ESPN and Conference Networks Go the Extra Yard for Teachers

The CFP Foundation and ESPN once again put educators in the national spotlight during Extra Yard for Teachers Week. Since it began in 2014, the partnership has collectively invested more than $4 million to support teachers and coaches.

Throughout the week, ESPN and its conference networks recognized hundreds of educators on air. ESPN talent and college football broadcasts also distributed $25,000 to educators. More than 100 educators also joined College GameDay in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 12, where they were invited onto the set and celebrated for the impact they make in their classrooms and communities.

The celebration continued the next Saturday in Oxford, Mississippi, where sixth-grade math intervention teacher and Ole Miss alum Avé Miller received an unforgettable surprise live on College GameDay. Her husband nominated Miller through the CFP Foundation’s Great Teacher nomination program, and she arrived expecting $1,000 for her classroom. Live on air, she was surprised to learn that Oxford Intermediate School would also receive a $10,000 donation. ESPN highlighted the CFP Foundation and its teacher recognition efforts throughout the broadcast and across its social platforms. 

The celebration extended across ESPN’s conference networks, including ACC Huddle, which recognized Coach Wood of Kings Chapel Elementary School. Nominated through the CFP Foundation’s website, Wood earned recognition for going the extra yard for students through physical education, mentorship, and his Boys to Men Club for fourth- and fifth-grade students.