COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF FOUNDATION
FEBRUARY 2022
NEWSLETTER
CELEBRATING TEACHERS ON THE BIG STAGE
The CFP Foundation, Eckrich and the CCSSO continued the tradition of honoring Teachers of the Year from around the nation.
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he College Football Playoff (CFP) National Championship is a multi-day celebration of college football and champions in the game. For the CFP Foundation, the annual weekend is a chance to recognize champions in the classroom on the largest platform in college football. The CFP Foundation has one focus — teachers. The Teacher of the Year Championship Experience, presented by Eckrich, is a program that has been developed by the CFP Foundation in coordination with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO). That tradition continued in Indianapolis in January at the 2022 CFP National Championship.
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BIG THROW
The Eckrich $1 Million Challenge once again generated needed funds to help teachers’ classroom projects. During the weekend leading up to the CFP National Championship, the 56 State Teachers of the Year are honored guests at CFP Foundation events, including the Extra Yard 5K and Taste of the
Championship. As the pinnacle of the weekend, the teachers are recognized on the field prior to kickoff of the national championship game in celebration of their superb effort and dedication to the teaching profession.
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Each of the 50 United States’ top educators are honored, along with the respective Teachers of the Year from American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, the Department of Defense Education Activity, the District of Columbia, Guam and the Virgin Islands. “Attending the college football championship game in Indianapolis was a mind-blowing experience,” said Anthony Swann, 2021 Virginia Teacher of the Year. “It was definitely worth every memory that has been seared in my mind! It will go down in my personal history bank as one of the best trips I have ever had!” “This is the national championship game. This is a national championship atmosphere,” said Dr. Andrew Jackson, the 2021 Teacher of the Year for Alabama. “Just to be a part of it is really, really exciting. It’s nice to put teachers on that stage and say, ‘We’re recognizing the impact teachers have.
Just to be a part of it is really, really exciting. ANDREW JACKSON 2021 ALABAMA TEACHER OF THE YEAR
We’re recognizing the difference that teachers can make and the lives that they can impact.’ I think that is great and why I think teachers being celebrated and recognized as a profession on this big of a stage is so important.”
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MVPs
Panini America turned the lineup of State Teachers of the Year into personal trading cards.
2021 Georgia Teacher of the Year Tracey Pendley agrees. “I’m so grateful that the CFP Foundation supports teachers by donating needed funds and offering critical resources at a time when, more than ever, our jobs are a real challenge,” Pendley said. “Our (nationwide) community partnerships in education are so very important. My own story is the story of the impact that great Georgia teachers have on students. If it wasn’t for my teachers, I certainly wouldn’t be (in Indianapolis).” Eckrich’s participation during the weekend was natural, as the company has continued its dedication in partnership with the Foundation to support the teaching profession. The 2022 weekend included another
traditional staple — the Eckrich $1 Million Challenge — a chance for selected teachers to throw a football through a target to win up to $1 million in donations to fund local classroom projects. This year’s event again included ESPN personalities Kirk Herbstreit and Marty Smith, who each had five chances each to successfully complete a 15-yard throw through a target. Smith made his fourth throw, generating a $100,000 donation to Extra Yard for Teachers on behalf of Eckrich. To further show support for the cause, Eckrich added another $200,000 to the donation in good faith, bringing the total donation to $300,000. “There’s no denying that teachers are heroes worthy of recognition like the Teacher of the
CELEBRATING EDUCATORS: The CFP Foundation and the CCSSO welcomed State Teachers of the Year to Indianapolis to honor their accomplishments, as well as the profession.
Year Championship Experience, presented by Eckrich,” said Shane Smith, president and chief executive officer of Smithfield Foods, parent company of Eckrich. “We are grateful for the opportunity to show our gratitude to those who do so much for our nation’s youth. It was truly an honor to stand sideby-side with educators from all over the nation as they were celebrated on the field at the College Football Playoff National Championship. Their dedication to the teaching profession is an inspiration to all.” CCSSO’s National Teacher of the Year (NTOY) Program is the most
prestigious teacher recognition program in the country. Each year, CCSSO provides a new cohort of State Teachers of the Year with a yearlong, one-of-akind professional learning and development experience. Its robust program was designed to increase each inspiring educator’s leadership skills while celebrating their talents and commitment as extraordinary teachers. Overall, the Georgia Bulldogs weren’t the only big winners from the 2022 CFP National Championship. The importance of teachers in our country remains
a high priority, something that the CFP Foundation, Eckrich and the CCSSO continues to amplify and raise awareness. “We are blessed to have partners like Eckrich and to be able to honor these educators,” said Britton Banowsky, executive director of the CFP Foundation. “It’s important for us to send a message to the millions of fans across the nation that College Football supports teachers!” The tradition will continue in 2023 when the CFP National Championship is played in Los Angeles.
