The DC Collaborative works with their member cultural institutions to provide experiences at no costs or low costs to schools. This is possible because of our internal fundraising and the pool of resources that our members contribute collectively, many of whom donate tickets or provide a steeply discounted rate. In addition, some members provide support to reimburse transportation completely. The Collaborative also receives a discounted rate for transportation because of the volume of business given to bus vendors, supporting transportation for 20,000-30,000 students per year. We are able to get these experiences at such a good value, due to the volume of work that we do and contributions of our members who believe in this work. This is part of our "Collaborative Effect."

The Collaborative's average cost is approximately $15 per student when factoring transportation and ticket costs. This means you are receiving a direct cost value of $750 every time your school takes a field-trip with 50 students. For a school with an enrollment of 350 students that is approximately $5,250 in direct costs.* The Collaborative, along with its members, work very hard to fundraise and provide these experiences at no cost (or minimal costs) to your school because collectively we believe that every student regardless of socio-economic status and location in the city should have access to high-quality arts and humanities experiences as part of their education.