- Lady Gaga to help promote kindness in schools across America through partnership with Staples for Students program
Staples Announces $2 Million Donation to DonorsChoose.org and Born This Way Foundation
FRAMINGHAM, Mass., 2017-Jun-24 — /EPR Retail News/ — Lady Gaga is teaming up with Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) to support education and create a positive classroom experience through its Staples for Students program.
The partnership builds on Staples’s long-standing commitment of supporting education and helping teachers and students.
Staples today (Jun. 22, 2017) announced it is donating $1 million to Born This Way Foundation, an organization founded by Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta. Born This Way Foundation supports the wellness of young people and empowers them to create a kinder and braver world by fostering kindness, improving mental health resources and creating more positive environments. For the fourth year in a row, Staples is also donating $1 million to DonorsChoose.org, an organization that has funded more than 900,000 classroom projects for teachers since its founding, benefiting more than 22 million students.
Together through this unique partnership with Lady Gaga, her Born This Way Foundation and DonorsChoose.org, the Staples for Students program will help to promote kindness in schools across America and ensure that teachers and students have the resources they need for successful learning in classrooms.
“Teaming up with Lady Gaga, Born This Way Foundation and DonorsChoose.org is an amazing opportunity for the Staples for Students program to support teachers and help create a more positive classroom experience,” said Frank Bifulco, chief marketing officer, Staples. “There’s a correlation between kindness and overall well-being among students, and we hope that together with these perfect partners that we’ll be able to create an environment for students that will help them flourish in school and propel them into their bright futures.”
Lady Gaga said, “Classrooms that are positive and welcoming are classrooms where students can discover their passions and unlock their full potential. I’m excited to work with Staples, DonorsChoose.org and Born This Way Foundation to help teachers and students make their schools more supportive and engaging places. Kindness is one of the most important and most impactful values we can instill in students, and I look forward to working with Staples to foster a positive classroom environment where every student feels safe, heard and empowered.”
The 2017 Staples for Students program is propelled by several sobering statistics:
- According to the Education Market Association, an estimated 99.5% of all public school teachers use their own money to equip their classrooms – frequently at a cost of more than $400 per year.
- Sesame Workshop reports that 86% of teachers (and 70% of parents) admit to worrying often that the world is an unkind place for children.
Lady Gaga and Staples are also collaborating on a Public Service Announcement that debuts nationally at the end of June, further emphasizing the need to support teachers and students.
“Staples has been a generous and valued partner of ours for years, and we’re so thankful for its continued support of our mission, which has helped bring learning to life for thousands of teachers and students in classrooms nationwide,” said Charles Best, founder of DonorsChoose.org.
“By creating school climates that are grounded in compassion and generosity we can help to support the emotional well-being of our young people, ensuring they can learn effectively and grow into happy, thriving adults,” said Cynthia Germanotta, co-founder and president of Born This Way Foundation. “We thank Staples for its generous donation and for understanding that the boundless potential of young people can be unlocked by spreading kindness.”
For more information, visit www.StaplesForStudents.org.
Win a $50,000 Scholarship and the chance to meet Lady Gaga
Staples is a proud sponsor of the 2017 Lady Gaga Joanne tour promoted by Live Nation. Beginning June 25, 2017, fans will have the opportunity to enter the Staples for Students Sweepstakes for a chance to win a $50,000 scholarship. The lucky grand prize winner will also win a trip to Las Vegas to meet Lady Gaga and see her in concert. Five additional winners will receive a trip to Las Vegas and tickets to Lady Gaga in concert on December 16, 2017.
Visit StaplesForStudents.org starting June 25, 2017 for sweepstakes rules and to learn how to enter. Entries must be submitted before September 16, 2017 at 11:59 PM ET and entrants must be 13 years or older.
About Staples, Inc.
Staples brings technology and people together in innovative ways to consistently deliver products, services and expertise that elevate and delight customers. Staples is in business with businesses and is passionate about empowering people to become true professionals at work. Headquartered outside of Boston, Mass., Staples, Inc. operates primarily in North America, with additional offices in South America and Asia. More information about Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS) is available at www.staples.com.
About Staples for Students
Staples has a long history of supporting students, teachers and classrooms. Staples for Students is an ongoing program that helps students and teachers with the school supplies and essential items needed to achieve success in education. The Staples for Students campaign has included school supply drives, support for teachers in classrooms, donations for education projects, classroom initiatives such as Designed by Students, and the sale of products that give back to communities and classrooms in need.
About DonorsChoose.org
DonorsChoose.org is the leading platform for giving to public schools. Teachers across America use the site to create projects requesting resources their students need, and donors give to the projects that inspire them. Since its founding by a Bronx teacher in 2000, more than 2 million people and partners have given $547 million to projects reaching 22 million students. Unique among crowdfunding platforms, the DonorsChoose.org team vets each project request and ships resources directly to the school. Every donor receives photos of their project in action, thank-yous from the classroom, and a cost report showing how every dollar was spent. DonorsChoose.org was the first charity to make the top 10 on Fast Company’s list of the Most Innovative Companies in the World. Visit www.donorschoose.org to learn more.
About Born This Way Foundation
Led by Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia Germanotta, Born This Way Foundation was founded in 2012 to support the wellness of young people and empower them to create a kinder and braver world. Born This Way Foundation achieves this by shining a light on real people, quality research, and authentic partnerships. Working with more than 50 non-profit organizations, Born This Way Foundation has connected more than 150,000 young people with services and programing in their communities. Born This Way Foundation has also partnered with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to collect data from more than 10,000 young people, improving understanding of the factors that affect youth wellbeing and empowerment. Visit us at bornthisway.foundation.org.
Contact:
Carrie McElwee
508-253-1405
Carrie.McElwee@Staples.com
Corporate Service
Source: Staples, Inc.
###