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2025 San Antonio Local Organizing Committee Tips-Off the NCAA® Read to the Final Four® Program

San Antonio, TX (October 4, 2024) - – The San Antonio Local Organizing Committee (SALOC) will host the tip-off of the 2025 NCAA® Read to the Final Four® literacy program on Thursday, October 17, 2024, at the Magik Theatre located in the Hemisfair District. This tip-off celebration event will encourage students to dive into books with the same enthusiasm fans have for sports.
The Read to the Final Four program is an annual literacy challenge for third graders that aims to inspire a love of reading and improve reading skills. As of September 25, SALOC has recruited 28 school districts that include 299 schools, 1318 classrooms, and 26,186 students who will compete in a bracket-style challenge to see which classrooms can read the most minutes. The challenge starts November 4, 2024, and will lead up to the Men’s Final Four in April of 2025. Students and teachers will receive incentives to win books and prizes and participate in reading pep rallies along the way. The top four classes with the most minutes read will be invited to Reese’s Final Four Friday and the winning class will receive a $5,000 library makeover for their school.  

 
The tip-off event on October 17th will take place from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and will feature a program with notable speakers and special guest readers. Author and illustrator Charly Palmer will virtually read an excerpt of his book “The Legend of Gravity: A Tall Basketball Tale” to the students. Event speakers will provide remarks about the challenge and insights as to what to expect throughout the reading season.


Special Guests and Highlights:

 

  • Elena Wells (Executive Director, SALOC); L.J. Wright, NCAA's director of Men's Championships; Patrick P. Hill, NFL Player PR and Motivational Speaker; Pat Frost, Chair of SALOC; Superintendents from participating San Antonio metropolitan area school districts.

  • Illustrator and Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award winner Author Charly Palmer will be reading a portion of one of his books to the children.

  • Appearances by 2025 Men’s Final Four host institutions, including UTSA and UIW men’s college basketball coaches, hype squads and mascots, who will engage with participants.

 

Event Details:

  • Date: Thursday, October 17, 2024

  • Time: 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

  • Speakers Begin: 11 a.m.

  • Location: Magik Theater - 420 S Alamo St.

  • Admission: Participating school districts by invitation only

 

"Reading is the foundation for success both in and out of the classroom," said Elena Wells, Executive Director of the SALOC "The ‘Read to the Final Four’ program is designed to inspire young students to develop a love for books like the way fans fall in love with college basketball. This program offers a unique and powerful way to motivate our young readers while engaging in the spirit of sports. We cannot wait to see how many minutes are read by the San Antonio area students this year when we announce the results at the 2025 NCAA Men’s Final Four Weekend.”


For more information about Read to the Final Four program and to stay updated, please visit https://www.ncaa.com/mensfinalfour/read

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About San Antonio Local Organizing Committee:  

The San Antonio Local Organizing Committee (SALOC) is a nonprofit dedicated to bidding on and hosting major events that bring out-of-town visitors and drive economic impact to San Antonio.  SALOC is a partnership between San Antonio Sports, Visit San Antonio, the City of San Antonio, University of Texas at San Antonio and the University of the Incarnate Word.  SALOC oversees marketing, operations, and community relations for all ancillary events and initiatives associated with the 2025 NCAA Men’s Final Four. SALOC’s mission is to leverage the excitement of March Madness to foster community engagement, promote educational initiatives, and highlight the vibrant culture of San Antonio. 

 

About the NCAA 
The NCAA is a diverse association of more than 1,100 member colleges and universities that prioritize academics, well-being and fairness to create greater opportunities for nearly half a million student-athletes each year. The NCAA provides a pathway to higher education and beyond for student-athletes pursuing academic goals and competing in NCAA sports. More than 54,000 student-athletes experience the pinnacle of intercollegiate athletics by competing in NCAA championships each year Visit ncaa.org and ncaa.com for more details about the Association and the corporate partnerships that support the NCAA and its student-athletes. The NCAA is proud to have AT&T, Capital One and Coca-Cola as official corporate champions and the following elite companies as official corporate partners: Buffalo Wild Wings, Buick, GEICO, Great Clips, Intuit TurboTax, Invesco QQQ, LG, Marriott Bonvoy, Nabisco, Nissan, Pizza Hut, Reese’s, The Home Depot, Unilever and Wendy’s. 

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About Grassroots Carbon  

Based in San Antonio, Texas, Grassroots Carbon is the leading grasslands restoration and soil carbon storage company that empowers ranchers to implement regenerative land management practices. In addition to enhancing soil health, promoting biodiversity, and improving water quality, these regenerative practices have tremendous potential to combat climate change by drawing down large quantities of atmospheric carbon dioxide into the soil. Built on a foundation of scientific rigor, quality, and trust, Grassroots Carbon works with leading companies including Microsoft, Shopify, Shell, Marathon Oil and HEB to reduce their carbon impact and reach their sustainability goals. https://grassrootscarbon.com/ 

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