What’s special: Insideschools.org provides independent, professionally written reviews of all New York City public schools and gives free advice to parents about school choice.
Downside: Due to a lack of funding, the website may have to fold, or severely curtail its free services.
On Sunday, the Daily News urged New Yorkers to “rally to save” Insideschools.org. Calling us the “single most valuable independent source of information on New York City public schools,” the editorial lamented that we may go out of business.Our financial woes might not surprise our regular readers, who receive our appeals for donations and see the notices on the website. But many of our users have asked how we got in this financial predicament and what’s going to happen next.Since 2002, Insideschools.org has produced independent, in-depth, professional reviews of all New York City public schools. When we launched, there were 1,100 schools – today there are more than 1,500, including 100 charter schools. The New York City school system has undergone several overhauls under Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Klein - and we have done our best to stay apace and keep you informed of the changes.But even with a tiny (and modestly paid) staff, and a small cadre of freelancers and volunteers, it is increasingly expensive to keep doing what we do best: send trained reporters into the schools and write reviews that are professionally edited. At the same time, we’re keeping up with what’s happening in school policy, politics, and admissions. There is truly no other site like ours in the United States, but what makes us unique is also what makes us “expensive.” In today’s economy, even the most established for-profit news gathering organizations are struggling to stay afloat. And this is where we find ourselves today – seeking generous, civic-minded funders who would allow us to continue the work that New York City public school parents have come to rely on: 1.1 million readers visited our site in the past year alone. Barring an infusion of new funds, we will have to reduce our staffing significantly while we regroup and look to find a more sustainable model.If you are able to help out with a contribution, please visit our Donate Now page (and a sincere thanks to everyone who has already donated.) If you, or anyone you know, can help Insideschools in a “big way,” This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Thanks for your support… we’ll keep you posted.
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