What kind of match?
Starting October 18th, all qualifying projects will receive a 10X match. That means a $20 donation will become a $200 donation.
If your project meets the criteria below, new donations on your project will be matched as long as funding remains. You will see the match offer applied to your project as soon as it is approved and live on the site. Please note, the match offer will not appear during Friends and Family Pre-Funding.
How to qualify:
- Teach in one of the schools listed below.
- Create a project requesting STEM resources for your students.
- Keep your total project goal under $2,000, including taxes, shipping, fees, and the suggested donation to support DonorsChoose.
- Select a subject area under the Math & Science category.
Eligible schools for the match offer
Ann Sobrato High School, Morgan Hill Unified School District
Bella Vista High School, San Juan Unified School District
Branham High School, Campbell Union High School District
Casa Roble Fundamental High School, San Juan Unified School District
De Anza High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
Del Campo High School, San Juan Unified School District
Del Mar High School, Campbell Union High School District
Dublin High School, Dublin Unified School District
El Camino Fundamental High School, San Juan Unified School District
El Camino High School, South San Francisco Unified School District
El Cerrito High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
Encina Prepatory High School, San Juan Unified School District
Florin High School, Elk Grove Unified School District
Hercules High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
John F. Kennedy High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
Leigh High School, Campbell Union High School District
Life Academy of Health & Bioscience, Oakland Unified School District
Live Oak High School, Morgan Hill Unified School District
Mesa Verde High School, San Juan Unified School District
Mira Loma High School, San Juan Unified School District
Monterey Trail High School, Elk Grove Unified School District
Newark Memorial High School, Newark Unified School District
Pinole Valley High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
Prospect High School, Campbell Union High School District
Richmond High School, West Contra Costa Unified School District
Rio Americano High School, San Juan Unified School District
San Juan High School, San Juan Unified School District
Skyline High School, Oakland Unified School District
South San Francisco High School, South San Francisco Unified School District
Terra Linda High School, San Rafael City Schools
Valley High School, Elk Grove Unified School District
Westmont High School, Campbell Union High School District
Want to see your school on this list? Use this contact form.
What is the Rising STEM Scholars initiative?
DonorsChoose, Equal Opportunities Schools, Kapor Center, and Kingmakers of Oakland are partnering with Google.org to help Bay Area schools expand the enrollment and success of low-income students & students of color in AP STEM courses. Schools enrolled in the program receive support for school-wide, teacher, and student needs to achieve the goal of equity in STEM. To find out more about how to get involved, use this contact form.
Whether or not your school is currently participating, we’re encouraging educators in the nine counties of the Bay Area to create projects that promote equity in their students’ STEM experiences. Projects like the Study Group Ms. Leibundgut started with teachers at Prospect High School. They’ll be reading “Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain” together thanks to the support of this initiative.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I create a project on DonorsChoose?
It’s easy to create a classroom project on DonorsChoose. You’ll be asked to answer a few short essay questions and will be able to choose any items from our vendor directory which include stores like Amazon Business, Best Buy Education, and Lakeshore Learning.
Check out the official guide on how to create a project.
Most projects are straightforward—you choose items from the vendor directory. But sometimes STEM enrichment means professional development, materials for your classroom, or resources for your students to learn from home. Those can all be projects too! There are special instructions for how to create projects like these—check out the Help Center article on professional development projects.
To learn more about how you can create a successful project visit our Teacher Toolkit—there’s tons of awesome and helpful information there.
Looking for Inspiration?
Here are some examples of ways Bay Area STEM teachers have used DonorsChoose to get the supplies their classrooms need.
- The students in Ms. Webb’s biology class at Burton High School are spending the semester creating a biodiversity index of the neighboring dog park.
- Ms. Walstrom’s classroom at Balboa High School used real cow brains for their first dissection!
- Dr. Stamore’s students will soon be STEM Note-Taking Warriors at Lowell High School when they receive their pre-made tiny color diagrams, charts, and graphic organizers (and a color printer)!
- Ms. Anna at City Arts & Tech High School is giving her students a hands-on experience when it comes to learning about energy efficiency with Kill A Watt meters.
- Calculus students at Galileo Academy of Science & Tech will have graphing calculators to help them prepare for the AP exam thanks to Mr. Ring’s classroom project.
- At Wilcox High School, 9th grade students will get outdoors and learn about the natural world when they receive “Binoculars to See the Unseen” as part of their new field bags.
- Students at El Cerrito High will soon be dissecting frogs as part of their biology class. Ms. Holman calls it the highlight of their semester!
Who can create a project?
To use our website, you must be an educator at a public or public charter school, employed full-time by the school or district, and work directly with students at least 75% of the time. That means that most public school-employed classroom teachers, librarians, nurses, and school counselors are eligible. You can read more about eligibility here.
What do I do if I have a question?
The easiest way to find answers to your questions is to visit our Help Center. If you can’t find your answer through the Help Center, you can get in touch with us through our contact form.
You can also ask other teachers! Our DonorsChoose Teacher Facebook Community is +18,000 teachers strong and filled with other educators who want to share successes and help newcomers like you.