OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF
FEBRUARY 5, 2019 | VOL. 2, ISSUE 6
CLASS ACT
Championship Weekend a Big Win for Bay Area Teachers, Teachers of the Year, and Extra Yard for Teachers BY JAIME ARON
D
abo Swinney, Trevor Lawrence and the Clemson Tigers weren’t the only big winners at the College Football Playoff National Championship. The weekend also proved to be quite memorable for Bay Area teachers and their Teacher of the Year counterparts from across the United States, which in turn made the experience a resounding victory for the CFP Foundation’s Extra Yard for Teachers platform. “Being able to leverage this sports platform for teachers is an amazing opportunity,” said Britton Banowsky, executive director of the CFP Foundation. Extra Yard for Teachers is all about elevating the teaching profession. The boost comes from
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offering continuing education to improving classrooms to expressing gratitude to teachers with some well-deserved pampering. Championship weekend included all that and much more.
Here’s a look back in the order things played out. And while you know what happened once Clemson and Alabama took the field, be sure to note the great surprises on game day that made EYFT’s big finish even bigger than expected.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE //
↗ EYFT
SUMMIT PG 2
EYFT 5K ↗ PG 3
↗ ECKRICH TASTE OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP PG 4
↗ GAME DAY PG 5 ↗ FEBRUARY 2019 HONOREE PG 7
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JANUARY 5 - 6, 2019 Just like Playoff Fan Central is an amusement park-like atmosphere for fans, the EYFT Summit has grown into a sprawling event for educators. What used to be two hours on one day debuted as a two-day extravaganza. Held in the same building as the fan experience, a Summit-record crowd of 2,000 attendees — educators and their families — savored both events. There was plenty to savor, too. Consider this list, which also serves as a nice overview of the myriad ways EYFT supports teachers:
+ Giveaways: 380 chair
massages; $10,000 in DonorsChoose.org support; 2,000 Chick-fil-A sandwiches and biscuits; over 2,000 school supply starter kits given away by School Specialty, Inc.; two media room makeovers announced through
HOF SUPPORT: Pro Football Hall-ofFamer Randall McDaniel was one of many celebrity guests.
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SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE: Workshops, speakers and a ton of fun dominated the EYFT Summit. a partnership with School Specialty, Inc.; and $25,000 in mortgage down payment support awarded by Landed.
+ 15 workshops for a total of
1,350 minutes of professional development and workshop content.
+ 27 speakers were featured over
10 hours of stage programming, including a panel of Oakland educators moderated by Om Chitale, founder of the Teachers of Oakland platform; two-time Space Shuttle astronaut Bernard Harris, now CEO of the National Math and Science Initiative; Mandy Manning of Spokane, Washington, the National Teacher of the Year; and six National Geographic Explorers.
“It was as good of a block of talks as I’ve ever heard,” said Sharon Lyle, one of the Summit’s main organizers.
OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF
JANUARY 6, 2019 On a cold, wet Sunday morning, running 3.1 miles through downtown San Jose could’ve been dreary. The Teachers of the Year provided the sunshine by motivating and inspire the faithful who came out to run and those who supported the runners. “They stole the show,” said Ryan Allen Hall, the CFP Foundation’s director of community relations. “Two of them jumped in and directed the band for the national anthem. They were singing and dancing throughout the race, entertaining everyone. People kept asking, `Who are they?’ They were such great ambassadors. Their attitudes were infectious.” In general, 5K runs take years to build up support in their community. Because the CFP community switches cities every year, it’s tougher to build a following. However, a branding effort which was launched mid-fall began to take hold, and will likely be more evident next year in New Orleans. The shift? Branding the event with the tagline, “The Official Race for Teachers.” “Even though it was not the most highly attended, it turned out to be one of the most spirited events,” Hall said. “Through the cold and rain, you could feel the spirit of education.”
…it turned out to be one of the most spirited events. Through the cold and rain, you could feel the spirit of education.” RYAN ALLEN HALL
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JANUARY 6, 2019 This was pure celebration: a night of great food and live music in the STEAM-friendly setting of the Tech Museum of Innovation. “We knew the bar was very, very high coming out of what people experienced at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta last year,” Hall said. “The feedback we’ve received showed we definitely met — if not exceeded — it.” The evening included a series of thank-yous to teachers from Eckrich Ambassadors Kirk Herbstreit, Laura Rutledge and Marty Smith; Smithfield Foods executives and CFP Foundation executive director Britton Banowsky.
PLENTY OF GOOD EATS: Of course the food stole the show.
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A FABULOUS EVENING: Interactive fun and games highlighted the Eckrich Taste of the Championship.
OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF
GAME DAY JANUARY 7, 2019 The Levi’s Stadium experience actually began the day before kickoff for the 54 Teachers of the Year. In the same cold, wet conditions as the 5K, they had a walkthrough of their pregame ceremony. And just like the 5K, these folks found the silver lining in getting an NFL stadium pretty much to themselves. The highlight was their first walk through the tunnel and onto the turf. For some, it was their first time in such an environment; for others, it was their first time seeing it from this perspective. For all, it was filled with photo opportunities. “What I thought might be a low point was a big positive for them,” Hall said.
