I was pleased to see Obama's inaugural call to service highlighted in yesterday's NYTimes editorial section.  The article outlines how the Service America Act (with its $5 billion price tag for the next 5 years) will expand jobs for the public good and I agree that this Act is a step in the right direction.  Starting a nonprofit, I know how challenging it is to support one's self while doing good and, as a Teach For America/AmeriCorps alumna, I am excited that more people will now be able to afford to take a few years to serve.  My hope, however, is that this is just the beginning.  To borrow from President Obama, as a nation we've had to do a lot of growing up as of late.  The time of overspending and the focus on self has quickly waned into the historical horizon and, as such, it is time to focus on making a difference with what we have, putting ourselves to work for others.  As Americans, we have proven time and again that when times are tough we have the fortitude to step-up.  If more of us spend time and money to help our fellow citizens, it goes without saying that lives will improve (for both recipients and givers). 

So whose responsibility is it to make sure that the momentum doesn't stagnate and that the "call to service" is heard and acted upon?  Obviously President Obama can do a lot to maintain the messaging.  But it falls to those of us in the "public good" sector to make sure that we spread the message, especially to those among us who are looking for a way to make a difference but aren't quite sure how to start.  Service (paid or unpaid) and philanthropy (even in small amounts) are good for you and good for the nation--tag, you're it.          

Detroit's Academy of the Americas is finally getting what they need.  When the school sent home letters to parents requesting toilet paper and other supplies, they probably didn’t realize that its shortages would soon be the focus of national attention.  After The Detroit News ran an article about the school’s inability to purchase items like toilet paper and light bulbs, national news outlets picked it up, causing donors as far away as New Mexico and D.C. to call and offer support. Now, the school won’t need to send those letters home for quite some time.   

While it’s appalling that schools can’t provide for the basic health of their students, this story is indicative of the larger budget shortfalls in Detroit.  If the schools can’t even afford toilet paper, it goes without saying that they can’t afford afterschool programming, field trips, or science lab equipment.  This morning I spoke with a dedicated Detroit principal who chronicled for me the deterioration of elective offerings at his school over the last ten years.  The ten engaging, formative programs he was once able to offer have been reduced to a single “elective”: gym.  Over the last ten years, enrollment at his school has dropped by about 60% and he simply can’t afford to offer his current students the breadth of educational experiences that former students enjoyed. 

The fact that this toilet paper story went viral is fascinating.  There are schools across the country in which students’ basic needs aren’t being met, but something about this story caught national attention.  Maybe this is the ‘in’ that we (the educational establishment, low-income schools, The Generation Project, like-minded charities) need.  Maybe we, as a nation, will begin to realize that the plight of our lowest-achieving schools isn’t necessarily their fault.  If schools can’t even afford to meet the basic hygienic needs of their students, it is unlikely they are meeting their educational needs either.  Maybe there’s a way to translate this outcry into a larger movement that focuses on what we can realistically do to aid struggling schools.  Ideas?