Start a STEM Gift Drive in Your Community

Interested in bringing the STEM Gift Drive to your community? Authorized local campaigns are led by volunteers who build community partnerships, recruit collection hosts, and work with an approved charitable organization to put STEM toys, games, and books into the hands of young people in their community.

What does a local STEM Gift Drive do?

• Organizes a local annual STEM gift collection campaign
• Recruits businesses, organizations, and community groups to host collections
• Works with an approved local charitable beneficiary
• Promotes STEM-focused giving for primarily middle- and high-school youth
• Coordinates local collection/drop-off logistics and, if desired, an Elfing Day event
• Reports campaign results back to STEM Gift Drive Headquarters

Are you our next community leader?

A STEM Gift Drive Chief Elf Organizer (CEO):

• Has strong leadership and community organizing skills
• Has strong community relationships or is willing to build them
• Has at least two additional committed volunteers ready to help build the local campaign
• Can recruit businesses and organizations
• Is organized and responsive
• Believes in the STEM Gift Drive mission
• Is comfortable working collaboratively with a charitable partner
• Is committed to inclusion and belonging
• Can represent the STEM Gift Drive professionally

Know your community:

Before reaching out, spend some time considering how a STEM-focused gift campaign would fit into your community.

• What existing holiday or year-round gift drives operate in your community?
• Are any already focused specifically on STEM?
• What unmet need would STEM Gift Drive address?
• What organizations, businesses, professional groups, clubs, communities, or other partners in your area might participate?
• What charitable organizations could receive and distribute the gifts?
• Is there a particular youth population or program the campaign could help support?

Choosing a Charity Beneficiary

STEM Gift Drive headquarters will work with the local branch CEO / organizer and the chosen charitable organization to establish the required MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) before solicitation or collection begins.

Charity organization general guidelines:

• Is a qualified 501(c)(3) charitable organization
• Has STEM programming or another strong connection to our mission
• Has the infrastructure to distribute gifts appropriately
• Is willing to actively collaborate with the local campaign
• Agrees to uphold applicable STEM Gift Drive standards, including our Inclusion & Belonging commitments

What are you getting yourself into?

What we provide:

• Authorization to operate a local STEM Gift Drive campaign
• Use of approved STEM Gift Drive branding
• A dedicated community page on STEMGiftDrive.org
• Recognition of your leadership team and partner organizations on the main website
• Shared Host a Collection and Volunteer systems
• Campaign flyers, graphics, collection-box materials, and supporter resources
• Gift standards and Gift Guide
• Guidance for establishing the charitable beneficiary relationship
• Campaign planning support
• Access to established STEM Gift Drive practices and resources
• Opportunity to host a local Elfing Day
• Ongoing support from Headquarters

Expectations of branch leaders:

• Sign and comply with the STEM Gift Drive Branch Authorization Agreement
• Uphold the STEM Gift Drive mission, standards, and Inclusion & Belonging Statement
• Use STEM Gift Drive branding only as authorized
• Collect gifts that comply with the official Gift Guide
• Work only with an approved charitable beneficiary
• Not represent the local campaign as an independent nonprofit or tax-exempt organization
• Not directly collect monetary donations (a charity can likely help you set up a donation portal that they manage)
• Ensure charitable acknowledgments/receipts come from the benefiting charity
• Maintain appropriate campaign records and provide impact reporting
• Protect the reputation and integrity of STEM Gift Drive

How to start

1. Tell us about your community. Ready to pitch your idea?! Send an email to STEMGiftDrive@gmail.com

Include your name & community, who your volunteers are, why you want to bring the STEM Gift Drive to your area, initial thoughts about collection partners and charity beneficiary, any market research you’ve done on gift drives in your area and how this will fit in, and any ideas you have for building the local campaign.

We’ll review your ideas and let you know whether we think your community may be a good fit for an authorized STEM Gift Drive campaign.

2. Meet with us. If there appears to be a good fit, we’ll schedule a video conversation with you and your prospective leadership team.

3. Build your campaign. If we mutually agree to proceed, we’ll complete the Branch Authorization Agreement, establish the charitable beneficiary relationship, develop your project plan, create your official community page, and prepare for local outreach.

Let’s make a difference together!