ECKRICH STEPS UP AGAIN: The longtime smoked sausage and deli meats leader gave a $500,000 donation to EYFT, with an assist from ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit. Hours before kickoff, the place to be was the parking lot for the Allstate Championship Tailgate, especially the Eckrich $1 Million Challenge. If Herbstreit put it through the target on his first try, EYFT would get $1 million. He missed. But Herbstreit got another try. Eckrich was only obligated to donate $25,000 at that point, but officials brought out a $100,000 check in case he made it. He did, but officials huddled and decided not to give the larger amount.
They upped it to $500,000 instead, matching their donation from the previous year. Eckrich also invited each of the Teachers of the Year to throw a ball through the target — from a shorter distance — for an additional $1,000 per made shot. After attending a VIP pregame party that included boards filled with handwritten thank-yous, the teachers went into the stadium. Shortly before kickoff, they walked onto the field and were introduced to cheers from a crowd of nearly 75,000 people.
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“They’re looking up into the stands and seeing a full house for a marquee event looking down at them,” Hall said. “Tears flowed.” Another important, emotional pregame ceremony included honoring educators from Butte County, where recent wildfires caused extensive damage to homes and schools. Banowsky and Patricia Ernstrom, executive director of the Bay Area Host Committee, presented a check for $200,000 to Tim Taylor, the superintendent of the Butte County Office of Education, and 19 teachers and educators from the Butte County School System. Money was raised through a text-to-donate campaign, plus matching funds from former San Francisco 49ers
HELPING TEACHERS AFFECTED BY THE FIRE: Fans stepped up with Eddie DeBartolo and former 49ers greats to assist teachers in Butte County. owner Eddie DeBartolo, former 49ers greats and the All-Stars Helping Kids Foundation. “We were overwhelmed by the support and generosity we received from the CFP as well as people across the country,” Taylor
said. “It was an honor to be part of the CFP National Championship and to be there to accept the donation on behalf of Butte County Teachers. It will go a long way in helping us regain normalcy in our community.”
HELPING TEACHERS STAY “HOME”: EYFT and the Bay Area Host Committee partnered with Landed to surprise Oakland science teacher Nestor Gonzalez with a $25,000 down payment grant to buy a home locally and continue his important work with students.
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OFFICIAL E-NEWSLETTER OF
LOOKING AHEAD
The morning after the game, it was time for the Teachers of the Year to head home. But they couldn’t leave without once again saying thanks to the CFP Foundation staff. Hall said the educators showed their appreciation throughout the weekend, so much that “them being overwhelmed by how much of a good time they were having became a theme of the weekend.” Still, many visited the Foundation office for one last handshake, highfive or hug. Soon after, the focus turned to 2020 with a handoff event featuring members of the local host community and next year’s hosts in New Orleans. Brainstorming has already begun on how the Foundation can help improve a dilemma schools are facing: teacher retention. Hall noted that EYFT began making its mark on the Bay Area last May. He said efforts could start even earlier as the Foundation continues its efforts to be about far more than a single football game on a Monday night in January.
We want championship weekend to be our culminating event to celebrate the impact we’ve made.” RYAN ALLEN HALL
“We’re looking to make a lasting impact all year long,” he said. “We want championship weekend to be our culminating event to celebrate the impact we’ve made.”
FEBRUARY 2019 HONOREE
Matt Buchanan
I
n the spring of her senior year at La Lumiere School in La Porte, Indiana, a time when most driven, accomplished students are finally able to relax, Gina Billys felt like she was sinking. A series of debilitating viral illnesses had led to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which made school work nearly impossible. A former A student, Billys was on the verge of failing three classes, and it seemed doubtful she would graduate. That semester, however, she was enrolled in a senior seminar with Matt Buchanan, the head of the English department at La Lumiere and Honored’s February Honoree. Buchanan, a veritable institution unto himself at La Lumiere, has a particular affinity for students who are struggling that is rooted in the adversity he has faced himself. Buchanan suffered a massive heart attack in 2016 at only 41 years old. In the aftermath, Buchanan, a father of two, lost 55 pounds by overhauling his diet and making daily use of the school’s athletic facilities. The experience gave him a profound compassion for his students in their personal and academic challenges: “I’ve never experienced writer’s block, personally, but the struggle to get in shape made me start thinking of what it might be like for students to struggle with a paper,” Buchanan says. “If the paper is a three-mile walk and you haven’t really worked out in your life, what does that look like?” His compassion and support inspired Billys, who found motivation in seeing how doggedly Buchanan had worked to get in shape after his heart attack. She worked with Buchanan and other teachers to complete the necessary assignments, and in July 2018, graduated from La Lumiere. She is now a freshman at Indiana State, Bloomington, and said, “I’m hopelessly optimistic when it comes to my ability to make a comeback, to turn things around. So as much as I fail, I won’t stop trying. Mr. Buchanan is responsible for sparking that flame within me.” Visit honored.org to read Matt Buchanan’s full story.
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