Under Armour is stepping up to the plate when it comes to helping Baltimore’s public schools upgrade their sports programs.
On Thursday, the company announced that it would be working with the Ravens, the Fund for Educational Excellence and the InSideOut Initiative in a multimillion-dollar collaboration “to enrich Baltimore City schools’ athletic programs.”
The InSideOut initiative was co-founded by former Baltimore Colts player Joe Ehrmann and will focus on athletic directors and coaches, offering professional development to enrich their programs.
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The Fund for Educational Excellence will act as the project manager and will ensure that all the schools can access the resources made available in the collaboration. The Ravens will fund the project.
As for Under Armour, the brand has said that it will be outfitting over 5,000 student athletes and coaches with new uniforms and other sports apparel. They will also be offering funding for schools to use for upgraded facilities, according to the Baltimore Sun.
“We are so thankful to these partners for stepping up in this major way,” Sonja Brookins Santelises, chief executive officer of Baltimore schools, said in a statement on the new initiative.
Under Armour and student athletes
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The initiative isn’t anything new for Under Armour. A company spokesman noted that they had “worked with individual schools to fill requests related to footwear and accessories.” In the past, the clothing brand has worked with various public schools to provide uniforms, including in the Baltimore area, and will be rolling out football and basketball uniforms this year. At least 15 different kinds of sports have been outfitted with Under Armour uniforms.
We’re glad to see Under Armour and the Ravens stepping up to the plate to give back to the community and hope to see other companies doing the same in their own communities.