Kendra earns $\$ 11.60$ per hour working at the movie theater. Each week, she donates $\frac{1}{10}$ of her earnings to Best Friends Animal Society, her favorite charity. If Kendra worked $8 \frac{1}{2}$ hours last week, how much money did she donate to the charity?

Step 1 ：First, we need to calculate Kendra's total earnings for the week. We know that she earns \( \$11.60 \) per hour and she worked for \( 8.5 \) hours. So, her total earnings would be \( \$11.60 \times 8.5 \).

Step 2 ：Next, we need to calculate the amount she donates to the charity. We know that she donates \( \frac{1}{10} \) of her earnings. So, the amount donated would be total earnings \( \times \frac{1}{10} \).

Step 3 ：Final Answer: Kendra donated \(\boxed{9.86}\) dollars to the charity.