Celebrating Unsung Heroes: Our Teachers.

Part educators, part psychologists, and part cat herders, we trust them to help shape our children’s minds and keep them safe, sometimes under the most extraordinary circumstances.

During the height of the outbreak, teachers were asked to take on new challenges and conduct classes in innovative and unorthodox ways. No two days were alike between Zoom/Teams/Skype, makeshift virtual classrooms, and the many distractions of working from home.

Now that most of our kids are back in school, teachers not only encounter the demands they faced before COVID-19 (including paying for classroom supplies out of their own pockets) but also the continuing virus exposure and a political firestorm.

As we continue to navigate the path back to “normal,” we choose to Show Cause for our teachers this month. Essential in every sense of the word, they have gone above and beyond to do their jobs. To honor K-12 educators, Rain team members each selected a school or classroom project with special meaning. Some focused on schools they went to or where their children attend, while others identified worthwhile classroom projects on DonorsChoose. 

There is never enough we can do for teachers, but we are proud to highlight the schools and projects we chose to support. 

• Grand Ledge Public Schools (Michigan) – Willow Ridge Elementary 
• Chicago Public Schools (Illinois) – Audubon School
• Detroit Public Schools (Michigan) – Renaissance High School, Detroit Prep Academy, Detroit Community Elementary, Ronald Brown Academy 
• Lexington Public Schools (Kentucky) – Breckinridge Elementary School
  
• Elmonica Public Schools (Oregon) – Elmonica Elementary School
• Cadillac Public Schools (Michigan) – Lincoln Elementary
• Lake Orion Public Schools (Michigan) – Blessings in a Backpack