The director of DonorsResource, Della Rae, took a calculated risk that high school students could run her website, which offers a way for community contributions of “stuff” to be distributed efficiently to non-profits in Portland that depend on such donations. Riverdale students have stepped up to the challenge brilliantly, and Della’s charisma, sense-of-calling and high expectations have mentored them in ways that we are all thankful for.
This project once again demonstrates the excellent work that high school students are capable of if given a chance. Every high school needs to offer students multiple opportunities to step out of the classroom and produce results in the community. The DonorsResource project at Riverdale High School has been profoundly empowering for the students involved, and models a dimension of high school education that is under-appreciated and under-utilized.
Riverdale is grateful to Della Rae for her vision and generosity. And we are grateful to the DonorsResource interns for proving, to anyone who looks, what students can accomplish when offered real and important tasks.
