Scholastic and Lippincott Mercer to be Honored at Save the Children International Gala 6/3/2004
From: Eileen Burke, 203-221-4233 or 203-216-0718 (cell), Dana Freeman, 203-221-4228 or 203-984-5058 (cell), both of Save the Children WESTPORT, Conn., June 3 -- Scholastic Inc. and Lippincott Mercer will be honored with the prestigious "Partners for Children" award at Save the Children's sixth International Gala at Pier Sixty in New York on Monday, June 7, 2004. The award recognizes individuals, organizations or businesses that make a measurable, long-term commitment to the well-being of children in need served by Save the Children in the United States and around the world. Under the leadership of Richard Robinson, chairman, president and CEO, Scholastic has become the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books, including such renowned brands as Harry Potter(tm), Clifford the Big Red Dog(tm), Goosebumps(tm) and I Spy(tm). Three years ago, Scholastic selected Save the Children as a charity partner of Scholastic Book Clubs' ClassroomsCare program. Through this innovative philanthropic initiative, children are encouraged to read 100 books in order to give 100 books in classrooms nationwide. More than one million new books, donated by Scholastic through ClassroomsCare, have been distributed to children in need in some of the poorest communities in the United States where Save the Children operates after-school programs that focus on literacy as well as physical activity and nutrition. "In many cases, the books donated and distributed by Scholastic to Save the Children's programs are the first books the children have ever owned," said Charles F. MacCormack, president and CEO of Save the Children. "Dick Robinson is carrying out a noble family tradition, started by his father, M.R. Robinson over 80 years ago when he founded Scholastic, in helping children learn to read. Through his leadership, Scholastic has helped bring together the worlds of business and humanitarianism on behalf of children in need. We are pleased and proud to recognize Scholastic with our Partners for Children award." Lippincott Mercer, a leading design and brand strategy consulting firm and part of the Marsh & McLennan Companies, has worked since the fall of 2003 on a major initiative to help define, position and strengthen the Save the Children brand. Under the direction of senior partner, John Allen, and senior associate, Becky McNeil, the team also developed the architecture for an ongoing communications plan. "The Lippincott Mercer team worked tirelessly over the past year. It conducted extensive research and designed an ambitious strategy to strengthen our identity, raise awareness of our work and build more support among our constituents," said MacCormack. "The goal of the branding initiative, of course, is to position us to reach more children in need than ever before, something that has been on our global agenda for nearly 75 years." Sandra Wijnberg of Marsh & McLennan will accept the Partners for Children award on behalf of Lippincott Mercer, which MacCormack called "an outstanding corporate citizen." Save the Children's International Gala celebrates children and honors corporations and individuals for their humanitarianism and philanthropy on the children's behalf. Past Partners for Children awardees are Proctor & Gamble, Donna Karan International, Denny's, Johnson & Johnson and Mott's, Hearst Corporation and TJ Maxx. This year's gala is hosted by Alec Baldwin and is co-chaired by Cokie Roberts and Donald R. Keough. Honorary co-chairs are Sally Field, Cherry Jones, Craig Kallman, Swoosie Kurtz, John Lithgow, Ron Meyer, Charlie Rose, Carole Bayer Sager, Gerald Schoenfeld and Cicely Tyson. Since its inception, the gala has raised over $4 million for Save the Children's programs in the United States and in more than 40 countries around the world. For more information, visit the following websites: Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) at http://www.scholastic.com Lippincott Mercer at http://www.lippincottmercer.com Save the Children at http://www.savethechildren.org | |