The Warriors Back to School in the Bay: 5 Schools in 5 Days initiative continued Thursday evening as Warriors Guard Aaron Craft and Assistant Coach Bruce Fraser visited San Francisco’s Jose Ortega Elementary School’s 200 families as part of the Scholars of Tomorrow Back To School Night, presented by ScholarShare. Craft and Fraser welcomed the students to Back To School Night and motivated them to have a great school year, along with encouraging the parents in attendance to begin planning early for their child’s college education.
“I would not be in this position as a coach with the Golden State Warriors if it were not for the experiences and the relationships I built at the University of Arizona years ago,” said Fraser. “College can be a springboard for any career that you want to have, whether as a basketball coach, a doctor, an artist or a teacher.”
ScholarShare representative Jennifer Benson also spoke to the students, parents and teachers about the invaluable experience college serves our young students and the impact those educations have on that community.
“ScholarShare and the Warriors are here to tell you that if you pay attention and participate in class, do your homework, and your parents help you plan for your future, you can have any career that you want,” said Benson.
After the panel discussion, KPIX/CBS-5 San Francisco Sports Anchor and Reporter Vern Glenn hosted a Q&A with Craft and asked him about his own experiences attending Ohio State University for the past four years and how his time in college shaped his life and his career.
“Going to college is one of the best goals a child can aim for, and every parent can play a big role in making that dream a reality,” said Craft.
During the event, ScholarShare hosted a resource booth for families to learn more about saving methods available for their children. All the families in attendance received food and Scholars Of Tomorrow t-shirts compliments of ScholarShare. The Warriors and ScholarShare also surprised Jose Ortega Elementary students with a raffle for Warriors merchandise and autographed items. In addition, one lucky family was selected from the raffle to win a $1,000 college savings account, courtesy of ScholarShare.
“The Warriors and ScholarShare did an unbelievable service to our students today by discussing with their families the importance of higher education, and this student is already on the road to success after winning this college savings account,” said Jose Ortega Elementary Principal JoLynn Washington.
This week is the Warriors’ “Back to School in the Bay: 5 Schools in 5 Days” initiative to help raise awareness about the importance of education in the Bay Area. Through the Scholars of Tomorrow program, The Warriors and ScholarShare seek to reach students and their families in their communities to discuss the importance of academic achievement and planning ahead for college.
“The road to college takes a long time and a lot of buy-in; if one family learned something and started saving for college because of what they heard today, this event will have been a success,” said Fraser.