How To Plan & Execute a Philanthropy Program in Two Weeks

Last month, I was talking with Jon Ruzicka a lifelong friend from Grangeville, Idaho, who is now a public high school principal. We were trading stories in our relative fields of interest - collaborative software and primary education. Along the way, we stumbled on an opportunity to use our individual strengths to make a difference.

We’d commiserated that Math and English, the fundamental building blocks for critical thinking and communication, aren't engaging kids enough. And how important critical thinking and clear communication skills are in today's digital workforce.

Subsequently, we moved on to boasting about our accomplishments. Jon crowing about how his district was overcoming typical administrative hurdles to effect real progress in real time, and me broadcasting that Smartsheet software can coordinate virtually anything.

And, then Jon did what a former math teacher, football coach, now high school principal is apt to do.  He said, "Let’s put our money where our mouths are and coordinate a better outcome in the classrooms."

That was it.  Two 6'7" over-the-hill athletes staring at a gauntlet laid squarely between them.

It took about 40 seconds to conclude that the secret sauce is in the quality and passion of the individual teacher. So, how to get more teachers to inspire their students in these subjects?

The Smartsheet Inspirational Teacher Award

To make this happen within 2 weeks (kids were out of school in 4 weeks), we had to:

1. Enable collection of student nominations.So, we set up a Smartsheet and created a web form. This took about 15 minutes.
2. Get the web form link and instructions out to the students. In a matter of hours, a very efficient Jennifer Henderson, Executive Director of Boise Public Schools Education Foundation, and Steve Higgins, Grangeville High School’s Principal, had crafted and distributed the nomination form to students via email.
3. Judge the submissions and award the prizes. With all the data automatically flowing into Smartsheet, it took no time for the judges to review and evaluate the nominations.

In less than two weeks and based on student nominations, today we awarded $25,000. These five teachers each were awarded a $5,000 grant:

• Paula Uriarte, Capital High School (Boise) 
• Greg Hoetker, Timberline High School (Boise)
• Barb James, Kuna High School (Kuna)
• Matt Elven, Grangeville High School (Grangeville)
• Tate Castleton, Canyon Springs High School (Caldwell)

Congratulations to the winning teachers - our hats are off to you!

- Brent

PS: Having never run a program like this in the past, I think it’s interesting to note what we learned:

• Teachers and administrators (and students) are thrilled to have support from the community. Whether it’s helping building a new playground, supporting an auction, or in our case - giving them cash to further pursue their efforts – they get really fired up (giddy almost) that someone cares.
• Find a team that embraces your vision. There are probably some questions about why we focused on Boise over our local Seattle/Bellevue communities, but here’s the quick answer: We tried contacting both of the major local school districts in our back yard and never heard back. Enter the Boise Public School Education Foundation. They jumped on the opportunity immediately and were critical in getting it done.
• Keep it simple. From your tools to your process, don’t create unnecessary steps and barriers between your goal and your desired outcome. We organized the entire program in Smartsheet, including creating the web form for the students to nominate their teachers, collecting and organizing their submissions, and taking action to select winners in a matter of days.

Having started several companies, I know first hand that one of the most important factors in a company’s success is the quality of the employees. Hiring exceptional people with stellar communication and critical thinking skills is part of our recipe for success here at Smartsheet. Regardless of your size or mission, bright employees are vital to growth and innovation. Teachers who inspire and challenge students are a crucial piece, they are where these skills all begin.

And now the challenge. How about a few more organizations get in on this effort? As our politicians and government leaders wrestle with education reform on the state and federal levels, we all should do what we can to impact positive change in our public schools. It’s in our best interests as employers to ensure the students have exceptional educational experiences. Our companies, our communities, and our world depends on it.

It doesn’t take a committee. It doesn’t take months. It takes wanting to get it done.