Mahomes created the 15 and Mahomies Foundation in 2019, making it his mission to help improve the lives of children. The Foundation supports initiatives that focus on health, wellness, communities in need of resources and other charitable causes.
This school year the 15 and Mahomies Foundation partnered with Communities in Schools to encourage reading in elementary age students through the Read for 15 program.
Communities in Schools Director of State & Local Programs, Christi Cage, said the Read for 15 program was created to encourage students to read for at least 15 minutes per day for 14 weeks.
“Our campuses will run their programs for seven weeks in the fall, with the winter break as halftime, and seven weeks in the spring,” Cage said. “Communities In Schools is the only partner for the Read for 15 initiative in Lubbock alongside Tyler, Texas and Kansas City.”
Cage explained that this initiative fits with the CIS mission of surrounding students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve great things in life.
“Read For 15 thus becoming a great opportunity to bring these missions together,” Cage said. “Communities In Schools has given each campus an opportunity to bring a creative program to their school that will be campus specific. Our campuses are implementing Read for 15 in multiple ways; programs that involve color wars, dress up days, and weekly and bi -weekly rewards per grade level or grade level group.”
Cage said that the program included bookmarks for all students, posters for campus hallways, and announcements for the news that the students hear in the morning, all reminding them that it is cool to read.
“By partnering with Patrick Mahomes through the 15 and the Mahomies Foundation and the Read for 15 initiative, we are surrounding our students with a community of support and programs that give our students hope,” Cage said. “To hear Patrick Mahomes, say, ‘I want young kids to know that reading is cool,’ and by helping them understand the importance of education, this gives them hope that with education they can do anything they put their mind to when they put their education first.”
