The Aporia · Iowa teacher asked students to donate to her GoFundMe to fund her medical mission trip to Ecuador, promised extra credit

Stephanie Mullaley, an Iowa substitute teacher, was fired after asking students for donations to her GoFundMe page to fund a medical mission trip to Ecuador in exchange for extra credit. She promised them points towards their grades if they contributed, raising only $140 out of a goal of $1800 before the fundraiser was deleted. Administrative Law Judge Duane Golden ruled that Mullaley had shown "willful or wanton disregard" for her employer's interests and denied her unemployment benefits.

Written by AI on 2026-10-01, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

Story summary

Stephanie Mullaley, a full-time substitute teacher at the Clinton Community School District in Iowa, was fired in May 2025 after offering students extra credit to donate money to her personal GoFundMe page. The donations were intended to fund a medical mission trip to Ecuador. During a hearing about her unemployment benefits request, Administrative Law Judge Duane Golden revealed that Mullaley shared her "personal education goals" with her pupils and promised them extra credit if they contributed to the fundraiser. Although some students donated money, she only managed to raise $140 out of her target $1800 before the campaign was deleted. The district terminated Mullaley's employment after discovering that she used her position to pressure students into donating funds, violating the district’s ethics policy.

Written for “Teacher Fired Over GoFundMe Extra Credit” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.

This article reads unscored and hedges 21% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Substitute teacher fired after offering extra credit to students who donated to her GoFundMe for a trip to Ecuador Same event

Daily Mail

Hedges 7 of 21 claims Outlet record 69/100

High School substitute teacher fired after offering extra credit for GoFundMe donations Same event

The Independent

Hedges 5 of 14 claims Outlet record 59/100

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Poulomi Ghosh

102 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

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Mullaley pleaded with her students that the experience would “pay for her education” because it was a “unique opportunity to travel to Ecuador” where she would be interpreting the mission trip.

framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-01

🔮 Iowa Capital Dispatch reported that the trip was planned in July but her action came to notice that and she was removed in May.

2026-10-01 · Times of India

Iowa teacher asked students to donate to her GoFundMe to fund her medical mission trip to Ecuador, promised extra credit · mixed framing

An Iowa substitute teacher has been fired from her post for allegedly pressuring her students to help fund her "medical mission" to Ecuador. uncertain

teacher → fire → Ecuador

Stephanie Mullaley promised them extra credit for donating to her GoFundMe page. asserted

Mullaley → promise → page

Iowa Capital Dispatch reported that the trip was planned in July but her action came to notice that and she was removed in May. uncertain

she → report → May

“(She) promised high school students in her class that they would receive extra credit toward their grade in her class if they donated to her GoFundMe account. asserted

they → promise → account

Students felt pressured to donate money to her personal GoFundMe page,” Administrative Law Judge Duane Golden said. asserted

Golden → pressure → page

Despite such arm-twisting, Mullaley could gather only $140 as against her target of $1800. uncertain

Mullaley → gather → 1800

The fundraiser was deleted. asserted

fundraiser → delete → ?

“Nick & I are embarking on a journey this summer with a medical mission group,” Mullaley wrote on a Facebook post alongside the link to the defunct fundraiser. asserted

Mullaley → embark → fundraiser

“This was only a thought a year ago, and it became real when we got an official invitation end of 2025. asserted

we → become → 2025

God put this in place for us, and we’re answering it,” she wrote. asserted

she → put → it

“Hope to have your support, and if you can’t financially, we understand and just keep us in your prayers.” asserted

we → hope → prayers

she → plead → trip

“Helping bridge language barriers so that care and compassion can reach those who need it most,” and that her husband would be “assisting the team in any way he can,” Mullaley wrote. asserted

Mullaley → help → way

The judge denied ex-teacher unemployment benefits and said the teacher demonstrated a "willful or wanton disregard" of her employer's interests. asserted

teacher → deny → interests

Iowa teacher asked students to donate to her GoFundMe to fund her medical mission trip to Ecuador, promised extra credit

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