My students need food and transportation, food, and lodging to explore St. Louis! This is many of my students' first time leaving Memphis, and the first time they tour a college campus.
This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
My Students
My students are 11 and 12 year old kids who live in North Memphis. They are your typical 6th grade students who love to play sports, joke around, and they especially love to read, a habit that has been built through DEAR. My students are invested in their futures and work hard every day to put themselves on a path to college.
98% of my students qualify for Title 1 free and reduced meals, and 96% are students of color.
They know that closing the opportunity gap takes a lot of community support and appreciate your generosity.
My Project
At our school, we believe that all students deserve the opportunity to go to and through college. This is why, every year, we send each KMAM class on an eye-opening college trip beyond the Tennessee state boundary.
For many of our students, this will be the first time they have ever stepped foot on a college campus--or left the city of Memphis.
We are asking you to help empower our 6th grade students and expand their horizons. Our KIPPsters will travel all the way to Missouri to see the prestigious Washington University in St. Louis and get the awe-inspiring chance to sleep over at The City Museum. As a bonus, they’ll also check out the St. Louis Zoo! Since half of our 6th graders come to KMAM as new students, this is, yet again, the first time many will experience a liberal arts college.
Providing this life-changing trip is not cheap, but it is imperative to us that no student pay. This way, all of our 6th graders are given an equal chance to participate, as economic status is not a factor.
Due to a drastically changing educational landscape and state-level cost cutting, we no longer have the funds to make these trips happen within our school budget. The reality is that in order to provide this milestone for our KIPPsters - an opportunity that most students outside of low-income communities often take for granted - we need your help.
Many of our alumni have mentioned that these trips seriously broadened the course of their future plans, and motivated them to see a world beyond Memphis. A college tour can be the defining moment that sparks our students to become the leaders of tomorrow.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Caldwell and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
