FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

In Mira's early conversations about what to title the organization, one person (born and raised in India) suggested a short and simple girl's name – Mira – meaning prosperous. We liked it immediately, and also liked its other global variants: Spanish for look, Latin for astonishing, Slavic for great, and Hebrew for exalted.

Mira teams up with youth-centered community organizations.  They post a funding request – giving details on the fundraiser and target amount. When the project is fully funded by that deadline, Mira sends the new funds to each organization. The organizations are fully responsible for implementing the project and providing updates to Mira, who in turn updates the individuals who have funded the project.  If a project is not fully funded by the deadline, each donor can select another featured project, and Mira will forward their original donation to the new project. Or, a donor may direct his/her contribution to Mira's operations.

These organizations have been on the ground for many years. They have an in-depth understanding of the local culture, languages, families and children and other like-minded teams. We know that their expertise underscores that the projects you are funding have a true impact on youth in need of educational opportunities. Mira has witnessed the impact of their work, and we are confident that they understand which approaches work best & have the capacity to implement a project successfully.

We urge our donors to remember that the students and projects in need are due a respectful distance of privacy. Mira also feels that tending to visitors is probably not the best use of our collaborating NGOs’ time. We understand that you want to learn more about the projects which you have funded, so this is the reason why we request our NGOs to provide updates and photos on our site. This way, you will be able to get more information about the impact which you have made to the specific community.

Each time a site partner updates a project which you have funded, you will receive an email notification in your Inbox.

There are a few channels:

1) Online: This is probably the easiest way. You can use your credit card to donate to Mira. Check out our Featured Projects page for ideas. You can find out many different ways to give.

2) Check: Send all checks to:
Mira Scholars Foundation
1559B Sloat Blvd., Suite 496
San Francisco, CA 94132

3) Wire Transfer: You can also complete a wire transfer to our bank account. Contact us at contact@mirascholars.org for more details.

4) Other ways: Please contact us with other in-kind donations you'd like to contribute (credit card points/miles, hardware, software, supplies, other airline miles, etc.) And if your financial situation is not as fruitful as expected this year, we welcome your professional volunteer services.

Yes! Mira is a registered 501c3 organization, and yes, your gifts are tax deductible. So, you can send any donation to Mira at any time! Every amount truly counts in helping us reach our goal to change a piece of the world together. Our federal tax ID# is 90-0522995.

Definitely. Simply send an email to contact@mirascholars.org with your request.

Where else do tech start-ups and non-profits marry? San Francisco, California.

If you wish to join Team Mira, we suggest that you speak to our current NGOs and have them provide a testimonial for you.  We want to make sure that we only team up with credible initiatives whose projects truly impact children’s education.

We are always looking for driven people who want to do something cool. Check our listings or send an email to contact@mirascholars.org. We will see how to get you involved.

You can do so by sharing with them on Facebook and Twitter (@mirascholars), through good “old fashioned” email, or a simple conversation.

Mira Scholars Foundation does not store credit card data on its server. We have entrusted that responsibility to PayPal (our credit card processor). We only store the biographical information and donation amounts that you manually enter on our site. All the information submitted on Mira's website is communicated using 256 bit SSL encryption. Mira also utilizes IQR Consulting to design, monitor, and power the website; this firm is also keeping our donors' best interests in mind. So, in nutshell, your data is very secure.

We'd love to hear more from you! Please feel free to contact us.