Can Crowdfunding Pay for Teacher Professional Development?

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/the_startup_blog/2015/08/crowdfunding_feedback_for_teachers.html

Crowdfunding as a movement gained initial traction among platforms such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo, where people began soliciting a high volume of small donations to fund a litany of causes, ranging from starting a new comedy club, to funding innovative new products

For educators, platforms like DonorsChoose.org and PledgeCents can similarly be used to crowdfund donations for education-related causes.

Recently, however, I and many of my colleagues have been put off a bit by the proliferation of countless GoFundMe crowdfunding campaigns on Facebook, where individuals seek funding for their college tuition and personal debt. Does the spread of questionable personal campaigns make the general public less willing to invest in worthy campaigns