Yellowbrick Named as Winner, Excellence in Black Storytelling, in the 3rd Hashtag Sports Awards Presented by Budweiser

Awards recognize work from the top content, campaigns, and creators across more than thirty engagement-oriented categories

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Yellowbrick has been announced as the winner of the Hashtag Sports Award for Excellence in Black Storytelling, part of the 3rd Hashtag Sports Awards presented by Budweiser. The Awards honor excellence in fan and consumer engagement. Yellowbrick’s entry can be read in full, here.

Yellowbrick won the award for its Sneaker Essentials K-12 pilot program; which was piloted at the Meyer Levin Middle School in Brooklyn, NY. This program was created with a mission to connect students' passions for an area of the sports ecosystem (sneakers) to their learning experiences in the classroom, namely History, Literature, Math, Science, and Design.

By integrating a customized version of Yellowbrick’s Sneaker Essentials course, which was initially co-created with Complex and Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), middle school educators were able to deepen educational engagement, develop practical design and critical-thinking skills, and help students explore potential career paths. The program culminated in classes presenting their final designs for a school-wide Juneteenth festival. The themes expressed through sneaker design and brand storytelling included Black Wall Street and Black Excellence.

Winners of Hashtag Sports awards are determined each year by a voting panel of members from The Engagement Academy of Sports x Entertainment, a prestigious group of CMOs, executives, creators, athletes, and other engagement experts. Engagement Academy members include Clubhouse Head of Sports Sean Brown, Spotify Global Head of Social Media Marketing Ken Gibbs, North Carolina Courage co-owner & Wells Fargo VP Sara Toussaint, OBSIDIANWORKS CEO Chad Easterling, Drone Racing League President Rachel Jacobson, FleishmanHillard Global Managing Director of Sports Dianna Kraus, MGM Resorts Sports Partnerships Director Stephanie Maes, and Bose Global Marketing lead Pat LaCroix.

“Yellowbrick has set a new industry standard for effective engagement,” said Anthony Caponiti, CEO of Hashtag Sports. “It is a noteworthy achievement to be selected among the industry’s best by our Engagement Academy members out of the hundreds of inspiring, inclusive and innovative entries we received this year.”

“We are so honored that Hashtag Sports selected our program for this award. We see it as added validation for the work our team has been doing to promote education, working alongside brand partners like Adidas and Reebok, foundations like JFF, and universities like Parsons — all of which have devoted time and resources to these initiatives,” said Rob Kingyens, CEO of Yellowbrick. “We also have to offer special thanks to our partners who helped make this a reality, including Dr. Shango A. Blake, James Passantino, George O. Patterson, Christopher Jean, Marguerite Thompson-Alleyne, Langston Galloway, Sabrina Galloway, and Khadija (Kiki) Campbell.”

For more information on The Hashtag Sports Awards Presented by Budweiser, visit https://shortlist.hashtagsports.com/winners-2021

For more information on The Engagement Academy, visit https://www.engagement.academy/

About Yellowbrick:

Yellowbrick is a global leader in online education and career exploration for the Arts, Media, Sports, and Entertainment industries. The company develops exciting, accessible online programs in collaboration with top brands and world-renowned universities. Many key influencers in media and culture participate as instructors on the platform; including some of the world’s top entertainment industry professionals connected through Yellowbrick’s recent acquisition of Animation Mentor. Backed by Sony Innovation Fund, University Ventures, Condé Nast, and others, the company’s mission is to help a new generation of talent discover, pursue, and advance career paths that are aligned with the things they love. Find out more at www.yellowbrick.co

About Hashtag Sports:

Hashtag Sports® is the leading forum fueling the converging sports and entertainment ecosystem with unparalleled event experiences including the annual Hashtag Sports festival, purposeful recognition initiatives like Creators of Color and the Sports Entertainment Talent Pipeline, and industry-leading awards, judged by the Engagement Academy of Sports x Entertainment, honoring the most engaging content, athletes, and creators entertaining sports fans and audiences around the world. Visit hashtagsports.com for more information.