There are many teachers that give from the heart and from their pockets. Think back to a teacher that made a big impact on you as a young student. Was it their thirst for teaching and molding young minds? How they made learning fun? Or was it because they saw something in you that no one else did? What did it do for you personally?
The facts are that teachers play an amazingly important role in the lives of the children they teach.
However, knowledge and the joy of learning are not the only things that they offer. Did you know up to 92% of teachers have spent their own money on students as well?
In 2010 alone, over 1.6 billion dollars was donated by teachers in the United States. I think you will agree, that is a lot of money.
What are these teachers using their own money for?
Here is a short list of what teachers are paying for:
First of all they are spending it on school supplies. In addition they are spending it on the costs of class trips for students that can’t afford to go. Furthermore they are paying for school clothes, food and toiletries for students.
Why would they do this?
Teachers love their students and want to help them the best way that they can. They understand that there are no school budgets for school supplies or trips. School fundraising can only over so much.
It basically comes down to this… if they don’t do something, then no one else will. Their hope is that an act of kindness will make a difference in a young person’s life both now and in the future.
How Can We Recognize Special Teachers That Give From The Heart and From Their Pockets
A small grassroots grant making organization called, The Pollination Project, wants to do this exactly. Their goal is to find and reward the top 20 amazing teachers with a $1,000 of seed money.
What is different about this approach?
Whereas most grants go to organizations, the Pollination Project will give the money directly to the teachers that are in the best position to use it wisely. These teachers have skin in the game already, for they have been using their own funds to take care of the students and teach their classrooms.
In conclusion, we applaud the Pollination Project and the awesome teachers out there that are building the future citizens of our country. It recognizes the mazing teachers that give from the heart and from their pockets.
If you would like to learn more about the Pollination Project, you can learn about them here.
