Team LeBron had a big win in the NBA All-Star game and an enormous win for Kent State’s I Promise Scholars, a program that provides higher education opportunities for underserved students in Northeast Ohio. The competition between the NBA’s top players raised a whopping $550,000 for the I Promise Scholars program, which will lead directly to much-needed support for current and future Kent State University I Promise students. The funds raised by Team LeBron will support important educational expenses such as books, supplies, room and board and other needs that are critical to the success of I Promise students residing on the Kent State campus.
In 2020, Kent State University provided the opportunity for a college education to all eligible students in the LeBron James Family Foundation’s (LJFF) oldest I PROMISE Network class by guaranteeing four years of tuition, and one year of room and meal plan.
The tuition program was the culmination of an existing partnership between Kent State and the LJFF in which I PROMISE students attend summer enrichment college preparation programs at the university; those existing programs have continued.
“We are so pleased to take our partnership with the LeBron James Family Foundation to this next level and welcome these students fully into the Kent State family,” Kent State President Todd Diacon said at the time. “Kent State looks forward to the time when our campus is teeming with I PROMISE students.”