From the Achieve Foundation
Like so many other activities and events, the Achieve Foundation’s fall fundraiser is going virtual this year! We hope fans of the annual Newstead 5K — as well as those who have taken up walking and running during the quarantine — will join us for the 2020 INstead Virtual 5K Race during the weekend of September 25-27, 2020.
Sign up today and invite your friends and family (even those who don’t live locally!) to participate in the fun and family-friendly event that has become a marker of the new school year in South Orange and Maplewood. This year’s race is like the ‘old’ Newstead 5K, but with a twist: it will be fully virtual. Choose your day, time, and route. Several route suggestions through picturesque SOMA neighborhoods are posted on the race registration page (e.g. the INstead “3for5K” loop that passes by 3 SOMSD schools, the INstead “SO-Hilly” loop, and the INstead “Newstead Classic”) — or run your favorite 5K route right from your front door.
Registration is only $25 per person through September 20, but the fee will go up to $35 after that, so sign up to walk or run today! Student participation is encouraged, and we do not want the registration fee to be a barrier. Scholarships are available! Please email newstead5K@achievefoundation.org for a coupon code to register at no charge. Local participants will receive one of our popular dry wick race T-shirts (while supplies last).
While this year’s race may be virtual, we have some very real fundraising goals, and registrants will be given the option to create a personal fundraising page as well as to register multiple family members when they sign up.
Since this can be run (or walked) anywhere, you can even include long-distance friends and family on your team!
The Achieve Foundation sincerely thanks the 47 local businesses and families who sponsored this year’s race! You can see the full array of sponsors above, but we’d like to give special recognition to presenting sponsor SOMEA and our 11 platinum sponsors: 4 Elbows, The Able Baker, Allison Ziefert Real Estate Group, Amy Paternite Homes, Berkowitz Lichtstein LLC, Brinton Brosius Inc., D&I Fitness, Mark Truscinski of Distinctive Properties Group at Hearth Realty, Morrow Church Turnover Sale, RegentAtlanc, and South Orange Country Day School.
Funds raised by the race underwrite initiatives that foster equal educational opportunities for all students in the School District of South Orange & Maplewood, and inspire educators to bring innovative practices to the classroom – programs like Achieve’s signature free volunteer tutor program, educator grants, a Chromebook lending library at CHS, hotspots for use during distance learning, STEAM education (science, technology, engineering, arts and math), and more.
To learn more, email newstead5K@achievefoundation.org or visit the website at www.achievefoundation.org.
About Achieve
Achieve is an independent 501(c)3 organization that serves as the local education foundation for the School District of South Orange & Maplewood. Over the past two decades, the organization has raised more than $4 million to promote academic excellence and equity in all our public schools.
The Achieve Foundation is known for its flagship Volunteer Tutor Program, which provides free academic support to students at all grade levels across the District, and has inspired innovation by awarding over 1,000 educator grants for classroom projects, professional development opportunities, and district-wide initiatives. Recently, the organization has worked to bridge the digital divide in our schools by pilong a Chromebook loaner program at Columbia High School and by funding the purchase of hotspots when schools were closed in the spring of 2020 due to Covid-19. Achieve also promotes hands-on learning through its free Maker Madness STEAM fair, and enhances music education through programs like the Vanessa Pollock Music Iniave and the Ted Cole Clarinet Project.
To learn more, donate, or volunteer, visit www.achievefoundation.org.
