Give 5 To Reach 95

Dear Inspired Families, 
​
In the last five years, the Inspired Teaching School has grown by leaps and bounds and so has our incredible community of families. Thanks to the families and friends of ITS students, we have raised money to fund projects large and small at the school. Last year alone, the Inspired community donated nearly $87,000 to create a music program for all ITS students. THANK YOU ALL!

In honor of our 5th year, we are launching an ambitious “GIVE 5 TO REACH 95!” campaign.  That’s right, we have set an Inspired Giving goal to raise $95,000! 

As in the past, our big fundraising drive will take place in the spring during the Inspired Giving Week, culminating in the Inspired Evening on May 14, 2016.
However, we are also encouraging families to consider year-round giving through monthly gifts to the school. Please consider a gift of $5, $55, $125, $505 – anything your family can do to help us reach our goal. See below for more information on how to give. 

As we transition from a start up mode to one of sustained growth, now is the time for the school community to begin looking towards and planning for the long-term future of the school. Towards this goal, the IFA fundraising committee, the school administration and the ITS Board of Directors are excited to announce the creation of the Inspired Giving Annual Fund, an annual fund to benefit the Inspired Teaching School. 

What is Inspired Giving?
Inspired Giving is the name of the Inspired Teaching School’s annual fund. It is a collection of fundraising efforts within a single fiscal year with the goal of raising and providing unrestricted funds to the Inspired Teaching School.  

Inspired Giving provides the school flexibility and the means to invest in resources above and beyond the limits of the budget we receive from the District. It allows the school to plan and sustain the long term excellence of ITS and to make our school an exceptional learning environment for our children.

How is this different than what we have done in the past?
It’s not significantly different. Inspired Giving will provide all of the same great experiences for our children with the added benefit of flexibility for the school. 
Instead of raising funds for specific projects, we will be raising money to support the greatest needs of the school. For example, Inspired Giving dollars raised through this year’s GIVE 5 TO REACH 95 campaign may go towards:
  • A Library/Media Center. With the expansion of the school to fill all three floors, the school will have room to create a library/media center. Inspired Giving funds may go towards the build-out of this space and the purchase of new computers.
  • Buses for Field Trips. We live in an exceptional city and our children should be exploring it more often. Inspired Giving funds could allow our teachers to plan more field trips.  
  • Smaller Projects. Inspired Giving dollars will fund some of the smaller, but important things, such as a sun shade for our playground that could allow our teachers and students to use the playground for instruction or additional musical instruments to support the music program.
  • Books. Classrooms can always benefit from additional books to meet students at their individual reading levels: sets of chapter books (like the Magic Treehouse series), or 24 copies of a single book so that each child could have their own for a humanities class; and, 
  • Less visable, but also important, Inspired Giving could help fund professional development opportunities for our teachers and many more crucial investments in our school. 
Inspired Giving is not an endowment; the annual fund is meant to be spent in full every year--so we will see our money in action--and, there will be an annual report at the end of each fiscal year. 

The creation of the Inspired Giving Annual Fund will be an enduring and valuable legacy for our generation of parent leaders to leave behind. It sends a powerful message that ITS is here to stay, that our ideals are worth preserving into the next generations, and that our families are deeply invested in the school and in the community that we are building. 

If this is what 5 years looks like, we can’t wait to see 10!

Thank you, 
Lucy Newton, Rebecca Kahl and Merry Alderman Ritsch
Co-chairs Fundraising Committee


​GIVE 5 TO RAISE 95 - Create a recurring gift today. HOW TO GIVE NOW & THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
Inspired Giving can be done all year long on a recurring monthly basis! Your gifts now will help us reach our 2015-2016 goal of $95,000.  Here’s how:
1. Give Online: Create a recurring donation through The Inspired Teaching School’s Razoo site. This is a secure donation that will be billed to your credit card monthly.
https://www.razoo.com/story/Inspiredteachingschool
2. Combined Federal Campaign: If you are a federal employee, you can make a pre-tax contribution to the Inspired Teaching School directly from your paycheck. Our CFC number is 73758.
3. Create your own Family Razoo Page: Create and share your own Inspired Giving Family Razoo Page. Not only can you set up your own recurring donations, you can also share your family page for others to contribute (e.g. “in lieu of a birthday gift”).
  1. Go to www.razoo.com
  2. Click Start a Fundraiser
  3. Click Charitable Fundraiser
  4. Create a log-in
  5. Choose Fundraising Cause: Inspired Teaching Demonstration Public Charter School
    Name your fundraiser: My Kids’ Awesome School
  6. Click “Start Fundraising”
  7. Click on “Admin” tab to customize and share your page with friends/family
4. By Mail: If you like doing things the old-fashioned way, you can write a check to the Inspired Teaching School anytime! Write “Inspired Giving” on the memo line and drop the check with Ms. Douglass at the front desk or send to:

The Inspired Teaching School - Inspired Giving
200 Douglas Street, NE, Washington, DC 20003

Early contributions will give us a jump start on our “GIVE 5 TO REACH 95” campaign!


We also always welcome new volunteers! Whether you are interested in joining the Fundraising Committee and/or helping on an ad hoc basis, please let us know! Your help is greatly appreciated!