Orange Bowl to Unveil Media Center Makeovers at Four South Florida Schools

Applications Are Also Currently Open for the 2020 Orange Bowl Media Center Makeover Project powered by Extra Yard For Teachers

MIAMI LAKES, Fla. (orangebowl.org) – The Orange Bowl will unveil updated media centers over the next two weeks at three South Florida elementary schools as well as Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, as part of its Media Center Makeover Project powered by Extra Yard for Teachers, the College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation’s primary community platform.

In addition, applications for next year are currently open for elementary schools in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. To apply for your school, please visit http://www.orangebowl.org/mediacentermakeover/.

All elementary schools throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties were eligible to submit entries to win a fully-funded media center makeover. Coral Sunset Elementary was selected as the Palm Beach County winner, Lake Forest Elementary was selected as the Broward County winner and Blue Lakes Elementary was selected as the Miami-Dade County winner.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School will be receiving a state-of-the-art STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) Center, which was constructed to honor those who lost their lives in the senseless tragedy that occurred at the school on Feb. 14, 2018. Additionally, the Orange Bowl created the Beigel-Feis-Hixon Valor Award in 2018 to honor coaches Scott Beigel (cross-country coach and geography teacher), Aaron Feis (assistant football coach and security guard) and Chris Hixon (wrestling coach and athletic director) who lost their lives protecting their colleagues and students. The first two recipients of the Award, which includes a $10,000 scholarship, were Travis Julmice of Stoneman Douglas and Chris Volpe of Jupiter High School.

The Orange Bowl will unveil the newly updated media centers during special media center opening events at each school, and the winning schools will be recognized during a special in-game presentation at the 2019 Capital One Orange Bowl on Monday, December 30 at Hard Rock Stadium.

The media center opening events schedule is as follows:

· Tuesday, Nov. 12 at 8:30 a.m. at Lake Forest Elementary School (3550 SW 48th Ave, Pembroke Park, FL 33023)

· Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 11:00 a.m., at Coral Sunset Elementary School (22400 Hammock St, Boca Raton, FL 33428)

· Monday, Nov. 18 at 8:00 a.m., at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (5901 Pine Island Rd, Parkland, FL 33076)

· Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 9:00 a.m., at Blue Lakes Elementary School (9250 SW 52nd Terrace, Miami, FL 33165)

“We are delighted to partner with the CFP Foundation to accomplish the goal of the Orange Bowl Media Center Makeover Project powered by Extra Yard for Teachers,” said Orange Bowl Committee President and Chair José Romano. “These updated media centers will provide educators with an enhanced teaching platform and it will elevate the learning experience for thousands of students for years to come.”

The Orange Bowl Media Center Makeover Project is powered by Extra Yard for Teachers, which elevates the teaching profession by inspiring and empowering teachers through the implementation of programs in four focus areas: resources, recognition, recruitment and professional development. In the first five years, the CFP Foundation and its partners have raised $30 million in support of education, impacting 250,000 teachers and over 5.5 million students.

"We are grateful for the opportunity to work with our friends at the Orange Bowl in bringing these great projects to life,” said CFP Foundation Executive Director Britton Banowsky. “We know that an innovative learning environment and space can make a huge difference in achieving positive educational outcomes."

All three winning schools will receive new modernized classroom furniture that makes for a more inviting and exciting learning environment such as book shelves, tables, desks, chairs, as well as soft colorful seating for reading areas and creative spaces. The installations were completed by CFP Foundation partner, School Specialty, Inc. (SSI), featuring SSI Guardian home of the 21st Century Safe School™ and provider of innovative solutions that support integrated learning environments for improved student social, emotional, mental and physical well-being.

“We are passionate about supporting our teachers and students in South Florida and around the country with modern, engaging and supportive spaces for powerful learning experiences,” said Bryan Shark, Vice President, Learning Environments at School Specialty. “Our team of Educational Experts design and furnish each space to transform it into a future-ready learning environment that will lead to richer learning and improve outcomes.”

The media centers serve as the information hub of the schools where students can read and check out books and use computers. Faculty, staff and parents of students will also see a benefit from the updated media centers as many faculty, staff and parent meetings and trainings are held in the school media centers, as well.

About the Orange Bowl

The Orange Bowl is a 360-member, primarily volunteer non-profit sports organization that promotes and serves the South Florida community. With its primary mission since being created in 1935 to bring tourism to South Florida through an annual football game and events, it has also maintained a legacy of charitable contributions and community outreach. Orange Bowl community outreach efforts are comprised of four pillars: youth sports, fundraising and community events, academic programs and scholarships, and legacy gifts. The Orange Bowl features a year-round schedule of events culminating with the Capital One Orange Bowl on Monday, December 30, 2019. For more information on the 2019-2020 Orange Bowl events, including promotional and volunteer opportunities through the Ambassador Program presented by Panera Bread, log on to www.orangebowl.org or follow the @OrangeBowl on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

About the College Football Playoff Foundation and Extra Yard for Teachers

The CFP Foundation is the community investment arm of the College Football Playoff, supporting education across the country. The CFP Foundation’s primary cause platform, Extra Yard for Teachers, is dedicated to elevating the teaching profession by inspiring and empowering teachers in four focus areas: resources, recognition, recruitment and professional development. The CFP Foundation utilizes multiple partnerships to execute its initiatives and support positive educational outcomes. To learn more, visit cfp-foundation.org and follow Extra Yard for Teachers (@CFPExtraYard) on social media.

About School Specialty, Inc.

With a 60-year legacy, School Specialty is a leading provider of comprehensive learning environments for the preK-12 education marketplace in the U.S. and Canada. School Specialty believes every student can flourish in an environment where they are engaged and inspired to learn and grow. In support of our vision to transform more than classrooms by improving learning outcomes and district performance, the company applies its unmatched team of subject-matter experts and designs, manufactures and distributes a broad assortment of name brand and proprietary products to deliver upon its unique value proposition – including essential classroom supplies, furniture and design services, educational technology, science curriculum, supplemental learning resources, professional development, funding assistance and more.

*Editor’s Note:*

Please contact Mike Liotta, Orange Bowl Communications Manager, to arrange interviews and/or to attend media center reveals. mliotta@orangebowl.org

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