—50% comes from individuals —50% comes from foundations

When Parents United began we relied heavily on start-up support from foundations. Now that we are becoming established, we must rely more on financial support from individuals.

Expenditures

Outreach and Communications
Almost half of our dollars are used for outreach and communication. From the beginning it has been the mission of Parents United to build a large and powerful coalition of parents from around the state who are willing and able to speak up for their public schools. We do this work electronically and in person.

We work to be the go-to group for parent questions on policy and we are known as the group who will go anywhere in the state and speak with any parents who want to know how policy affects their local schools. This relationship building has been imperative to our work.

Legislative and policy analysis
The second largest percentage of our budget is used for legislative and policy analysis. During the legislative session we track and analyze proposed education legislation so that parents have an easy place to see what is happening at the Capitol. This allows for greater civic engagement.

We encourage a close relationship between parents and their school board and administration so they may better understand how proposed legislation will affect their schools in the coming years

Web site
A little over 10% of our budget is used to maintain a vibrant Web site. In order for parents to be able to speak up for their schools they need credible information. It is critical to our work that we provide a vital and up to the minute Web site, as well as the ability for parents to contact us for in depth conversations about their schools.

Fundraising
We use around 5% of our budget to keep the wheels on the bus. We write grants and once a year run an appeal campaign.