Valentine’s-Themed Event Sells Out with Young Professional Volunteers and Duke Energy/Piedmont Natural Gas Presenting Sponsorship
February 14, 2018
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Feb. 14, 2018 – Nearly 400 people purchased tickets for the Valentine’s themed HeartThrob event held at Flight Beer Garden & Music Hall on February 9th. The event supported Heart Math Tutoring (Heart) – a nonprofit dedicated to helping students in high-poverty elementary schools develop math skills and academic confidence.
Organized by a group of Heart’s young professional volunteers, event costs were fully covered by generous community partners: Presenting Sponsor – Duke Energy/Piedmont Natural Gas; Platinum Level Sponsor – TIAA; Gold Level Sponsors – Carousel Capital, Flagship Healthcare Properties, Global Endowment Management, Grant Thornton, and K&L Gates; and Event Sponsors – Moore & Van Allen, Pamlico Capital, and Raymond James/Willson & Associates.
56% percent of economically disadvantaged students in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) performed below grade level in math on 2017 North Carolina End-of-Grade Tests. In response, Heart Math Tutoring recruits, trains, and supports volunteers as tutors in high-poverty CMS elementary schools. Over 900 community members, including many HeartThrob attendees, spend one hour each week delivering Heart’s research-based, structured curriculum.
The presenting sponsorship of Duke Energy/Piedmont Natural Gas marks the third year of partnership with Heart and over $40K in support to date. Previous donations have sponsored weekly one-on-one tutoring for over 35 Heart students.
“At Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas, we know that today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders,” said Jennifer DeWitt, Director of Foundation Programs and Community Affairs at Duke Energy. “Heart Math Tutoring is a key partner in our efforts to ensure each and every student in our community has an opportunity to succeed.”
TIAA’s sponsorship was accompanied by a generous donation to Heart’s program. This contribution will support an on-site Heart Program Coordinator, tutoring supplies, and two annual family engagement events at one school site in the 2018/19 school year. Said Jarian Kerekes, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility at TIAA, “We appreciate the critical contribution that Heart Math Tutoring provides to the community. TIAA was created to serve, and we are proud of the 41 TIAA Serves employees who volunteer with Heart and the impact they have on CMS students every week!”
Thanks to partners like Duke Energy/Piedmont Natural Gas, TIAA, and others, Heart has grown from serving 105 students across two schools to more than 920 students across 17 school sites in just five years. In the 2016/17 school year, 98 percent of Heart students met program growth goals in math, growing in two or more building block concept areas. During the 2016/17 school year, Heart’s 750 volunteers collectively gave more than 13,000 hours of targeted, one-on-one instruction to students.
From the HeartThrob stage, Event Chair Ashley Kaiser said, “We as tutors love using the power of ‘yet’ with our students. If a student says ‘I don’t know,’ we respond, ‘You don’t know yet.’ If you are not a tutor yet, please consider signing up!”
To learn more or sign up to be a volunteer tutor through April, visit hearttutoring.org/volunteers/become-a-volunteer.
Heart Math Tutoring
Heart Math Tutoring is a Charlotte-based nonprofit with a mission to ensure that all elementary students develop the strong foundation in math and enthusiasm for academics needed for long-term success, by helping schools use volunteers as tutors. Community members commit one hour per week to deliver an effective, hands-on curriculum through one-on-one tutoring sessions during the school day in high-poverty elementary schools. For more information, visit hearttutoring.org.
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CONTACT:
Emily Elliott – Heart Math Tutoring – 980-292-2297