Citizen Philanthropists and Education Reform with Charles Best

What this episode covers

In 2000, Charles Best started DonorsChoose.org, a website that allows teachers to request needed materials for classroom projects, and “citizen philanthropists” from across the country could fund their requests. While DonorsChoose has an impact on individual classrooms, the data it produces creates a map of what materials teachers are requesting in every district of the country, which can be used to push for policy reform. In this episode, host Nat Malkus talks to Charles Best about DonorsChoose, the impact it has had, and how data from the ground can lead to better spending decisions and create systemic change.