( CNN ) One principal 's inspiration has resulted in more than $ 1 million in donations for what started as an initiative to raise funding for a class trip to Harvard . `` Humans of New York '' creator Brandon Stanton launched the campaign to benefit Mott Hall Bridges Academy , a middle school in Brownsville , Brooklyn , known as a `` safe zone in a crime-plagued neighborhood . '' The goal of the trip is to broaden students ' horizons and expand their idea of their potential , Stanton wrote on the campaign page . It took about 45 minutes for an online campaign to raise an initial $ 100,000 . The campaign evolved from a picture this week on `` Humans of New York , '' the massively popular photo series of everyday people Stanton meets on the street . The fundraising campaign 's rapid success speaks in part to the reach of `` Humans of New York , '' which has a social media following of nearly 12 million on Facebook alone . It 's also a testament to the ability of social media to breathe new life into a feel-good story . The inspirational post featured a picture of a Mott Hall student named Vidal in a housing project in Brownsville . He describes the most influential person in his life , principal Nadia Lopez . `` When we get in trouble , she does n't suspend us . She calls us to her office and explains to us how society was built down around us . And she tells us that each time somebody fails out of school , a new jail cell gets built . And one time she made every student stand up , one at a time , and she told each one of us that we matter . '' In a posting on the `` Humans of New York '' Facebook page , Lopez talked about the discouragement she felt before the campaign . `` Before all of this happened for our school , I felt broken , '' she said . `` And I think the world felt a little broken too , because a lot of bad things have been happening lately , especially between black people and white people . But all of you gave people a reason to feel a little less broken. `` The picture of Vidal has been widely shared and drew more than 1 million likes on the `` Humans of New York '' Facebook page , compelling Stanton to dig deeper . `` I ask people all the time about the most influential person in their life , and he was the first person who ever told me his principal , '' Stanton wrote in an email . `` Then when I met Ms. Lopez , I could not have been more impressed . She is a force of nature . When she let me sit in on a staff meeting , I got a front-row seat to the challenges that her school faces , and I wanted to be involved in the solution . '' They discussed how the `` Humans of New York '' community could help further the school 's vision , Stanton said in a Facebook post . They decided to create a fund to provide each incoming sixth-grade class a chance to get out of their neighborhood and visit Harvard University . `` This is a neighborhood that does n't necessarily expect much from our children , so at Mott Hall Bridges Academy we set our expectations very high . We do n't call the children 'students , ' we call them 'scholars . ' Our color is purple . Our scholars wear purple , and so do our staff , '' Lopez told Stanton , who featured her picture on `` Humans of New York . '' `` Because purple is the color of royalty . I want my scholars to know that even if they live in a housing project , they are part of a royal lineage going back to great African kings and queens . They belong to a group of individuals who invented astronomy and math . And they belong to a group of individuals who have endured so much history and still overcome . When you tell people you 're from Brownsville , their face cringes up . But there are children here that need to know that they are expected to succeed . '' The campaign 's scope has expanded as its pot has grown . Initially , it was intended to cover lodging and transportation costs for three Mott Hall classes to make the trip to the Cambridge , Massachusetts , campus . In an update Friday , Stanton said that funds raised beyond the initial goal would go toward summer programming for the school . `` Learning stops during the summer for my scholars . We have what is called a 'summer slide , ' `` Lopez says on the fund-raising campaign page . `` They need a safe place where they can do activities and continue to grow their minds . '' On Monday , Stanton posted that because of the campaign 's success , `` We are starting a scholarship fund available to the graduates of Mott Hall Bridges Academy . A committee of MHBA educators and administrators will choose the recipients each year . '' The scholarship fund will be named for Vidal , the student who started it all , who will be the fund 's first recipient , Stanton announced .
`` Humans of New York '' portrait inspires online fundraising campaign for school . It was intended to fund three classes ' trip to Harvard . But extra money will now go to summer studies , a scholarship fund .