Regional challenge to support student learning and engagement while schools are closed
Southern California– The Los Angeles Rams, Los Angeles Chargers, Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, Los Angeles Angels, United Way of Greater Los Angeles, United Way of Greater Los Angeles and Orange County United Way are announcing their support of the first-of-its-kind EduCup Challenge for students who are homebound during the COVID-19 pandemic. Developed by social impact education innovator EVERFI, the Challenge brings together six major sports leagues and NFL partner, United Way Worldwide.
Alongside Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, National Football League in partnership with United Way Worldwide, National Hockey League in partnership with the National Hockey League Players’ Association, National Lacrosse League, the Premier League, and EVERFI, The Los Angeles Rams, Los Angeles Chargers, Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, Los Angeles Angels, United Way of Greater Los Angeles, and United Way of Orange County will be supporting the EduCup Challenge to K-12 students throughout Southern California.
The EduCup Challenge is a two-week competition encouraging students to engage in learning and healthy habits as learned through EVERFI courses and showcased through daily social media challenges. Running May 18-29, students will have the opportunity to experience the digital courses co-created by EVERFI and the professional sports leagues and submit responses to various prompts based on the course(s) taken in order to be eligible to win an academic scholarship or other prizes.
The regional competition will feature courses that appeal to students from kindergarten to 12th grade and will highlight several courses that were developed directly with the leagues. Each league brings a uniquely developed, curriculum-aligned resource to students and parents that will be the foundation of the challenge.
- Major League Baseball – Summer Slugger focuses on math and literacy skills for upper elementary school students
- Major League Soccer – Actions Matter addresses leadership development and bullying prevention for middle and high school students
- National Football League and United Way Worldwide – Character Playbook aims to build character education and foster healthy relationships for upper-middle and high school students
- National Hockey League and National Hockey League Players’ Association – Hockey Scholar teaches Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) skills for middle school students and Healthier Me educates upper elementary students on making smart health and wellness decisions
- National Lacrosse League – NLL Digital Scholars includes digital citizenship for middle school students and mental wellness for high school students
- Premier League – Premier League Primary Stars USA includes Ignition, a digital literacy curriculum for middle school students, as well as Compassion Project, a unique program that teaches empathy and compassion and Healthier Me – Elementary School Health Curriculum, both for elementary school students.
The EduCup Challenge will divide students by region based on their geographic location – north, east, south, and west. Students will be asked to complete as many of the league-sponsored programs as possible within the two-week Challenge period. Once they have taken a course, students will have the opportunity to answer questions or submit a picture for certain curricula, related to their educational experience. During the competition, each region will seek to have the most students complete the educational programming.
In addition to completing courses, students are invited to participate in a social media challenge to share their progress. New challenges will be shared on Instagram and Twitter and the EduCup Challenge website daily, with each league having a specific day to present their challenge to students based on the program they sponsor through EVERFI. Students will respond to the social media challenges using predetermined EduCup Challenge hashtags.
To participate in the EduCup Challenge, students will visit www.educupchallenge.com, log in to their school, and complete the courses that are sponsored by the participating leagues. Students will also have the opportunity to compete for one of four $2,500 academic scholarships or a tablet or laptop computer. EVERFI will name one region as the EduCup Challenge winner, based on the region that has the most student participation in the digital courses. The winners of the scholarships and computers will be selected based on submissions from students within the winning region.
Molly Higgins, Vice President of Community Affairs and Engagement, Los Angeles Rams
“Since the beginning of this pandemic, we have challenged ourselves to think creatively on how the Rams can best support our students, families, and teachers who are adapting to this new remote learning environment,” said Molly Higgins, vice president of community affairs and engagement, Los Angeles Rams. “With the EverFi EduCup Challenge, we are excited to join with other professional teams in Southern California to show our unity in helping our community and providing students with a fun way to build new skills and healthy habits.”
Dennis Kuhl, Chairman, Los Angeles Angels
“The Los Angeles Angels have always put an emphasis on education with our young fans,” said Los Angeles Angels Chairman, Dennis Kuhl. “With students having to learn from home during this unprecedented time, we are excited to team up with other Southern California teams in providing educational programs like Summer Slugger and the EduCup for students to enjoy learning online with Angels Baseball.”
Merit Tully, Vice President of Marketing, Anaheim Ducks
“Platforms like Hockey Scholar allow us to stay connected to our community while still inspiring students to experience and learn about hockey at home. The Ducks are proud to support initiatives like EduCup that provide access to sport and learning.”
Heather Birdsall, Los Angeles Chargers Director of Community Partnerships
”The Chargers are proud to support the first ever EduCup Challenge with Everfi as a great way to encourage students to continue learning and building important social skills during this time. After seeing the positive impact of the NFL and United Way’s Character Playbook program, we couldn’t be more excited for this next experience and opportunity for youth in our community.”
Susan B. Parks, President and CEO, Orange County United Way
“We’re proud to be a part of the EverFi EduCup Challenge this year, and to help children in our community adapt to remote learning in a unique and fun way,” said Susan B. Parks, President and CEO of Orange County United Way. “Education is the cornerstone for success. While the last several months have presented challenges for many families and children, our hope is that we can support them in their continued learning and give them access to the tools they need to put them on the path to academic and life success.”
Elise Buik, President and CEO, United Way of Greater Los Angeles
“These times are extremely challenging for everyone, especially students who are missing the engagement with teachers and classmates, not to mention those lacking access to technology to navigate the new norm of participating in distance learning,” said Elise Buik, President and CEO, United Way of Greater Los Angeles. “There were already so many gaps in our system prior to COVID-19, and this crisis has further impacted these gaps. Our hope is that we continue to find ways to support and inspire our youth, like Los Angeles EduCup. We are grateful to the Los Angeles Rams and all the partners who are helping make this happen.”
Jon Chapman, Founder and President, EVERFI
“Sports leagues have a long history of working with EVERFI to provide educational opportunities to students. As schools around the world began to close as a result of COVID-19, these leagues were leading from the front ensuring that students had access to important educational courses. The EduCup Challenge supports youth education and engages students in a little friendly competition to inspire and motivate them through online education.”
About ORANGE COUNTY UNITED WAY
Today’s Orange County United Way is doing more for the Education, Health, Housing and Financial Stability of every person in Orange County. More than a fundraiser, we’re hands-on, delivering more than 50 Community Impact programs countywide. We focus on long-term solutions to the most critical interconnected challenges facing local children and families. United Way is doing more to make long-term measurable difference in the lives of children and families right here in Orange County. To learn more or do more with us, visit www.unitedwayoc.org
About EVERFI, Inc.
EVERFI is an international technology company driving social change through education to address the most challenging issues affecting society ranging from financial wellness to prescription drug safety to workplace conduct and other critical topics. Founded in 2008, EVERFI is fueled by its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) community engagement platform and has reached more than 41 million learners globally. EVERFI powers community engagement in a sustained manner to empower individuals and organizations to make an impact within their communities. The Company also convenes Networks to bring together financial institutions, colleges and universities, and some of the largest corporations to leverage insights and connections to drive impact. Some of America’s leading CEOs and venture capital firms are EVERFI investors including Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, Twitter founder Evan Williams, as well as Advance Publications, Rethink Education and Rethink Impact. To learn more about EVERFI visit everfi.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter @EVERFI.
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Media Contact: Annie Noebel, [email protected], (949) 449-2527