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GROWING TOGETHER Educators gathered in Indy for the 2022 Extra Yard for Teachers Summit powered by Get Your Teach On.
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he College Football Playoff “I’m here to add to my collection (CFP) Foundation’s annual of new ideas to inspire my kids to Extra Yard for Teachers keep learning,” Christina Brown, Summit, powered by Get Your a fifth-grade teacher at Wabash Teach On, was again a big hit Elementary School, said at the as part of the event. “I want to CFP National let them know that Championship there’s more than weekend. An one way to learn event empowering something.” educators across “We love the high the country, the energy,” said Rachel 2022 rendition Peck, a third-grade took place at teacher at Fishers the NCAA Hall Elementary School of Champions “I feel like that helps and Conference us, especially these CFP Foundation Ambassador Center in days. We need to be Rachel Lindsay joined Indianapolis on refreshed sometimes educators for the third year January 8. so we can bring in a row at the Extra Yard for Approximately that energy into the Teachers Summit. 400 teachers, classroom as well.” including many from Indiana, took The Extra Yard for Teachers part in this year’s summit. Summit was available to educators
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to attend in person, and for the first time, the programming was made available virtually for teachers from anywhere to access the content. Additionally, the Extra Yard for Teachers Summit could be accessed through the Indiana Learning Lab, the digital resources hub created for Indiana educators as part of the CFP Foundation’s impact work with the 2022 CFP Indianapolis Host City Committee. A top highlight of this year’s summit was a “fireside chat” with the U.S. Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona. Other special guests and speakers included Katie Jenner (Indiana Secretary of Education), Juliana Urtubey (National Teacher of the Year), Rachel Lindsay (media personality from Extra and The Bachelorette), and Nick Ferroni (nationallyrecognized educator and activist),
WHY TEACH? Educators share why becoming a teacher was so important for them.
among others. In addition, highprofile personalities who were part of the national championship game entertainment surprised educators, including appearances from Grammy Award nominee and National Anthem singer, Natalie Grant, as well as ESPN College GameDay’s David Pollack. Hope and Wade King served as keynote speakers for the event with an upbeat theme of “Unstoppable.” The couple are authors of The Wild Card — a book that has taken the education community by storm. The Kings travel the country working to help teachers make school a place where students want to learn each and every day.
“It is truly an honor to be involved with the College Football Playoff Foundation’s annual Extra Yard Summit event for the second year in a row,” said Hope King “We love being able to take our professional development programming to the next level by combing it with the excitement, special guests and entertainers that are involved with the national championship weekend festivities. It is the kind of recognition and support that teachers need and deserve for their commitment to their students.” Other sessions and topics at this year’s summit included “Getting Global” with LaNesha Tabb, “The Game of Rigor” with Hope King and
Chris Pombonyo, “School Culture” with Principal Amen Rahh and “Making Educational Magic with Music & The Great Debate” with Wade King. The agenda also included four engaging professional development breakout sessions by leading educators, and each participant (whether in person or virtual) received a certificate recognizing eight hours of professional development credit. The Extra Yard for Teachers Summit continues to grow every year with even more on the docket for 2023 in Los Angeles and 2024 in Houston. Follow @CFPExtraYard for updates throughout the year.
