You're on track to get doubled donations (and unlock a reward for the colleague who referred you). Keep up the great work!
Take credit for your charitable giving! Check out your tax receipts
To use your $50 gift card credits, find a project to fund and we'll automatically apply your credits at checkout. Find a classroom project
Skip to main content

Help teachers & students in your hometown this season!
Use code HOME at checkout and your donation will be matched up to $100.

See this teacher's page

This teacher needs your help!

Mr. Smitka from Roseville, MI is requesting technology through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mr. Smitka is requesting

Michigan River Testing and Water Ecology

My students need a water sampling and testing kit.

  • $392 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mr. Smitka for his next project!

Help Mr. Smitka

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mr. Smitka for his next project!

I believe that students today do not realize the beauty of nature. With advances in technology, today's students are constantly connected to each other yet it is a rare occurrence that students are able to go outside and connect with the world around them. I want to be able to give my students opportunities to understand how our world works. I am a 9th grade Biology teacher from a large urban fringe school district where for many of my students, the only outdoor experiences they may have are in their backyard. Our school has a large percentage of students on free or reduced lunch and often times funds are short at home as well as here in the classroom. I want to be able to give my students the world, but I only have the resources to give them a slice of it. This is where you come in! Please help my students open their eyes and understand the world around them by helping me purchase this water testing kit!

I feel that we need to create opportunities for our students to reconnect with nature and help them find that missing link that makes them appreciate the things that they have and make them want to preserve our world for future generations. Students need to reestablish that link that was lost when technology became more popular than their own backyard. In order to help support this initiative, I would like to bring a group of my biology students on a trip down a Michigan river to test it's water quality and learn about the ecology behind it. However, in order to perform tests, a water sampling and testing kit is needed and we do not have the sufficient funds to buy it. I want to be able to give my students this opportunity, but without the available testing supplies, the trip will just not be the same. Please help my students reconnect with nature and learn about biology at the same time!

In order for my students to have a successful educational trip, we will require a water testing kit. With it, my students will be learning how water systems work here in Michigan and throughout the world as well. By studying how rivers interact with the environment, how they contribute to watersheds and the surrounding sources of water and how we have a huge impact on the health of the water and its inhabitants, my students will be able to see themselves as a vital part of this valuable resource. As we travel down the river, my students will stop every now and then to perform various tests on the water and then use this data to determine what type of wildlife can survive in these waters. By doing this, we will be able to string together ideas that hold together these ecosystems. Using the data, we will meet back to collaborate and discuss our findings, helping to reinforce their understandings of our own Michigan ecosystems. I truly feel that if given the opportunity, this trip, with the help of the water testing kit would set off that "spark" in my students letting them excitedly go out and tell the world what they have discovered.

With your help, my students will understand their place in our world; be able to see their impact on how our waters flow and make real-world connections that they just can't do sitting in a classroom.

Mr. Smitka Roseville Middle School Grades 9-12

Equity Focus

This project directly supports students at a historically underfunded school. Learn more about our Equity Focus.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

More about Mr. Smitka

Roseville, MI View local requests

More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more

135 students impacted 10donors

Boost your odds

Add a profile photo in addition to your classroom photo. If you add a photo, it'll show up right here on your project page.

You are more likely to receive funding if you put a face to your name.

Upload a photo

Top rated for efficiency and transparency.

You donate directly to the teacher or project you care about and see where every dollar you give goes.

Expand the "Where your donation goes" section below to see exactly what Mr. Smitka is requesting.

See our finances

Where Your Donation Goes

Materials Cost Quantity Total
ENVIRONMENTAL BACKPACK WATER • Sargent Welch $269.96 1 $269.96

Materials cost

$269.96

Vendor shipping charges

$27.00

Sales tax

$0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$6.75

Fulfillment labor & materials

$17.00

Total project cost

$321.00

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$70.46

Total project goal

$391.46

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

$391.46

6 Donors

-$188.65

Donations toward project cost

-$160.35

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$28.30

match offer

-$189.00

Match offer toward project cost

-$154.98

Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$34.02

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$6.90

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

$0.00

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

View complete list Show less

Give the most requested basic supplies

See teacher requests

Give back to your community

Find opportunities to impact local needs by exploring a map of classroom projects near you.

See local area

Project Activity

{"pmaHash":"","showProjectRecommendations":true,"leadGenEnabled":true,"hideTeacherDetails":false,"schoolState":"MI","teacherPossessivePronoun":"his","PMsManager":null,"schoolGradeType":{"id":4,"name":"High School"},"TeacherPMForms":{},"completingDonationAmount":0,"teacherHasClassroomPhoto":true,"proposalURL":"https://www.donorschoose.org/project/michigan-river-testing-and-water-ecology/223538/","mayHaveReplacements":false,"numStudents":135,"teacherScreenName":"Mr. Smitka","isEquityFocus":true,"proposalHash":"-1572216514","isApplePayMobileOnly":true,"progressBarPercentage":100.00,"photosPublished":true,"queryString":"","DonorPMForm":null,"schoolCity":"Roseville","teachersOnPage":[264807],"isTeacherViewingTheirOwnProject":false,"minimizedLeadGenEnabled":false,"proposalId":223538,"proposalMessageFormModel":null,"numActiveProjects":0,"verifyShowPhotos":"","eligibleToBeCopied":false,"authorIds":{"264807":{"owner":"Mr. Smitka","donationSalutations":{}}},"displayedPercentFunded":1.0,"proposalsOnPage":[223538],"pmaId":"","teacherProfilePhotoURL":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp264807_272x272.png?width=136&height=136&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1449873551737","teacherHasProfilePhoto":true,"currentWorkflowStatusCode":21,"teacherChallengeId":93560,"isApplePayEnabled":true,"fundedByTarget":false,"activeProject":null,"donorIdsForImpactPhotoCheck":["MTc0MjMz","MjY3MDI5OQ==","MjgyMjIw","MjgxNjU4","MjgyMDg5","MjcxOTMx","Mjc0MTk3"],"teacherId":264807,"schoolCounty":"Macomb","fullyFunded":true,"isStudentLed":false,"isExpired":true,"schoolStateObj":{"code":"MI","name":"Michigan"}}