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U.S. NEWSFriday 11 March 2016

Flash funding highlighting online In Iowa, regulators unanimously
philanthropy’s role in classroom approve Bakken pipeline permit

C. THOMPSON website as of midnight those things offer, “but it DAVID PITT appointing landowners
Associated Press Wednesday. will certainly be another Associated Press will assess how to move
Attention Mrs. Mills at Von It is the latest effort under- tool for organizations and DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) forward on appeal and
Tobel Middle School in Las scoring the use of online people to use in the fu- — The last state permit they are going through
Vegas, the new library fur- philanthropy to bridge the ture.” needed for a pipeline that that process,” said John
niture your school needs gap between what school Before Thursday, Do- will carry a half-million bar- Murray, a Storm Lake at-
is on the way! And Mr. budgets provide and what norsChoose.org said more rels of crude oil daily from torney who represents the
Sutherland’s class at Hill- teachers say they need. than $400 million had been North Dakota to Illinois Northwest Iowa Landown-
crest Elementary in Gil- Educators, many of whom raised on its site to fund was approved Thursday ers Association. “We need
lette, Wyoming, that music report spending an aver- nearly 700,000 education by Iowa utilities regulators, to read the entire ruling to
keyboard’s coming! Mrs. age of $500 from their own projects posted by about who also gave the Texas- fully inform ourselves.”
based company authority Lawsuits also are expect-
Charles Best, right, CEO of DonorsChoose.org, and Rakey Drammeh, CEO assistant, work near a to use eminent domain for ed to challenge whether
large graphics monitor displaying realtime donations trending around the country for teacher’s land that property owners the board has the author-
projects in New York. Wish lists posted on the education philanthropy website DonorsChoose.org are unwilling to voluntarily ity to grant eminent do-
are being fulfilled in a “flash funding” effort involving actors, pro athletes, tech titans and others. provide. The Iowa Utilities main authority to a com-
(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews) Board voted unanimously pany building a pipeline
to approve a hazardous for profit. Such authority is
D at Public School No. 81 pockets to equip students, 280,000 teachers. pipeline permit for the frequently given to public-
in Buffalo, clear a space have secured millions of The celebrity givers in Thurs- Dakota Access pipeline, ly owned utilities, but not
for your new foam carpet dollars for books and sup- day’s campaign hope to called Bakken pipeline often to for-profit compa-
and therapy balls! Wish lists plies by floating requests in inspire others to pitch in because it will stretch 346 nies, like Dakota Access,
posted by teachers on the cyberspace instead of be- and get all the pending miles from Bakken oil fields which is owned by public-
education philanthropy fore the school board. projects funded. Google in North Dakota to Illinois, ly traded companies Phil-
website DonorsChoose.org Also this week, the crowd- co-founder Sergey Brin crossing through 18 Iowa lips 66 and Energy Transfer
are being fulfilled Thursday funding site GoFundMe. and WhatsApp co-founder counties and 1,300 par- Partners. Owners of 296
in a “flash funding” effort com announced a new Brian Acton will match $3.2 cels of land. “Together we parcels of land have re-
involving actors, pro ath- concentration on educa- million in citizen donations. weighed all the issues pre- fused to sign easements
letes, tech titans and oth- tion fundraising, begin- The benefactors include sented by the parties and allowing the pipeline to
ers, each of whom will fund ning with a contest that other actors (Ashton Kutch- found the issues of safety, go through their property.
all the projects in a specific will award a needy public er, Seth Rogen, Anna Ken- economic benefits, en- In addition to an overall
city, region or entire state. school with 100 comput- drick), athletes (Carmelo vironmental factors and legal challenge, those
“My head might explode. ers. Like DonorsChoose. Anthony, Torrey Smith, Lar- landowners’ rights to merit people may fight land
It really might explode org, the site lets a teacher ry Fitzgerald, Dwight How- the most significant weight condemnation proceed-
from joy. Or my heart,” or school post a funding ard), and business and in reaching our decision,” ings at the county level
said “Community” actress request for a specific item foundation leaders (Micro- board member Elizabeth and appeal their individ-
Yvette Nicole Brown, who and then watch as donors soft co-founder Paul Allen; Jacobs said. The board ual cases to district court.
is covering DonorsChoose. contribute a few dollars at Bill and Melinda Gates; the decided that the pipeline The pipeline has been in
org projects in her home- a time. In the last year, Go- chief executives of Zap- met the requirements of the works since 2014, after
town of East Cleveland, FundMe.com took in $60 pos, LinkedIn and Yelp; Iowa law, which autho- North Dakota Gov. Jack
Ohio, in the #BestSchool- million for education cam- Facebook Chief Operating rizes approval of a permit Dalrymple urged industry
Day initiative. In all, 58 ce- paigns from 777,000 dona- Officer Sheryl Sandberg). only if it “will promote the and government officials
lebrity philanthropists — in- tions, the company said. The idea was inspired by public convenience and to build more pipelines to
cluding Gwyneth Paltrow, Association of Fundraising Stephen Colbert, “The necessity.” After the vote, keep pace with North Da-
Samuel L. Jackson and Professionals spokesman Late Show” host and a about a dozen people in kota’s rapid oil production
Serena Williams — have Michael Nilsen said online DonorsChoose.org board the audience stood one and reduce truck and oil
pledged $14.2 million to philanthropy will not re- member who surprised by one and stated, “I am train traffic. North Dakota
fund nearly 12,000 projects place spaghetti dinners or teachers in his home state an Iowan and I vote no.” is the nation’s No. 2 oil
in 47 states plus Washing- bake sales anytime soon of South Carolina by fund- Board members quickly producer behind Texas.
ton, D.C., that were listed because of the power in ing all the classroom proj- left the room without fur- Energy Transfer Partners,
on the DonorsChoose.org the personal connections ects in one day in May. ther comment. Outside of which did not immedi-
the building, opponents ately respond to a request
of the pipeline held a rally; for comment on Thursday,
at least one woman cried. had set a completion
An appeal is likely from date for the pipeline late
opponents, including indi- this year. It already has be-
vidual landowners and a gun stockpiling steel pipe
coalition of environmental in anticipation of getting
and property rights groups the needed permits. “This
who have voiced con- is fantastic and certainly
cerns about pipeline leaks a big step in getting Bak-
that could harm farmland, ken barrels to quality mar-
rivers and streams. Some kets and further displac-
farmers also oppose the ing foreign barrels,” said
pipeline, complaining it Ron Ness, president of the
will decrease land values, North Dakota Petroleum
disrupt productivity and Council, which represents
damage timber areas. hundreds of companies
“While the ruling is cer- working in the state’s oil
tainly a setback and dis- patch.