MAGLOV FUNDING PAPER 1

Funding Paper
Sara Maglov
Loyola University
ET 680 Summer 2018
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Fundraiser Description
Funding Factory is a non-profit organization that helps parties turn recycled items into

funds to update technologies. Once an organization registers with the Funding Factory they begin

working with their local community to collect empty ink cartridges and old cell phones to be

recycled. The collected items are returned to the Funding Factory and are ethically recycled. The

collecting organization receives monies based on the amount of recyclable materials collected.

This fundraiser aligns with my technology plan which aims to increase the use of

collaboration while decreasing our school’s paper usage. This fundraiser requires school

members to work with community members to encourage recycling of old electronic devices.

Within our school building the “Vincent Farm Gives Back” club operates and attempts to make

the larger community a better place. I feel this fundraiser could be incorporated into this club and

could further inspire collaboration between the school community and the larger community.

The second objective of my technology plan is to make our school eco-friendlier by decreasing

the need for traditional paper tasks in the classroom. The Funding Factory fundraiser initiative

aims to help the environment by properly recycling ink cartridges and cell phones and as a result

aligns with my overall plan.

Information and registration for Funding Factory can be found entirely online by

accessing the following link: http://www.fundingfactory.com . Within this website an

organization can register as a “cause” or a “business” and submit all their information into a

form. There is no registration fee which appeals to me as well as funding within the schoolhouse

tends to be limited. I can obtain materials and literature from the website to be used in our
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fundraising efforts. Once the program is running, I can monitor our progress online and share,

via social media, our school’s progress. Working with Funding Factory appears to be simple and

impactful which makes me eager to begin this program in the fall.

Proposed Use of Funding

While Funding Factory does not have an application process and all causes or businesses

are able to participate, I feel it important to have goals outlined so that community members as

well as teachers and staff will be compelled to participate. The goal of this fundraiser would be

to earn money to provide teachers with incentives to participate in professional learning sessions

as well as lesson materials for students.

When considering Ely’s Eight Conditions, participant incentive is a condition I am not

yet able to meet. Introducing new ideas and programs at the start of the school year is not always

well-received and I would like to be able to offer teachers incentives for participation in the

technology plan. This could be in the form of awards for participation, prizes for number of

collaboration activities completed or lesson materials to aid in the planning process. Participating

in a Funding Factory fundraiser would provide the technology committee with the opportunity to

provide these incentives to our teachers. Another potential use for the money earned through the

recycling program, is the purchasing of a larger storage version of Google Drive. One of the

goals of my technology plan is to create a repository for collaborative lesson plans written to

address the Common Core State Standards while using technology and providing students with

opportunities to collaborate. By purchasing a plan from Google, the technology committee would

have more storage and be able to provide teachers with access to more lessons and activities.

Another feature offered by Google Drive is access to a wide variety of apps. Upon researching, I

have found many educational apps that, with proper planning, could enhance lessons. While
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many of the apps are free there are several that look beneficial but must be paid for. The

technology committee could potentially use the funds raised through our school’s participation in

The Funding Factory activities to purchase apps for student use. The final potential use for the

money collected is the purchase of lesson materials. While one of the goals of my technology

plan is to reduce the need for paper lesson materials will certainly still be needed. I would like to

be able to have funds set aside to purchase materials for grade level teams to share. Many

teachers spend their own money on classroom materials and I believe by being able to relieve

some of this burden, teachers will be more willing to participate in the technology plan.

By presenting these ideas to staff and teachers at Vincent Farm Elementary, I hope to

encourage participation in the Funding Factory fundraising efforts as well as the larger

technology plan. The additional funds will be useful in providing teacher incentives as well as

access to apps and materials to enhance lessons.

References
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Ely, D. P. (1990). Conditions that facilitate the implementation of educational technology innovations.

Journal of Research on Computing in Education., 23(2), 298-306. Retrieved June 27, 2018, from

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tXQUy2l--C427T9XLrqYNfm8KxLB3Jxu/view

Funding Factory. (2018). Retrieved June 28, 2018, from http://www.fundingfactory.com/