UP2US SPORTS JOINS COALITION BEHIND “READY SET” VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN TO MEET URGENT DEMAND TO SUPPORT STUDENTS AND EDUCATIONAL EQUITY

Corporate Brand Partners Amplifying Recruitment Message and Incentivizing Employees and Customers

Founding Organizations: Creative Artists Agency, U.S. Department of Education, MENTOR, VolunteerMatch, AmeriCorps

Advisors and Charter Partners Include: U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel A. Cardona, Arianna Huffington and Thrive Global, Mattel, Cumulus Media, Nextdoor, DonorsChoose, Van Jones’ Dream Corps, Sal Khan and schoolhouse.world, and Former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan

To address learning and relational loss among K-12 public school students in the U.S., particularly affecting historically marginalized communities, Up2Us Sports today joined the coalition partners of READY SET, a national tutor, mentor and service recruitment campaign. Co-founded by the Creative Artists Agency Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education, in collaboration with leading service organizations MENTOR, VolunteerMatch, schoolhouse.world, and the federal agency for national service and volunteering, AmeriCorps, the 2021 web and social media campaign will run through September 2021 and meet summer extended learning needs by building a strong volunteer pipeline for the academic year ahead.

Through partnerships with consumer brands and leading live entertainment and travel benefits provider Entertainment Benefits Group (EBG), new volunteers are gaining access to exclusive incentives in recognition for providing much-needed guidance to students across America. EBG, serving more than 40,000 corporate clients and reaching more than 50 million employees, is also helping brand marketers create tailored incentive programs to engage their respective customers and employees. Incentives may include discounted theme park and attraction tickets, special offers on hotels and rental cars, as well as live events, sports, and concert tickets, and much more. Brand partners are additionally using their powerful voices to amplify campaign messages.

“We have a critical opportunity to immediately address the gap between what students need now and what resources are available to them,” said CAA Foundation executive and former drop-out prevention nonprofit director Deborah Marcus. “READY SET is a call to action to be a part of a national student support network, galvanizing Americans to bring their hearts and minds to supporting children, many from low-income and historically marginalized communities, and nurturing their full academic, social and emotional well-being.”

“Students have been stuck behind their laptops for the better part of a year, so we must dedicate as many resources as possible to meet them where they are and re-engage them this summer and as we look towards the fall,” said Secretary Cardona. “Through this new program and partnership, we have the opportunity to reach students across the country – particularly those in communities hardest hit by the pandemic – and provide them the support they need through creative, engaging mentoring programs. I encourage anyone who can to step up and serve their community to take part in this program and mentor a young student.”

READY SET’s web and social-media-centered campaign is raising awareness of the current demand for volunteers, directing candidates to www.getreadyset.org, where potential volunteers can learn about relevant tutoring, mentoring and service opportunities. Depending on one’s interest, activation happens through VolunteerMatch’s global digital volunteering infrastructure; unifying champion of youth mentoring, MENTOR; the federal agency for national service and volunteering, AmeriCorps; or peer tutoring platform from Sal Khan, schoolhouse.world.

"Youth, especially in underserved communities, have been severely affected by the events of the last year,” says Founder & CEO of Up2Us Sports, Paul Caccamo. “This is especially the case in youth sports, which have been devastated by the pandemic leading to increased social-emotional stress and a lack of physical activity. At Up2Us Sports, we see firsthand the role that volunteers can play as coaches to address this challenge. We are proud to be a Coalition Partner of READY SET to engage corporate employees to be part of this solution as coaches and role models to youth across America”

The READY SET advisory board of prominent education and philanthropic thought leaders include U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel A. Cardona; former U.S. education secretary Arne Duncan; Dream Corps founder and CNN contributor Van Jones; founder of online education platform Khan Academy and co-founder of schoolhouse.world Sal Khan; Thrive Global Founder and CEO Arianna Huffington; former Chancellor of the DC Public School System and Founder and CEO of Reconstruction, Kaya Henderson; Education Leaders of Color CEO Sharhonda Bossier; MENTOR CEO David Shapiro; DonorsChoose CEO Charles Best; and CAA Co-Chairman Richard Lovett.

Brand and nonprofit supporters include the Annenberg Learner; Motion Picture & Television Fund; television host, author, and changemaker Van Jones’ Dream Corps; hyperlocal social networking service Nextdoor; the leading global toy and family entertainment company Mattel; audio-first media and entertainment company Cumulus Media; education nonprofit DonorsChoose; behavior change technology company Thrive Global; nonprofit Education Leaders of Color; global volunteer organization Points of Light; children’s literacy nonprofit Reading Partners; education nonprofit Communities In Schools, Inc., creative partner RADCAT.design, international education and advocacy organization Global Citizen, Social Change Fund founded by Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade, youth athletic mentorship organization Up2Us Sports, and education nonprofit Student Voice.