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AN OPEN LETTER FROM DR. MIGUEL CARDONA, U.S. SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
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t was an honor to join the College Football Playoff Foundation’s Extra Yard for Teachers Summit in January. I loved every minute of it — the energy, the enthusiasm, but most of all — the educators. Seeing the teachers of the year from across the country and their passion for their jobs, students, and peers reminded me about what I miss most about my time in the classroom. As a former fourthgrade teacher, I know firsthand the hours of hard work it takes to create a healthy and effective learning environment for kids. It was an amazing opportunity to listen to teachers, hearing from the people who make such a big impact on our students during their learning journey. This collection of educators provided diverse perspectives about what’s going on in their classrooms. By bringing these top educators together, the College Football Playoff Foundation created a super-charged environment for professional development and gratitude for the men and women who are working so hard to educate our nation’s next generation of leaders. There is power in convening a group of experts. It was an honor to witness teachers learning from other teachers. And it was inspiring to see our country’s best
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LEADERS IN THEIR FIELD
Dr. Miguel Cardona spent some quality time with Indiana and State Teachers of the Year in Indianapolis to discuss current teacher challenges. and brightest have the chance to explore professional development opportunities that fit their communities’ unique needs. At the Summit during my fireside chat with Hope and Wade King from “Get Your Teach On,” I heard from teachers about how the pandemic has impacted them and their classrooms. I talked with Hope and Wade about my journey through education and answered questions about COVID19 and the future of teaching. It was moving to hear the stories of teachers who are doing work
each and every day to keep our kids learning safely and in-person in their classrooms. It’s because of our educators’ resilience, hard work, and partnership with families and schools that we went from 46 percent of our nation’s schools open for in-person learning last January to 98 percent open today. Throughout the weekend, I repeatedly saw that teachers’ dedication extends beyond the classroom. In one-on-one and group discussions with teachers from across the country, I heard about what this country needs
to not just recover from the pandemic, but create a better education system than ever before. And finally, on the field during the national championship game, as the crowd gave these teachers a standing ovation, I felt the tremendous gratitude our nation has for our teachers. Recently, I laid out my priorities for the Department in the years ahead. Those priorities were informed by the conversations I had with the teachers from across the country. One of those priorities is to boldly address opportunity and achievement gaps for our students. We can do that by increasing funding for Title I schools and by providing the necessary resources to offer more high-quality professional development for teachers. In Indianapolis, I spoke with Michigan’s Teacher of The Year, Owen Bondono, who said we need to be “finding ways to bring new teachers into the profession and keep those of us here — here.” I couldn’t agree more. We need to address teacher shortages and create a stronger teacher pipeline. That means investing in, recruiting, and supporting the professional development of a diverse educator workforce, including special education teachers, paraprofessionals, and bilingual educators, so education jobs are ones that people from all backgrounds want to pursue. But I know we don’t just need to train and recruit excellent new teachers, we need to properly support our current teachers to teach safely and effectively in the pandemic and beyond. We are
S AV E T H E DAT E Teacher Appreciation Week
MAY 2-6, 2022
Extra Yard for Teachers Week
SEPTEMBER 17-24, 2022 Big Day for Teachers
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2022 tackling that with funds from the American Rescue Plan that are being used across the country to pay retention bonuses and premium pay for educators. And my Department has worked hard to fix the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program so public servants — including teachers, nurses, veterans, and doctors — can finally get the loan relief they deserve. I am proud that as of last month, our changes have made 70,000 public servants eligible for $5 billion in loan relief. If you are an educator and interested in pursuing loan forgiveness, you should visit our website. Meeting with the educators
at the College Football Playoff Foundation’s events throughout the weekend helped provide incredible insight, perspective, and vision for me as I work to deliver results on behalf of not just teachers — but parents and families, students, school staff, administrators, and entire school communities. As a nation, we learned so much throughout COVID-19, but we knew even before the pandemic that our teachers are critical to our communities. I aim to honor these teachers of the year and teachers everywhere, not just with words, but with actions, as the Secretary of Education.
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THE CFP FOUNDATION SAYS THANK YOU We appreciate our in-kind partners who make the Teacher of the Year experience so special and enjoyable!
ESPN CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP’S DEDICATION CONTINUES
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hrough the CFP Foundation’s partnership with ESPN Corporate Citizenship, Indianapolis-area teachers and coaches will receive professional development focused on mental health preparation using a sportsbased approach, facilitated through the Doc Wayne’s Professional Development Champions Network. This is especially important given the unprecedented challenges teachers and coaches have faced due to the pandemic. It was announced at the CFP National Championship that ESPN Corporate Citizenship is providing it to each of the four schools that received Extra Yard Makeovers in Indy over the last calendar year.
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ESPN’s investment in the local community has impacted thousands of teachers, including providing school resources, makeover projects and mental health professional development.
SURPRISE! Leanna Hyacinth from Believe Circle City High School in Indianapolis is surprised with tickets to the CFP National Championship on game day.
RUNNING FOR TEACHERS Approximately 1,300 participants ran in the Extra Yard 5K run in Indianapolis. The annual event raises proceeds towards the Extra Yard for Teachers program.
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