ERIE, PA – McDowell Intermediate High School has been selected as a recipient of the Lead2Feed Leadership Award and awarded $5,000 in technology products for its classrooms. Teacher Jason Markiewicz and his students are participants in Lead2Feed, a unique service-learning program that engages students in solving local hunger issues while building valuable skills like leadership and teamwork. Lead2Feed is a Common Core-aligned program developed by the USA TODAY Charitable Foundation, with support from the Lift a Life Foundation and the Yum! Foundation.
Markiewicz was randomly selected from registered teachers who completed and entered their Lead2Feed World Hunger Challenge projects by December 2014. His students educated the community on hunger issues, influenced residents to donate non-perishable food items and collected money to benefit the local Second Harvest Food Bank. The project will move on to final judging in April, when it will be eligible to win up to $25,000 for their charitable partner and $20,000 for the school.
“The Lead2Feed project had a great influence on our lives,” said Markiewicz. “Participants learned that even though some things take a lot of hard work and effort, they can be worth it. People who put more effort into things get more out of what they do.”
Since 2012, nearly half a million middle and high school students at more than 2,500 schools and clubs have participated in the Lead2Feed Program. Schools that complete hunger relief projects through the program are eligible to win over $250,000 in prize money for their charitable partners and schools.
The Program incorporates the Lead2Feed curriculum and leadership principles from the book by Yum! Brands’ CEO/Executive Chairman David Novak, Taking People with You, which encourages people to work together to achieve big goals.
“Lead2Feed provides educators with a turnkey service-learning experience for students that teaches collaboration, communication, critical thinking and creativity,” said Diane Barrett, president of the USA TODAY Charitable Foundation. “We are thrilled to award these participating schools with $5,000 in technology products to enrich the classroom experience and encourage their involvement in fighting hunger across the country.”
For program updates and information, follow Lead2Feed:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Lead2Feed
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeadtoFeed
Instagram: http://instagram.com/leadtofeed
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/leadtofeed/
Complete rules and details on the Leadership Awards are available at: https://www.lead4change.org/the- challenge/project-submission-rules/
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About Lift a Life Foundation
The Lift a Life Foundation was established in 1999 by David and Wendy Novak. The mission of the Lift a Life Foundation is to lead the way with innovative programs that help people in need and develop future leaders.
The Foundation focuses on creative partnerships that make a lasting impact in the primary areas of hunger relief, early childhood education, juvenile diabetes, military family support and leadership development. Since Lift a Life Foundation began, it has helped thousands of people in need through grants and programming support. David Novak is Chairman and CEO of Yum! Brands, one of the world’s largest restaurant companies with over 40,000 KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut restaurants more than 125 countries and territories, and author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling book, TAKING PEOPLE WITH YOU: The Only Way to Make BIG Things Happen.
He has been recognized as “2012 CEO of the Year” by Chief Executive magazine, one of the world’s “30 Best CEOs” by Barron’s, one of the “Top People in Business” by FORTUNE and one of the “100 Best-Performing CEOs in the World” by Harvard Business Review. He is the recipient of the 2012 UN World Food Program Leadership Award for Yum! Brands World Hunger Relief effort that raises awareness, volunteerism and funds to address this global problem. He also received the national 2008 Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship and is on the board of directors of the Yum! Brands Foundation and World Food Program USA. Wendy Novak is a lifelong philanthropist and volunteer. She served on the board of Directors for the Kentucky Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
About Yum! Brands Foundation and Yum! Brands
Yum! Brands, Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky, has over 40,000 restaurants in more than 125 countries and territories. Yum! is ranked #216 on the Fortune 500 List with revenues of over $13 billion and in 2014 was named among the top 100 Corporate Citizens by Corporate Responsibility Magazine. The Company’s restaurant brands – KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell – are the global leaders of the chicken, pizza and Mexican-style food categories. Outside the United States, the Yum! Brands system opened over five new restaurants per day, making it a leader in international retail development.
About USA TODAY Charitable Foundation
The USA TODAY Charitable Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, supports and builds alliances that enhance innovative, instructional programs and community outreach by providing the resources to promote opportunities and inspire all. It welcomes participation in efforts to engage, enlighten and inspire today’s students and educators by opening their classrooms to the real world. The Foundation seeks funding from other foundations, private companies and organizations to help provide educational programs for elementary, secondary schools, community colleges and/or programs in specific disciplines or curriculum areas. The Foundation works with interested parties to collaborate on the creation of an educational program that meets the mission and goals for respective companies or organizations.
Contacts
Weber Shandwick
Dana Metz, 312-988-2378 dmetz@webershandwick.com