<div>Hello, my name is Felicia McGowan—but most people know me as Fish. The nickname started in high school when I worked as a babysitter. Every day, I took two buses to help a mother with her infant and toddler. My job was to care for the toddler, who was shy and hesitant around new people.
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<div>So I took a different approach: no pressure, just presence. I’d sit a few feet away and quietly play, hoping she’d feel safe enough to join. One day, I was painting handprints. She watched, curious. Slowly, she joined me. After a few attempts, she beamed and said, “Fishy, I did it!”
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<div>That moment shaped everything.
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<div>Over the next 10 years, I worked with children as a nanny, photographer, and teacher. I’ve studied child psychology, play therapy, and play-based learning. But no experience has stayed with me quite like my time with Ella, that little girl who taught me the power of patience, play, and trust.
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<div>For the past 6 years, I’ve been teaching English to young children in South Korea. I’ve worked at three different “play-based” schools—none of which truly embraced play as a pedagogy. That dissonance pushed me to learn more, and I fell in love with the Reggio Emilia approach—a world-renowned philosophy grounded in creativity, exploration, and child-led learning.
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<div>Sadly, despite its global reputation, there are very few Reggio Emilia kindergartens in South Korea. I want to change that.
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<div>My Dream: School of Fish
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<div>I’m working to open a Reggio Emilia-inspired, play-based kindergarten in Seoul that also serves as an immersive English-language environment.
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<div>The school will serve two core age groups:
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<div>Ages 2–4 (4–5 Korean age)
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<div>Ages 4–6 (6–7 Korean age)
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<div>We’ll use mixed-age classrooms to encourage peer learning—a foundational aspect of the Reggio approach.
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<div>Our younger group will build fluency through listening and speaking, while the older children will engage in academic exploration through project-based learning. Every day will be shaped by the children’s interests, creativity, and curiosity.
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<div>Why I Need Your Help
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<div>While I have the experience, passion, and plan—I don’t have the funds.
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<div>Despite being a head teacher, my salary over the past six years has never exceeded $21,900/year. South Korea values education, but unfortunately, teachers are still widely underpaid—especially foreigners like me.
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<div>To open a business in my name, I need a D-8 visa, which requires $75,000 in a business account (this cannot come from a loan). Additionally, commercial rentals in Seoul require key money deposits ranging from $15,000 to $75,000.
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<div>My fundraising goal is $100,000 to cover:
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<div>D-8 visa requirement
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<div>Commercial space deposit
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<div>Basic setup costs (licensing, furniture, learning materials)
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<div>How You Can Help
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<div>I truly believe School of Fish can change lives—not just for children, but for families who want a more human, joyful, and meaningful start to education.
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<div>If you can donate, I am deeply grateful. If you can’t, please consider sharing this campaign with someone who might believe in this vision.
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<div>From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your support.
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<div>With love,
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<div>Fish (Felicia McGowan)
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Raina Lewis

Anonymous

Madaline Golestani

Paul Van Lieshout

Lisette Barrera

Claire Kelley

Arelsie Cruceta

Molly Zillig

Iain Matthiae

Ellsbeth Mcgowan

Susan Kelley

Felicia Philibert

Kelsey Healey

Marishka Douzable

Renee Farquharson

Start-up funds for School of Fish

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

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Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

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GoFundMe Employees

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Mark Rieth IP Address

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Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

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checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

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fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

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AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

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UKCharities

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US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

Supporter Comments Eligible Funds

International Only

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braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

currencyCode

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

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Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

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Stream Notification

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

Users Receiving Braze KYC Validation Failed

Native 11.3.0 and above

Influencer - Prod

US fundraisers and US users

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Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

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Localized Currency

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

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Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

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challenge-fundraisers

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CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Start-up funds for School of Fish

Still $87,430 to go. Help us build momentum.