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Major League Baseball and Scholastic Launch 2019 “Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life” Educational Program Honoring the Legacy of Jackie Robinson

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As Part of the Program, Students are Invited to Submit Original Essays about Overcoming Obstacles to the Breaking Barriers Essay Contest

New York, NY – Feb. 6, 2019 (PRNewswire) Major League Baseball and Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, have announced the launch of the 23rd annual “Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life” Educational Program, currently available in classrooms nationwide. Breaking Barriers features lessons for students in grades 4-9 based on the life of Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson—an especially timely theme in 2019 during the 100th celebration of his birthday. The program focuses on nine values: Citizenship, Commitment, Courage, Determination, Excellence, Integrity, Justice, Persistence and Teamwork, and includes an essay contest that invites students from the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada to share their own stories of how these values help them face and overcome barriers in their lives. In a student survey following the 2018 program, more than 90% of students agreed that “learning how Jackie Robinson faced his barriers with values has helped me to learn how to overcome challenges in my life.”

Educators and students who wish to participate in the Breaking Barriers program can learn more here: www.scholastic.com.

The comprehensive educational program supports standards in language arts, social studies and social-emotional learning, and is offered in both English and Spanish. The program includes lesson plans, interactive digital activities to accompany each lesson, printable handouts, video extensions, and the Breaking Barriers essay contest. On January 31, in honor of her father’s birthday, program founder Sharon Robinson—MLB Educational Programming Consultant, acclaimed children’s author, and daughter of Jackie Robinson—participated in a special Scholastic Facebook Live event, during which she discussed the program’s educational benefits, as well as her father’s legacy, with Mark Honeyman, a middle school teacher from West Bloomfield, MI who has integrated Breaking Barriers into his classroom for many years. The full video of this Facebook Live event can be viewed at: www.facebook.com

“The Breaking Barriers educational program is truly special to me. I am honored that on the 100th anniversary of my father’s birth, his values continue to help young people gain confidence and his story continues to inspire them to overcome difficult situations in their lives,” said Sharon Robinson, who in addition to her educational and philanthropic outreach is also the author of several widely praised fiction and nonfiction children’s books including Promises to Keep: How Jackie Robinson Changed America, Jackie’s Nine: Jackie Robinson’s Values to Live By, The Hero Two Doors Down, Testing the Ice: A True Story About Jackie Robinson, Under the Same Sun, among many others. Her forthcoming book, Child of the Dream, a timely new memoir which explores her experience coming to grips with the struggle for racial equality during the Civil Rights Movement, will be published by Scholastic in fall 2019.

In 2018, over 13,000 students participated in the Breaking Barriers essay contest, with nearly 80% of surveyed students agreeing that “writing an essay about my barrier and how I used values like Jackie’s to face it has given me confidence to overcome new challenges in my life.” Open to all students in grades 4–9 throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada, submissions are now being accepted for the essay contest through March 14, 2019. Ten (10) winners will be announced in the spring, including two Grand Prize winners who will receive on-field recognition at either the 90th MLB All-Star Game in Cleveland or the 2019 World Series. All 10 winners and their teachers will receive laptops.

“For more than 20 years, Breaking Barriers has brought social emotional learning strategies into the classroom in innovative, engaging and relatable ways,” said Ann Amstutz Hayes, Senior Vice President, Scholastic National Partnerships. “Not only has the program given students a positive role model to look up to, but it has helped them overcome their own challenges, build self-esteem, and develop meaningful values of their own.”

Since its inception in 1997, Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life has reached more than 37 million children and 5 million educators in the continental United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. For more information on the Breaking Barriers educational program, please visit www.scholastic.com.

USTA & Life Time Forge Relationship Aimed at Growing Tennis Participation in United States

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Minneapolis, MN – Feb. 1, 2019 (PRNewswire) The United States Tennis Association (USTA) and Life Time today announced a landmark alliance that brings together one of the largest tennis operators in the nation and the national governing body for tennis in the United States. Both parties will combine their vast resources to continue growing the great sport of tennis, especially among younger players.

Life Time, Healthy Way of Life (PRNewsfoto/Life Time)

Augmenting its premium courts, tennis leagues, lessons and youth tennis programs, all Life Time coaches and facilities will receive additional state-of-the-art coaching tools and programming from the USTA, including access to its Net Generation suite of programs and apps. Net Generation is the USTA’s youth tennis brand designed to get more kids aged 5 to 18 playing. Through a smartphone app, coaches can connect with players around the clock to send practice activities, feedback and skill assessments at the click of a button. Coaches also gain access to USTA coaching curriculums, which include video lesson plans and exercises, to bolster their lesson plans.

“One of our top priorities at the USTA is increasing provider education and improving the consumer experience,” said Gordon Smith, USTA Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director. “Life Time has been an industry leader in this area and we couldn’t be more pleased to have their support and assistance in growing this great sport.”

Life Time, the premier healthy lifestyle brand, owns and operates more than 320 tennis courts and has 300-plus professional instructors nationwide, complete with top-tier programs. Net Generation will complement its SMART junior tennis programs and help parents easily find a high-quality tennis coach for their children at a nearby Life Time athletic resort.

“At Life Time we have exceptional tennis programs and premier courts across the country to support our vision of growing the sport,” said Bahram Akradi, Life Time Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We are proud to align with the USTA to accelerate our efforts in introducing the game to more youth players nationwide.”

“Through Net Generation we are committed to providing coaches with an array of industry-leading resources,” said Craig Morris, USTA Chief Executive Community Tennis. “Curriculum, linked to the Net Generation app, will support coaches as they strive to deliver a fantastic on-court experience for kids nationwide. We are excited that Life Time has adopted Net Generation for their youth programming and look forward to a successful partnership.”

The USTA and Life Time will also work to attract even more adult players to the sport through a range of new competitive and social leagues, tournaments, and team events, and by piloting new initiatives combining fitness and tennis programming.

The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level — from local communities to the highest level of the professional game. A not-for-profit organization with more than 655,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game. It owns and operates the US Open, one of the highest-attended annual sporting events in the world, and launched the US Open Series, linking seven summer WTA and ATP World Tour tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns approximately 90 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S. and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games. The USTA’s philanthropic entity, the USTA Foundation, provides grants and scholarships in addition to supporting tennis and education programs nationwide to benefit under-resourced youth through the National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) network. For more information about the USTA, go to USTA.com or follow the official accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat.

About Life Time® – Healthy Way of Life
Life Time champions a healthy and happy life for its members across 141 destinations in 39 major markets in the U.S. and Canada. As the nation’s only Healthy Way of Life brand, Life Time delivers an unmatched athletic resort experience and provides a comprehensive healthy living, healthy aging and healthy entertainment experience that goes well beyond fitness to encompass the entire spectrum of daily life for individuals, couples and families of all ages.