

              [–]Ospov 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Well I won't be able to get anything out of this since I work at a private school. It won't be too hard for me to boycott it.

              [–]hybrikk 1ポイント2ポイント  (3子コメント)

              Crap. I just moved offices and had a big box of unwanted supplies to donate. :(

              [–]redneckrockuhtree 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

              Find a teacher on this sub who has use of them, and get it shipped to them. :)

              コメントをもっと表示する (2 返事)

                [–]noobit 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                DonorsChoose takes a cut of all funded projects

                might be a kickback from DonorsChoose to reddit since reddit's involvement in this will result in revenue for DonorsChoose. I want to be clear that there is no evidence of a kickback, but this observation highlights a conflict of interest

                This isn't hard evidence either, but just to remind everyone.

                • RedditGifts was an acquisition by reddit

                • Dan and Jessica (the founders of RedditGifts) were fired or left from Reddit a while ago and are now among others starting competing news sites (theirs is Imzy)

                [–]runnerbum 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

                I'm a new 4-6 grade special education teacher and I was looking forward to Reddit gifts for teachers. So sad. I have ZERO kids books that I can use as a broke graduate.

                [–]canom 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                I will not be taking part in this exchange. My school is not Title 1, not in an urban core that is plagued by issues, but simply in a suburban area where the district does not provide money to teachers for supplies- making everything come out of pocket.

                By moving the entire exchange to Donorschoose, its impossible. I am not going to go through the hassle of creating a project on the website, and then write a sob story to try to get attention, where Redditors are pitted against each other for attention.

                [–]cardboardguru13 1ポイント2ポイント  (3子コメント)

                I'm not participating for simpler reasons.

                For two years, I've been given gifts I didn't need, or were wholly inappropriate. The givers wasted their money, ignoring the suggestions and age range of my students.

                Last year, I, and many other teachers, didn't receive anything except a web coupon to buy (with our own money of course) certain things I didn't need from a website I'll never use... because there weren't enough givers. I'd signed up pretty darn early in the process, so either they were very, very, very short on givers, or they randomized selection.

                Secondly, teachers who are not really redditors can sign up for an account and participate. So, non-teacher redditors sign up for teachers they know and end up receiving gifts, while long-time redditors who are teachers don't receive gifts.

                It sounds like that situation is worsened if redditors could end up giving a gift through Donors Choose to a teacher who isn't even a redditor.

                Nah, the whole thing has just been an ongoing disappointment, so I'm just ignoring it from now on.

                [–]Leftie21 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

                A reddit user by the name pickwish posted that they had started a teacher exchange. There website states that they work with private and public school teachers though they are limited to the states from what I understand. It may be a better option than Donors Choose for now. I really wish teachers outside of the states could participate.

                I was very overwhelmed by the entire process at Donors Choose and didn't like some of there tactics as stated in the points above. I'm still unsure if I could even do a Donors Choose page seeing as I'm an itinerant Deaf and Hard of Hearing school teacher and travel to three different schools and grade levels.

                From the pickwish website, the items on your list never expire and are sent to your school. The only thing I'm confused about is how a donor connects with you.

                Here's there comment below (I don't know how to link the post...sorry)

                "If you're interested in an alternative, check out PickWish at www.mypickwish.com. We made it super easy for anyone to donate straight to your classroom. We just launched we're looking for awesome teachers to sign up! We'd love any feedback you might have! And thanks for being a teacher :)"

                [–]bookchaser 2ポイント3ポイント  (0子コメント)

                it would be great if /r/teachers, /r/education and related subreddits let teachers display a link to their mypickwish.com wish list in their flair.

                Look at comments posted in Random Acts of Amazon as an example.

                [–]bookchaser 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                As /u/ClutchDude points out, DonorsChoose takes a cut of all funded projects. This equals to about a minimum of $30. So most requests on DonorsChoose trend toward expensive grant-like requests (iPads, Chromebooks, field trips, etc.) and away from essentials (paper, colored pencils, etc.).

                Holy cow. Isn't the average teacher donation through Reddit Gifts like $20 or less?

                [–]deadsy18 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

                I'm deeply saddened that this is now US only.

                My class loved opening their package and we even looked at where our donor came from and learned a little about that before the new year really got into swing.

                It's bad enough getting basic supplies in England, nevermind trying to teach in worse off countries.

