In 2014 Kickstarter saw 3.3 million people from around the world collectively pledge over $500 million for 22,252 projects. Wishbone, a non-profit organization dedicated to sending low-income students to high-quality summer programs, is using the success of the crowdfunding model to establish a platform to fund educational opportunities for low-income students. In this way, Wishbone hopes to reshape the scholarship market by opening high-quality programs to low-income students.
Since 2012, Wishbone has raised $570,307 for 241 students to attend summer programs. All graduating seniors who have participated in Wishbone have been accepted to college while more than 50% have reported higher academic achievement. Wishbone is currently only available to high school students living in New York City, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area, but has plans to expand further.
Kalena, a 9th grade student at Leadership Public School Hayward in Hayward, California is taking her education into her own hands and raising funds to attend Girls Love Science Too, a summer program that promotes female empowerment and involvement in science. Kalena is trying to raise $935 to cover the cost of the weeklong program at the campus of California State University at Monterey Bay, CA.
Like Kickstarter, Wishbone campaigns have a time limit where people are encouraged to browse and donate to students so please consider making a donation to a Wishbone participant today!