In Aug. 2018, LeBron James opened his ‘I Promise’ school, an institution for at-risk third- and fourth- graders in Akron, Ohio. Now, he’s providing transitional housing to increase family stability and their overall quality of life.
James announced on Nov. 4 that the LeBron James Family Foundation is partnering with Graduate Hotels, which runs boutique hotels in college towns across the states, to establish housing options. Graduate Hotels will renovate and donate an apartment building in a historic part of Akron, only five blocks from the school.
Graduate Hotel’s founder and CEO Ben Weprin said, “The I Promise Village by Graduate Hotels will be a monumental next step for us and LeBron and his Foundation’s commitment to the future of the students and their families,” according to CNN.
I Promise currently provides a variety of benefits to its students including school tuition, uniforms, two meals a day, transportation, access to a food pantry and guaranteed tuition to any students attending the University of Akron. The school is looking to expand to include first through eighth grade by 2022.
James told ESPN that, “Initially, our work was focused on helping these kids earn and education, but we’ve found that it is impossible to help them learn if they are struggling to survive – if they are hungry, if they have no heat in the freezing winter, if they live in fear for their safety.”
Expanding on his comments to ESPN during a Lakers practice, James said, “You can have all the support in the world while you’re at school or while you’re at basketball and while you’re playing sports or anything, but if you go home and it’s not stable and you don’t have any stability there, you can resort back to the negative things or the bad habits that you might have. And, sometimes it’s not even the kids’ fault on why the situation is the way it is, so for us to be able to provide that for our kids and for the families and adults, as well, the parents, it’s a pretty cool things.”
The apartment complex is slated for completion in July 2020.