                [–]Acidsparx 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                I've been doing Reddit Gifts for Teachers for the last 3 years but I may not this year due to DonorChoose. Thanks for all the info confirming my choice.

                [–]slyscribe401 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                I'm not boycotting, I'm forced into not participating. Last year I got the lame "we couldn't find a donor for you" software when my school didn't have any technology available at all.

                This year, I switched to a private school so I won't be able to participate even though the kids in my school are just as deserving as any other kids. I have a high population of refugee students and nearly a third of the school are ELLs. But that doesn't matter. What matters is that we also pray together, so I can't join Donors Choose.

                [–]lamahoney9 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                I guess I just see it as a win for students, whether their teachers are Reddit contributors or not. If the worst thing that happens is a that the students of a non-Reddit teacher (who was dedicated enough to post a thoughtful and inspiring project on Donors Choose) ends up with a meaningful learning experience, then I think we are in ok shape!

                [–]AboynamedDOOMTRAINPhysical Science 1ポイント2ポイント  (0子コメント)

                While I believe this is, in every possible way, a terrible direction for redditgifts to teachers, is it not incredibly socially irresponsible to call for a boycott of a charitable fund for teachers because of it? Sure, redditgifts is gone, but does that mean we throw a fit and do our best to make sure no teachers anywhere get anything? I'd already been making a donorschoose project before yesterday. I'm keeping it up. I need those calculators. I'm not going to screw my high poverty students out of potential nice new equipment just to serve a greater cause. They're my cause. If shitty donorschoose is my only option, that's what I'm going to do.

                [–][削除されました]  (2子コメント)

                [deleted]

                  [–]PhantomandaRoseEnglish 9-10[S] 1ポイント2ポイント  (1子コメント)

                  There is a part where it asks and you can lower it from 30 to whatever you prefer-zero even.

                  I actually did not include the suggested donation to DonorsChoose in that amount. There is apparently a base $30 added to whatever the teacher requests that the donors don't really get to see unless they dig around and look for it. The DonorsChoose tacks on an additional request for each donor when they donate.

                  [–]tiny_lannister 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  Yes I messed up what I was trying to say. I deleted and reposted it lower. I think it's important though because it's kinda sly how donors choose tacks on that funding to each project.

                  [–]zabthegreat 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  Seems like they are totally overlooking those that need the little things the teacher exchange could provide. Donorschoose level is great for what they can provide but teachers pay for pens and pencils etc more than they pay and have to use own money for lets say a smartboard.

                  [–]IceDragon13 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

                  Minor Text Fixes

                  -The Niantic School for Community Managers Who Can't Communicate Good and Want to Piss Off Other Community Members Too

                  [–]LynnsFriedRice 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  As a SpEd teacher who's participated in the teacher gift exchange for the past 3 years, this is a total bummer. I really enjoyed getting the care package and posting my thanks. It always brightened my week. Mid-way through the year I usually get close to running out of supplies so I have tried resorting to DonorsChoose but I don't think my pitch was ever good enough.

                  I really liked sharing where I got my supplies with my fellow teachers who are always amazed that total strangers would give such support. Anyways, this year I switched from teaching elementary title 1 school to another title 1 middle school and teaching math and science in one of Honolulu's most socioeconomically challenged neighborhoods with even more needy students. Just disheartened at not being able to participate this year.

                  [–]climbrunyoga 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  This is extremely disappointing. I love donorschoose and use it for the big things but my classroom babies need the basics. I'm not in a position at the moment to sit down and get the basics into a donorschoose and frankly that's not what it's there for. Last year a company sent me basics and it was a GOD SEND!! I love my job and where I'll be working. It's the inner city and low income so we buy the supplies for them for the most part. So not only was the way "Reddit exchange for teachers" happened but also the way that mods have been speaking to users is really putting a bad taste in my mouth for redditgifts. And I love doing Redditgifts!!! And on top to have r/teachers flooded now with donorschoose projects - no thanks.

