The main office is used to deliveries, but this year secretaries are signing for more, as much-needed classroom materials are being sent to DHS from a nonprofit organization called DonorsChoose.org.

About 30 teachers this year have applied for donations from DonorsChoose, a nonprofit organization that allows for teachers to request donations for materials, and even funding for field trips and professional development.

The big-ticket item for DHS teachers this year appears to be Chromebooks for their classrooms, and thanks to the Connecticut-based Dalio Foundation, which partnered with DonorsChoose, many of these requests have been granted.

English teacher Arielle Fischer is one of several English teachers to be granted funding from Dalio, and now has eight Chromebooks so that her students could have access to technology everyday in her classroom.

“It’s nice because they don’t have to go to the library,” Fischer said. “They can just come here and the computers are available.

”One of Fischer’s students, sophomore Faith Thompson, said, “I expect that the new supplies will help make class run more smoothly and according to Ms. Fischer’s plans. We don’t need to rely solely on the availability of the school’s general supply.”

Thompson said that teachers should continue applying for donations on DonorsChoose, as the materials they receive can become beneficial for the classroom. “The resources that they can acquire through such outlets can help the classroom environment,” Thompson said.

The introduction of Chromebooks has allowed for Fischer to work individually with students that need extra help on ELA skills. While her attention is on the small group needing help, other students work on assignments on Chromebooks.

Art teacher Scott Carrizzo receives $500 a year as a budget to supply all of his classes, and consequently that doesn’t go very far.

“If I use the $500 budget to buy a camera lens, which could run to about 200 dollars, then I kind of have really exhausted the budget,” Carrizzo said. “There’s not much left.”

Carrizzo has applied through DonorsChoose for an audio recorder and a microphone for his film students.

Teachers aren’t the only ones that are praising DonorsChoose and donors for their charity. Principal Dan Donovan is pleased to see that teachers are using DonorsChoose.

“I think it’s great, I really like the fact that teachers are taking the initiative,” Donovan said.

The usage of DonorsChoose has had positive impacts on the staff and students, but has also shed a light on the issues the school is experiencing.

“We’re underfunded drastically,” Donovan said. “We are the lowest funded district in the state of Connecticut per pupil expenditure.”

According to ctschoolfinance.org, Danbury spends about $12,742 per student while other districts such as Stamford spend about $18,591 per student.

This problem has made teaching a bit more difficult for some of DHS’ teachers. Without any money to buy modern equipment, the experiences that students have become less relevant to the real world.

“If you have access to stuff that’s being used in college or out in the professional world, then your experience is more relevant,” Carrizzo said. “If I’m using old equipment or outdated equipment, then it diminishes your experience.”

One of Carrizzo’s web design students, junior Zhenyang Li, said, “I don’t think I’ve ever touched a professional camera before; just phone cameras with their ok quality. This is something new to me, but it’s a good type of new. You get to explore and experience what professionals do every day.”

DonorsChoose and its donors have become a beneficial source of purchasing materials that could make life for students easier. “We thank our business partners all the time who give us donations; otherwise we’d really be in trouble,” Donovan said.