– The event: As part of Bank’s pay-it-forward initiative, Durant will make his first appearance in the city since winning the NBA Finals and earning MVP honors.
– The court: A collaborative effort between the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation and the BBVA Compass Foundation, the clinic was conducted on the school’s outdoor basketball court.
– The school: IDEA’s Austin Rundberg campus is a component of the expanding Texas-wide network of charter schools operated by IDEA Public Schools, which serves over 36,000 students.
July 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — AUSTIN, Texas — Thursday at IDEA Rundberg in Austin, NBA All-Star Kevin Durant surprised kids as part of BBVA Compass’s Summer of Opportunity project, which encourages people to pay it forward by performing random acts of kindness.
The school’s outdoor basketball court, which made its debut last year as a joint project of the BBVA Compass Foundation and the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation’s Build It and They Will Ball court restoration program, was the venue for the basketball clinic that the students were attending. Teachers from the Kevin Durant Youth Basketball Fantasy ProCamp, a two-day program for young people in the Austin area that began on Thursday, led the clinic. BBVA Compass is presenting both the clinic and camp.
“It’s great to come back to IDEA Rundberg today with BBVA Compass and see how this court is being put to such good use,” remarked Kevin Durant. The students may construct their futures and live large and bright here. Being able to contribute to Austin in a way that truly improves people’s daily lives is an honor.”
After winning the NBA Finals in June and being named MVP of the series, Durant is making his debut visit in Austin on Thursday.
The Summer of Opportunity campaign by BBVA Compass began in June when staff members all throughout the bank gave away $25 gift cards to the individuals and organizations of their choosing. Durant was one of the brand ambassadors that the bank called upon to aid in promoting its summertime initiative to create happiness and give back to the areas it calls home.
“This event today puts an exclamation point on our commitment to Austin,” stated Yolanda Davila, an IDEA board member and the community relations executive for Texas at BBVA Compass. “We are out there every day helping families get into affordable homes, helping families build their futures, and it’s nice to have such a phenomenal role model as Kevin come together with us during our Summer of Opportunity to help bring attention to those efforts and create such an amazing opportunity for the IDEA students.”
The BBVA Compass Foundation, which gave $100,000 to the IDEA Rundberg court, supports the bank’s objective of being an engine of opportunity by increasing access to affordable housing and education, among other things. The court serves as a striking example of the bank’s commitment to Austin as well as the ability of the private sector to fill up financial gaps. Compared to regular public schools, IDEA Rundberg is a charter school that receives around 75% of its money from state and federal sources and is dependent on private donations to pay for its buildings.
More than 700 kids attend IDEA’s Academy and College Prep schools on the Austin Rundberg campus. The school is a part of the expanding IDEA Public Schools network, which consists of charter schools that educate more than 36,000 students statewide. All IDEA alumni, including those from Ivy League colleges and other prestigious universities, have been accepted to college for the past eleven years without exception.
Principal of IDEA Rundberg College Prep Taylor Nichols stated, “We are marshaling all of the resources we can to help us achieve that. Our aim is to give the promising young people who walk through our doors whatever they need to build big futures.” “We’re proud to be able to stand with such committed partners in BBVA Compass and Kevin Durant in the service of that goal.”
