Support Cooperative Computing Alliance
Help cover equipment, hosting, shipping and exam fees so participants can train for free.
Online gifts are currently received by Public Data Library Inc. Recipient and tax details.
Why your gift matters
CCA gives people in low-wage jobs the hands-on technical training their employers used to pay for. Your gift is what keeps it open.
Demand is outpacing capacity
More people are applying than our current equipment, hosting and mentor capacity can serve. Every donation directly increases the number of participants we can accept this year.
What your gift pays for
Donations go directly to the things participants use: the enterprise equipment they configure, the hosting and cloud capacity they train on, the shipping that gets hardware to their door, and the certification exams that turn that experience into a credential an employer recognizes.
Because programs are free in full, no participant has to decide whether they can afford to keep going. Read how we use funds.
Giving levels
Each level covers a specific cost we are funding right now. Any amount helps, and nothing here is a minimum.
$25
Provides cloud access for one participant
$100
Helps fund networking equipment for the lending library
$500
Sponsors a certification attempt for one participant
$1,500
Replaces one enterprise device in the lending library
Major and founding gifts
$5,000
Sponsors one participant for a full year, covering equipment, access, mentorship and certifications
$50,000
Expands our datacenter capacity so more participants can work on real infrastructure at once
$100,000
Covers a year of hosting for the systems every CCA program runs on
Considering a gift of $25,000 or more? We will walk you through exactly what it funds and report back on the outcome. Email info@coopalliance.org.
Monthly giving
Recurring gifts are the most useful support we receive.
Hosting, cloud access and equipment replacement are monthly costs. A predictable monthly gift lets us commit to participants a year ahead instead of quarter to quarter, so we can accept someone in March without waiting to see what arrives in December.
- $10 a month keeps one participant’s cloud environment running
- $50 a month covers ongoing access and tooling for a small cohort
- $125 a month replaces one enterprise device every year
Each of these opens the donation form with monthly giving already selected. You can change the amount, or cancel, at any time.
How giving online works
The donation form takes about a minute, and a recurring gift stays under your control.
Online donations go to Public Data Library Inc., EIN 88-4214948.
Choose one of the suggested amounts or enter your own, from $1 upward. You can pay by card, from a US bank account, or with a digital wallet. Your card or bank details go straight into our payment provider’s secure form, and CCA never sees or stores them. Payment privacy notice.
- A recurring gift can be monthly, every three months or yearly, and you can pause or stop it at any time from your billing page.
- The form offers to add the card processing fee, so CCA receives the full amount you meant to give. It is optional.
- You can keep your name out of any public acknowledgment of your gift.
- A receipt is emailed to you as soon as the payment goes through, unless you choose not to receive one.
Giving from a donor-advised fund, an IRA, shares or a will works differently. See every way to give.
Funding priorities
These are the things we are actively raising for right now.
We also welcome in-kind support: hardware, software and cloud credits, and mentor hours. See what we need.
In-kind donations
Equipment and expertise go straight into participants’ hands.
We are currently looking for:
- Hardware. Enterprise switches, routers, firewalls, servers, laptops and rack equipment.
- Mentor hours. Practitioners in networking, cloud or security who can give a few hours a month.
- Software and cloud credits. Licenses and credits for the tools participants train on.
Email info@coopalliance.org with what you have and we will confirm whether we can use it, arrange collection or shipping, and send you an acknowledgment letter for your records.
Corporate sponsorship
Sponsor a program or a cohort, and meet the people you are helping train.
Sponsor a program
Underwrite one of our programs for a year. Your support covers the equipment, hosting and mentor time it needs, and we report back on participants, certifications and placements.
Sponsor a cohort
Fund a named group of participants from enrollment through certification. Suited to companies that want a defined, reportable outcome from a single gift.
Contribute your team
Employee mentor hours, technical workshops and equipment donations all count. Many employers will also match employee gifts to CCA, so check your company’s matching program.
Visit and verify
Corporate funders are welcome to arrange a site visit or take a virtual briefing before committing. We would rather you see the racks than take our word for it.
Donor questions
Where does my money actually go?
Directly to equipment, hosting and participant support: the devices in our lending library, the cloud and datacenter capacity participants train on, shipping, and certification costs. We run lean on purpose, because the system we built automates provisioning and tracking that would otherwise need staff.
Is my donation tax-deductible?
Cooperative Computing Alliance Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 42-4954752. Gifts to the Foundation are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. The current online checkout still receives and receipts gifts under Public Data Library Inc., EIN 88-4214948. Use the recipient and EIN on your receipt, and check with your tax advisor about your own situation.
What makes CCA different from other training nonprofits?
We run real enterprise infrastructure rather than simulations or sandboxed labs. Participants take on genuine responsibility on systems where changes matter, which is the experience employers want and the hardest kind to get without a job first.
Are programs really free?
Yes. Every program is free to participants, including loaner equipment and shipping both ways. There are no participation fees and no hidden charges. Donors make that possible.
Can I visit or see the work?
Yes. We arrange site visits and run virtual briefings for funders. Email info@coopalliance.org to arrange one.
Can I give through a donor-advised fund, stock or a check?
Yes to all three, plus wire transfers, gifts from an IRA and gifts in your will. Our ways to give page explains each one, or email info@coopalliance.org and we will send the details you need.
Can I change or stop a recurring gift?
Yes. You can pause or stop a monthly, quarterly or yearly gift at any time from your billing page, without needing to contact us. If you would rather we did it for you, email info@coopalliance.org.
Can I give anonymously?
Yes. The donation form lets you keep your gift anonymous in public acknowledgments. We still need your name and email address to process the payment and send your receipt.
How do I get a receipt for my taxes?
The donation form can email you a receipt when your payment goes through. To deduct any single gift of $250 or more, the IRS requires a written acknowledgment from the charity. If you need one and do not have it, email info@coopalliance.org and we will send it. Receipts from the existing checkout remain under Public Data Library Inc., not the Foundation.
Can I restrict my gift to a specific program?
Yes. Note the program in your donation message, or email us before giving. We will confirm the restriction in writing and report back on how that gift was used.
Rebuild the pathway
Your support rebuilds a route into technical work that used to exist, and makes sure it exists again for the people who need it most.