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Dubuque Free School

Help us rent a space for our summer-long free school!

Leader

Robert Daughters

Location

Central Avenue Dubuque, IA 52001

About the project

We're raising money to rent a storefront in downtown Dubuque for three months this summer, which will serve as a community organizing space and the site of our annual Free School. The basic premise of Free School is simple: neighbors teach and take classes from each other for free! In the process, they develop friendships, affirm each other, dream together, and make our community more vibrant and interconnected. 
 
Free School will be open from June 1 through July 30, allowing community members to teach multi-session classes, lead discussion groups, organize game nights, host community-organizing trainings, and so much more. Dedicated space will be reserved for social justice organizations, including Dubuque Harm Reduction, to hold drop-in office hours and collaborate with one another.

The Steps

April

  • Recruit teachers and solicit programming ideas from the community. 
  • Collect material goods/supplies.

Early May

  • Take possession of the property, begin cleaning and decorating.
  • Finalize class schedule and descriptions; schedule volunteer shifts.

Mid-May

  • Hold a donor and volunteer open house!
  • Publish course and programming catalog.

Late May

  • Canvass neighborhoods to invite folks to Free School; distribute catalog.
  • Partnering social justice organizations begin utilizing the community organizing space.

June 1: Class is in session!

Why we‘re doing it

As Democratic Socialists, we believe education should be free and accessible and that everyone has something they can teach others in their community. We also believe education ought to empower us to become agents of social change. These commitments have compelled us to organize Dubuque Free School. For the past two years we have hosted a day-long free school, which offered adults and children the opportunity to take classes on topics such as workplace organizing, harm reduction, creative writing, poetry as resistance, magic, and upcycled art. These years have been wildly successful, and we are excited to expand our efforts.

$3,434.00 / $3,434.00