DonorsChoose has a growing variety of products available for teachers to shop from Underrepresented Creators & Businesses in our Vendor Community. Today, you can filter for Latino and/or Hispanic, Black, Native American and Asian/Asian American and/or Pacific Islander Creators & Businesses after you search for a product type.
How Are Underrepresented Creators & Businesses Self-Certified?
The majority of resources in DonorsChoose Featured Favorites and MahoganyBooks are from underrepresented groups and reflect one or more self-certified identities. Initially, this means the creator and/or business owner self-identifies as:
- Black
- Latino and/or Hispanic
- Native American
- Asian/Asian American and/or Pacific Islander
We also utilize credible third party sources to support these attributes. For example, the Pura Belpré Award is presented to Latino/Latina writers and illustrators. The Conscious Kid curates a wide range of inclusive book lists. Additionally, we reference published media and consumer features to explore relevant companies and products (e.g. Oprah's Favorite Things, Forbes Next 1000, Google for Startups Black Founders Fund, Black-Owned brands featured at major retailers: Amazon, Walmart, Target),
Over time, we’ll expand categories for inclusivity (e.g. LGBTQ+ businesses and creators with a disability). This process will be ongoing as we work toward increasing the visibility of underrepresented creators and business-owners for DonorsChoose teachers.
Which Vendors Focus on Underrepresented Creators & Businesses?
MahoganyBooks
MahoganyBooks is an independent, family-run, Black-Owned bookstore that specializes in books written for, by, or about people of the African Diaspora. More than 100 titles from Black authors have been selected for their DonorsChoose catalog based on impact for students in Pre-K to 12th grade.
DonorsChoose Featured Favorites
A thoughtfully curated selection of more than 200 items that the DonorsChoose team purchases in advance and fulfills directly. DonorsChoose Featured Favorites highlights products from BIMPOC-Owned companies (Black, Indigenous, Multiracial, and People of Color), other underrepresented creators and inclusive products, and resources from small suppliers that have existing Special Request demand. Learn more about the growing list of equity-forward brands we support.
How to Shop Underrepresented Businesses on Amazon Business?
Amazon Business is not currently available in the default search bar and you must use their individual vendor shopping site to transfer your items to DonorsChoose. See how to shop underrepresented businesses on Amazon Business:
By using the Ownership/Diversity Certification filters on Amazon Business, you can identify sellers who meet nationally-certified ownership criteria, and ensure that your money supports businesses you feel strongly about!
When you shop on Amazon Business you can select a type of seller to view resources from by using seller certification filters. A certification is a seller attribute that has been recognized or awarded by the U.S. federal government or other standard-defining organizations.
How to Use the Filters:
- Select Amazon Business from the list of technically-integrated vendors when shopping for resources.
- In the search bar, select “All Departments” and search for the item you’re looking for.
3. On the left hand side, click on the filter for the type of seller you’d like to see resources from, and cart the items you want to add to your project. Note: not every filter will produce results - results will depend on the products available from the selected business type.