Black-Owned Creative Agency Surprises 50 Unsuspecting Teachers and Staff With $150,000 Self-Care Grant at Local Public School
June 27 2024 - 12:55PM
On Tuesday, June 25th, a black-owned advertising agency surprised
50 teachers and staff members with a $150,000 ‘self-care’ grant at
a local public school in Harlem. The group was joined by co-host of
CBS News' "CBS Mornings" Gayle King at Teachers College Community
School (TCCS) a few blocks away from the agency’s office, just one
day before the end of the school year. Each teacher received a
$3,000 “self-care grant” that can be used toward self-care and
career development.
Elite Media, a Black-owned, female-led
advertising agency based in Harlem, made the surprise announcement
– with King’s help – to 50 unsuspecting teachers and staff as part
of the agency’s new the “Schoolys” program–one of several programs
Elite Media has developed as part of its disruptive, impact-based
model. The agency hopes acts like this can demonstrate how
businesses, organizations and people can use their own gifts to
help solve challenges in their communities.
To honor the school staff further, Elite Media
also put up billboards saluting school staff around the
neighborhood.
“Public school staff work tirelessly throughout
the year,” said Christopher Crawford, Founder & CEO of Elite
Media. “We are reinvesting our own operating budget into the
“Schoolys” initiative to ensure that support reaches the people who
put their hearts and souls into the work the institution does every
day - to protect the people who support and protect our youth. And
in the process, we hope to set an example for how other local
businesses can repurpose a portion of their operating budgets to
create an outsized impact in their own backyards.”
Part of the incentive for the “Schoolys” program
is personal: Crawford’s father worked at PS 28 in Harlem nearly 50
years ago.
Gayle King, who attended the event noted, "All
of us have teachers in our lives that have impacted us. And, you
know, that sometimes when teachers get extra money, they give it to
others and spend it on their students. I love that this grant money
has no strings attached and that the staff can use it on anything
they’d like, preferably themselves!"
The “surprise and delight” moment is just phase
one of Elite Media’s multi-pronged, multi-year commitment to
supporting the school. In the months to come, the agency will work
towards enhancing the curriculum, making physical improvements to
the building and playground, and providing agency staff to act as
grant-writers to help the school receive continued support.
Commented Michelle Verdiner (“Ms. V”), principal
at TCCS, “Retention of staff is a critical lever in sustaining
student and community impact. Teacher turnover is way too high:
last year alone, it was reported that 23% of teachers left their
schools. It’s important we remind teachers and staff of how
valuable and appreciated they are. We applaud Elite Media for
helping to lead by example. Caring in this way for the staff only
helps to aid our recruitment and retention efforts.”
To learn more about how you can partner with a
local school and change the world by changing a world, visit
TheSchoolys.com
ABOUT ELITE MEDIAElite Media is
an independent, black-owned, female-led advertising agency with
expertise in understanding and leveraging the influence of
celebrity and cultural movements to create win-win partnerships
between brands, talent, and content creators. The agency’s highly
skilled team of dreamers, makers, and doers is coming off its best
year ever, with work on behalf of its clients winning numerous
awards (Effies, Tellys, American Advertising Awards, ANA
Multicultural Excellence Awards, and Anthem Awards). The agency’s
client and partner roster includes American Family Insurance, NASA,
and the Department of Health and Human Services.
Elite Media the Schoolys
theschoolys@elitemediawill.com