                  [–]magnolia7330 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  As a teacher this news has been very disappointing. I have done DonorsChoose for years. I am no longer at a title one school and it is difficult to get projects funded. Even if I beg and plead. Plus, projects have to have a minimum of $100 in materials and then they tack on a bunch of charges (taxes, shipping, donation) which makes projects no cheaper than about $170. I went ahead and created two small projects (not small after extras are added) in hopes they will get funded, but I'm not expecting it. I won't be linking the projects to reddit due to confidentiality concerns. I teach students with special needs. I wish this change was not made, although to some degree I understand why. I just wish they would have announced the change prior to the day of exchanges being released. I know they keep saying that we shouldn't expect the same exchanges, but the teacher exchange was on the calendar. I believe if they knew they were changing it they could have allowed time for redditor teachers to put projects together ahead of time. I also feel disappointed that this is leaving out so many people.

                  [–]Khalano 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  I put "Yay Reddit Gifts for Teachers Day" in my calendar. I missed it last year. It was not yay for me. I was bummed when I saw the change, and I feel a little better seeing that I was. It alone on that let down feeling.

                  [–]graffin 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  So disappointed to hear about this.

                  I've been blown away by the generosity of my Santa since the beginning of the exchange (except last year, when I didn't receive anything) and I'm very sad to hear this change is being made. It will take the personal touch out of the exchange and also destroys the amazing moment of surprise when you open your box full of unknown contents, which was always an amazing way to start the year.

                  I'm on board if the community decides to go another way. Hopefully we can keep this ball rolling.

                  [–]budgiebum 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  So it's not redditors directly supporting other redditors? That's not cool. You guys have my upvote for visibility.

                  [–]DigitalCitizen0912 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  I'm boycotting. This isn't nearly as personal as the experience I had last year. I was going to ask for more books again, to continue lining my bookshelves with current and classic literature. I'll be at my 5th school, as a 4th year teacher, once again changing grades. 9th and 12th ELA. That is a HUGE age gap with HUGE differences in literature! I'm a theater major turned English teacher, so I don't have shelves of books, like other colleagues I've seen.

                  Last year I was sent a lovely box of books, larger than requested! It was fabulous. I wanted to part that forward in a more personal way. Unfortunately, it looks like I won't have reddit teacher exchange to do that.

                  [–]TheXtraReal 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  E-rate

                  [–]thejynxed 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  Dear OP: Point 7 should be clarified that district and individual school administration can intercept and redistribute any benefits gained from DonorsChoose and not just that teachers can't take any of the items with them. This can mean that the teacher who posted the project doesn't get anything at all out of it because someone in admin decided it should go to someone else.

                  [–]BlueApple4 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  As a gifter I really dislike the format of donors choose. How do I possibly pick one person out of thousands to throw my measly 50 at? I'd rather just be assigned someone to gift to, instead of dithering around try to pick a teacher who is "worthy" of ny money.

                  [–]HodgehigIT Teacher (Gr K-3) 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  As a non-US teacher, this switch has completely booted me out. I was so pleased at being able to participate previously, because so many websites and services are unavailable to users living outside the US.

                  Donor's Choose is a great cause but since it only applies to US teachers it's entirely invalid for me.

                  [–]skimsa 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  Only US? :( I've been part of this for 3 years now I'm cut out!

                  [–]aitiologia 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  My church is collecting school supplies for a local school, I'll spend extra money there in hopes that it frees up some money for the teachers to buy other things they need.

                  [–]noobit 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  The admins and mods should be overly transparent

                  Think you mean overtly?

                  [–]BanterEnhancer 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  I wonder if point 6 is related to that gift user (think they ran secret santa) got sacked by reddit a while back, now there's no one to do the work.

                  [–]emilyduncan04 0ポイント1ポイント  (1子コメント)

                  I had my supplies needed for this year all set and ready to post on the Reddit Gifts for Teachers, only to find out that the website I was going to use, isn't one that I can because it's not a Donors Choose vendor. So disappointed. Last year I got this amazing trapezoid table that I use daily in my kindergarten classroom for tutoring. I was really looking forward to participating in this but I am not going to use Donors Choose for a smaller project. By the time I got everything together for Donors Choose, took a picture of my classroom (which looks like it exploded right now since we're just starting to go back) and get it approved, it just isn't worth it. Good luck to everyone that does try!

                  [–]sandandsea 0ポイント1ポイント  (0子コメント)

                  As a non US teacher whose school has been helped, I must say I'm disappointed that someone else cannot receive similar assistance. It was brought directly to the school by a visiting friend of the Redditor. Thanks Redditors who have given assistance in the past!

                  コメントをもっと表示する (27 返事)