The kid from Akron was faced with a lot of adversity throughout his youth. A child for a single teenage mother, LeBron James did not have the stable home life that many did, missing out on a good portion of his fourth-grade education because of frequent moving from apartment to apartment. LeBron, then an 8-year-old football star, was taken in by his coach, Frank Walker. His time at the Walker household gave LeBron the stability that he needed as the family helped keep him focused on his education and kept him from getting involved with the issues that befall youth in inner cities, from gang violence to drugs.
Now, LeBron is set to open up his own school on July 30th to help the youth of Akron and give back to the community that he grew up with. The IPROMISE school is starting out with third and fourth graders with staff members there to help further the education and development for those in the program, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
As an incentive for those who complete the program, LeBron is set to grant them free tuition at the University of Akron starting off in 2021. He also set up a program for the parents of the children to help them complete their own education as well as a program to help those in high school get ready for college.
As a part of the opening, LeBron will have a press conference to discuss his decision to join the Lakers for the first time this summer.
.@KingJames. More than an athlete. pic.twitter.com/aZGthMCEBv
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) July 29, 2018
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It’s really inspiring for someone like LeBron to give back to his community in this way. As LeBron stated in the video above, he has the resources and the people to get this school started and he’s directly going to be able to help children that otherwise wouldn’t have a chance at an education like this. Someone who has the platform and influence to do this, and he’s helping at-risk youth onto the right path like he was helped out so many years ago. As someone who was told to “shut up and dribble” by some Fox News host, he really proved that he is more than an athlete.
Congratulations to LeBron, and wishing the best to those beginning at the school tomorrow.
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