[FRC Blog] Support your FIRST teams with DonorsChoose

FIRST General Forum
1

Posted on the FRC Blog, 3/13/23 by Vinnie Rodino

Support your FIRST teams with DonorsChoose

Written by Vinnie Rodino, Sr. Director – School Engagement and Education, FIRST

We are excited to once again partner with NewsCorp to support FIRST ® teams and Class Packs with their DonorsChoose projects. The new campaign opened on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, and will remain open until funding is exhausted. Teachers can use this funding to purchase robot sets, tools, and other items they may need to support their FIRST teams and Class Packs. This crowdsourcing platform is available to public and public charter schools within the United States. Teachers must complete this Google Form in order for their project to be eligible for project funding consideration.

Since 2016, News Corp and other FIRST Sponsors, such as Disney, Apple, Qualcomm, and BOSCH, have funded over 1 million dollars’ worth of FIRST/DonorsChoose projects!

More details about this opportunity can be found on the DonorsChoose page.

Please Note: Funding is not guaranteed as all projects submitted must meet specific donor intent to be eligible for funding.

Is anyone else less than pleased that FIRST is “excited to once again partner with News Corp?” For those unaware, News Corp was founded by Rupert Murdoch and is still owned by the Murdoch family – famous for their ownership of Fox News. I’m pleased to see DonorsChoose opportunities available to FIRST teams, but wish the money was…not brought to you by the same people threatening American democracy.

8 Likes
2

On one hand, add it to the pile of questionable FIRST sponsors. On the other, this is insanely bad timing with the renewed concerns about the Champs location, mainly because Fox News is in part responsible for pushing the rhetoric that has caused Texas (and other states, including my own) to write oppressive anti-trans legislation.

13 Likes
3

(per the link)

Funding cannot be used to cover the cost of FIRST team or Class Pack registrations. Funding is not guaranteed and projects must meet the donor intent requirements.

Very helpful and not worrying at all given it’s News Corp.

4

Dean hangs out with Paul Ryan and Rick Perry… you really expecting anything different?

2 Likes
5

Shocked but not surprised.

2 Likes
6

Next you’ll tell me this entire program was conceived as part of a vision for a corporate-backed replacement for the school system!

3 Likes
7

Turning away from the issues discussed above…

What are some requests that have been fully funded via this model? We have a teacher onboard for the first time in many many years, and would like to leverage this opportunity.

EDIT: Looking this page it looks like the opportunity has been used to fill requests in the $1k-2k range.

8

If you want help with donorschoose.org email me:
Mdituri@gmail.com

9

Oh the irony of linking a paywalled article about a supposed threat to American democracy.

10

Here you go:

1 Like