Dearest readers,
Lady B has now heard from five people who say teachers in their districts are not permitted to share classroom wish lists with parents or the public.
Five.
And that has caught my attention.
Teachers routinely spend their own money on things their classrooms need. Meanwhile, there are parents, grandparents, community members, and complete strangers who would gladly purchase a box of markers, headphones, tissues, books, snacks, sensory supplies, or whatever else would make a teacher's classroom a little easier.
So if a district is preventing teachers from asking for that voluntary support, I would like to know about it.
I am looking for teachers, staff members, parents, and community members who know of Michigan school districts where:
• Teachers are prohibited from publicly sharing classroom wish lists
• Amazon wish lists are prohibited
• DonorsChoose or another specific platform is prohibited
• Wish lists can only be shared under certain restrictions
• Teachers have been told they cannot ask parents or the community for classroom supplies
Please send me the district name and tell me what teachers have been told.
If there is a written policy, handbook provision, email, memo, or other documentation, even better.
And teachers: I understand completely why you may not want your name attached to this.
It won't be.
Your name, email address, school, position, or anything else that could identify you will not be published or shared by Lady B. I am interested in the policy — not exposing the person who brought it to my attention.
You can message Lady Budgetdown privately or email me.
Once I know where these policies exist, I want to start pulling the actual policies and asking a very simple question:
Why?
And, where appropriate, perhaps a second one:
Can we change it?
Because if a teacher needs something for a classroom and members of that community voluntarily want to help provide it, that seems like a conversation worth having.
Send me the breadcrumbs.
Lady B will follow them. 🪶
#LadyBudgetdown #WithReceiptsAndRespect #MichiganSchools #Teachers #ClassroomWishLists #EveryDollarMatters