College Football Playoff Foundation Partners with the Big Ten Conference
to Support Educational Initiatives in Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation and the Big Ten Conference extend their partnership to provide funding for educational initiatives in the state of Indiana. Through this activation and in conjunction with Extra Yard for Teachers, the CFP Foundation and the Big Ten will recognize the selected Indiana teachers on the videoboards at the 2020 Big Ten Football Championship Game presented by Discover on December 19. The funding will enhance educational efforts in the selected teachers’ respective classrooms and schools.

“Our work is not possible without the support of partners like the Big Ten stepping up to recognize teachers at the Big Ten Championship Game,” said Britton Banowsky Executive Director of the College Football Playoff Foundation. “Teachers have gone through a lot this year and faced tremendous challenges, they deserve to be recognized for their dedication to students this year more than ever.”

The Big Ten worked with Indiana Sports Corp to select five teachers, with the goal of recognizing five different schools in the state of Indiana. Each of the teachers (kindergarten through eighth grade) will be awarded a grant to assist them with educational projects.

“We are proud to continue our partnership with the College Football Playoff Foundation and extend our work across the state of Indiana,” said Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren. “As the son of educators, I know first-hand the impact that great teachers make on the lives of our children and the importance of honoring and supporting educators in their vital work.”

“Indiana Sports Corp is proud to support Indiana teachers throughout the state in partnership with the Big Ten Conference and College Football Playoff Foundation,” said Indiana Sports Corp President Ryan Vaughn. “The selected teachers and schools positively impact the lives of our youth each day and we are thrilled to honor them with this recognition and funding.”

The following five teachers will be recognized on the videoboards at the Big Ten Football Championship Game:

Teacher School Location
Julie Beaty Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired Indianapolis
Aaron Book Tindley Genesis Academy Indianapolis
Mary Jo Mack Hoosier Road Elementary School Fishers
Shanan Riegle Yorktown Middle School Yorktown
Jill Simala Raymond Park Intermediate & Middle School Indianapolis

The Big Ten and CFP Foundation plan to partner for upcoming activations in Chicago and New York City later in the academic year.

About the College Football Playoff Foundation and Extra Yard for Teachers
The CFP Foundation is the community engagement 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 Indiana Sports Corp
Founded in 1979 as the nation’s first sports commission, Indiana Sports Corp is a not-for-profit organization focused on bringing premier sporting events to Indiana to drive economic vitality, facilitate a vibrant community with civic pride and garner positive media attention. Because of this, Indiana Sports Corp is able to provide positive, sports-related opportunities for youth in the community. For more information, please visit IndianaSportsCorp.org.

About the Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference (bigten.org) is an association of world-class universities whose member institutions share a common mission of research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching and public service. Founded in 1896, the Big Ten has sustained a comprehensive set of shared practices and policies that enforce the priority of academics in the lives of students competing in intercollegiate athletics and emphasize the values of integrity, fairness and competitiveness. The broad-based programs of the 14 Big Ten institutions will provide over $200 million in direct financial support to more than 9,800 students for more than 11,000 participation opportunities on 350 teams in 42 different sports. The Big Ten sponsors 28 official conference sports, 14 for men and 14 for women, including the addition of men’s ice hockey and men’s and women’s lacrosse since 2013. For more information, visit www.bigten.org.