Team Teach For America

2009 Bank of America Chicago Marathon
October 11, 2009

Post-close registration for the Marathon has ended. Thank you for your interest in our team, and we hope that you can run with us next year. To support our team, please make an online donation at: http://www.active.com/donate/teachforamerica#selectfundraiser. If you would like more information about our team or Teach For America, please see below or contact Ben Underwood.

Introduction

Teach For America • Chicago is assembling a team of participants for the 2009 Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 11, 2009. Everyone who commits to run with our team and to raise at least $500 will receive access to free marathon training through the Clock Tower Runners, and a commemorative Marathon singlet that will be available exclusively to members of our team. The money you raise will fuel Teach For America's progress toward closing the academic achievement gap between students growing up in low-income communities and their peers growing up in more affluent areas.

We are thrilled to announce that Balyasny Asset Management has committed to matching—dollar for dollar—the funds that each of our team members raise. If you raise $1,000, BAM will write a check for $1,000, so all of our team members' fundraising efforts will yield double. We deeply appreciate BAM's generosity, and we are energized by the support this matching commitment provides not only for our Marathon team, but also for Teach For America's work to close the achievement gap in Chicago and nationally. In addition, if your employer matches charitable contributions, the money you raise is eligible for this match as well. In this case, there will be a three-time multiplier effect for every dollar you raise. If, on your way to your personal fundraising goal, you secure a $25 commitment from a friend or neighbor, this money will be matched not only by BAM, but by your employer as well. The work you invest to raise $25 will yield $75 to help end educational inequity.

Amenities

We will be able to offer our team members several amenities on race day. Our participants will have access to team-exclusive gear check, bathrooms, food, blankets, and other services that will enhance the Marathon experience. Our ability to have a tent in the charity village depends on the number of team members we secure. We cannot yet guarantee that we will offer the services listed above in Grant Park proper. If we are unable to offer an on-site tent, we will secure a nearby off-site facility that our team members can use on the day of the race.

Volunteer Opportunities

If you are interested in joining our team, but are not yet ready to run a marathon, there are other opportunities to participate, from working at an aid station along the route to helping with Teach For America's Marathon-day activities such as supporting our runners at the Team tent or cheering for our runners at designated cheering stations along the route. If you are interested, in volunteering, please contact Ben Underwood for more information.

Team Teach For America Thank-you Gift Tiers

We are deeply grateful to those running in the Marathon on Teach For America's behalf, and we have established a sliding scale of thank-you gifts for participants who reach fundraising benchmarks between $500 and $3,000. Information about the gifts is listed below.

Team Member Timeline

Fundraising Support

Once you’ve registered for the Marathon and joined our team, to get started raising money to end educational inequity, follow these steps:

• Visit http://www.active.com/donate/teachforamerica
• Click on “Become A Fundraiser” at the top middle of the page.
• Complete the information. Please see http://www.active.com/donate/teachforamerica/benunderwood for an example. The text in italics (on the example page) will automatically appear on your page. You can customize the rest of the text, or you are welcome to use the text from the example.
• You will receive an e-mail from active confirming your information.
• E-mail the link to your fundraising page to your family, friends and colleagues, and post it on the social networking sites you use (Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, etc). Your contacts can make credit card donations online, and you should have very little trouble raising the requisite $500 (which is $1,000 after the match from Balyasny Asset Management!).

If you need any support or advice about fundraising (or if you would like me to draft an e-mail to your contacts) please don’t hesitate to contact Ben Underwood. We can make materials available to support your efforts, including flyers that can be distributed in hard copy or electronically as well as tools to help you make a convincing case to people in your network. Also, Ben Underwood is available to consult with you on how best to meet your fundraising goals.

We encourage each of our team members to generate a numeric fundraising goal (of at least $500), and then develop a list of people you are comfortable asking to contribute. Make sure your goal is reasonable given the list of people you plan to approach. Please share your goal with Ben Underwood so that as a team we can celebrate each of our successes as we set and meet our goals. Also, consider offering your friends and family the opportunity to make a challenge pledge. For instance, if you have a goal of finishing the race in 5:06 (the average women's time in the U.S.), then you could ask your friends to support you at the $25 level if you finish the Marathon, and the $50 level if you finish at or before your goal time.

Please note that every member of our team must commit to raising a minimum of $500. Team members are welcome to pay part or all of this amount themselves. All funds must be submitted to Teach For America by November 2, 2009. Because we are fortunate enough for BAM to match all the funds our team members raise, we have an obligation to give them an accurate account of how much our runners raise in a timely manner.

You may mail checks made out to "Teach For America" along with an accompanying cover sheet (provided), or bring them to our office, whichever is most convenient for you. Our contact information is below.

Attn: Marathon Program
Ben Underwood
Manager, Corporate and Foundation Relations
300 West Adams Street 10th Floor
Chicago, IL 60606

(312) 254-1000, ext. 4488
ben.underwood@teachforamerica.org

About Teach For America

Teach For America aims to end educational inequity—the reality that in our country where a child is born determines his or her educational outcomes and, in turn, life prospects. Our mission is to build the movement to eliminate educational inequity by enlisting our nation's most promising future leaders in the effort. Our vision is that one day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.

Learn more about Teach For America.

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