STATE Bags and its #GiveBackPack program set to donate 30,000 backpacks this summer to the 30 My Brother’s Keeper Success Mentor communities in partnership with The White House, U.S. Department of Education and Roc Nation

NEW YORK, June 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — STATE Bags, a buy one give one, Brooklyn-born benefit corporation, announced today that it will donate 30,000 backpacks as part of The White House and the U.S. Department of Education’s MBK Success Mentors Initiative. From June 8(th) to September 8(th), for every STATE Bag purchased, one fully-loaded backpack will be donated to children in the MBK program across thirty cities nationwide.

As part of the My Brother’s Keeper Success Mentor initiative, communities are gathering at The White House to prepare “ground troops” to mentor students for success. Kevin Durant and STATE Bags’ Co-Founder Scot Tatelman will speak about the importance of mentorships that drive school and life success. At the Summit, Durant will issue a call to action for mentors and communities nationwide to ensure that young people are in school every day.

Throughout the summer, in an ongoing partnership with Roc Nation (www.rocnation.com), STATE will engage artists and athletes to raise awareness of the importance of school attendance. STATE will carry out its signature bag drop rallies with Roc Nation talent across the country in six select cities: Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia, and Seattle.

“Scot and I created STATE with a mission to support American children in various situations of need,” says STATE Co-Founder/Creative Director, Jacqueline Tatelman. “This partnership and initiative with Roc Nation not only provides a tremendous platform to equip thousands of students across the U.S. with the proper tools for success, but will go beyond simply a material donation through our motivational bag drop donation events in select cities. It’s an absolute dream come true for us, and exactly why we started the company!”

“Our work with kids in underfunded communities opened our eyes to the fact that what’s truly needed is more than just ‘stuff’. It’s role model figures and positive messaging,” says STATE Co-Founder/Marketing Director, Scot Tatelman. “Our approach at bag drop events is to simply ignite a fire within these children, motivating them to beat the odds often stacked against them. The inspirational team of STATE PackMen/Women – child development specialists that have successfully risen from at-risk neighborhoods themselves – serve as role model figures to the children served. Layering on idolized artists and athletes from Roc Nation? Just incredible!”

“Across the country, municipalities, nonprofits, foundations and businesses have responded to the President’s call to action in significant ways to support My Brother’s Keeper and expand opportunity for our nation’s youth. We applaud STATE Bags for stepping up to support the MBK Success Mentors Initiative, providing 30,000 kids across 30 communities with backpacks and working with Roc Nation to engage artists and athletes in raising awareness of the importance of school attendance,” says Michael Smith, Special Assistant to the President & Senior Director of Cabinet Affairs for My Brother’s Keeper.

STATE was created by husband and wife team, Scot & Jacqueline Tatelman to address the immediate needs of American children living with challenging, and in some cases critical circumstances. The brand amplifies the buy one give one model with its innovative #GiveBackPack program, a groundbreaking, inspirational initiative that has invigorated students in at-risk neighborhoods nationwide.

For more information on STATE Bags, please visit https://www.statebags.com/ and follow the brands social channels: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest

About STATE Bags: Not just a backpack – a #GiveBackPack. STATE Bags is a one-for-one, Brooklyn-born benefit corporation whose mission goes beyond selling cool and classic bags. STATE was created to address the immediate needs of American children living with challenging – and in some cases critical – circumstances. Founded by Jacq and Scot Tatelman in 2013, the two created the company after watching kids carrying their necessities in trash bags at their nonprofit summer camp. For each bag sold, STATE donates a fully-loaded backpack to an American child in need at its motivational bag drop donation events. STATE goes beyond the bag. #GiveBackPack. STATE offers a collection of bags – predominantly backpacks, for men, women and kids, and has partnered with a variety of influencers and brands such as Beyonce’s #BeyGOOD charitable movement, The Honest Company, American Eagle, Twitter and others in the donating thousands of bags across the country to children in need. The brand can be found nationally at retail partners including Bloomingdale’s, Barneys, Nordstrom, and Shopbop. In 2009, Scot & Jacqueline Tatelman also founded Country Roads Foundation Country Roads Foundation and its signature program, Camp POWER – a nonprofit summer camp that has served thousands of New York City kids.

About My Brother’s Keeper:President Obama launched My Brother’s Keeper in February of 2014 to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all young people can reach their full potential. In response to the President’s call to action, nearly 250 communities in all 50 states have accepted the President’s My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge; more than $600 million in private sector and philanthropic grants and in-kind resources and $1 billion in low-interest financing have been committed in alignment with MBK; and new federal policy initiatives, grant programs, and guidance are being implemented to ensure that every child has a clear pathway to success from cradle to college and career.

Media contact: Amanda Greenberg Amanda@domainintegrated.com1-305-3762445

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STATE Bags

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