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Braintree committee accepts school gifts including Snap Mobile deposits, members urge clearer reporting
Summary
The Braintree School Committee unanimously accepted a large list of school gifts — including several Snap Mobile donations to athletics — but members and a public commenter pressed for clearer reporting about donors, amounts and whether funds have already been spent and asked for a policy review.
The Braintree School Committee on Monday unanimously accepted a lengthy set of donations to district schools, listing detailed deposits for athletics, field trips and memorial gifts — including Snap Mobile deposits of $9,849.90 for the high‑school baseball program, $6,345.40 for softball, $2,962.40 for girls tennis and $1,024.75 for boys volleyball. Madam Chair read the full list of gifts during the meeting and the committee voted to accept them.
Michelle Schafer, an online public commenter, told the committee she supports donations but urged greater transparency for third‑party fundraising platforms. “We can’t do public oversight if we’re not given the information,” she said, asking whether the funds have already been spent and if the district could receive donor lists and amounts.
Superintendent McDonald said the athletic director provided an overview of SnapBase/SnapMobile and that the district can identify who contributed. Several committee members said the district can provide more documentation and that the policy subcommittee should review reporting standards for digital fundraising apps. One member argued the platform creates a digital footprint that is more secure than cash fundraising, saying the system allows tracking of card payments and donor records.
Committee members agreed to take up the transparency and reporting question at the policy subcommittee; in the meantime they approved the gifts as presented. The vote accepting the full list was unanimous.
