Bieber's Pencils of Promise is Kicking Butt - Let's Bring it Home!

You may remember that crazy adorable video of Justin Bieber and his partner in the incredible Pencils of Promise initiative via Schoools4All, the very handsome and personable Adam Braun.

I got to ask Adam a few questions about his work with The Biebs, and he was kind enough to delve a little deeper in how the two became involved with this incredible program:

Me: You mentioned wanting to do something like this together for years, so why now? What moved you guys to action, and how did the two of you start working on it?

AB: Justin and I have been friends for years, and we've always talked about doing something big together that enabled education for kids around the world. We knew that the gamechanger would be if he could visit a school, but we had to wait until after his movie was released so that we could figure out scheduling. It took time for our team to fully build out the platform as we'd envisioned it, for us to develop the expertise on the ground to build truly sustainable schools, and for Justin to get a break from his world tour. But now that it's all come together, we're incredibly proud of what Schools4All has become.

I'd be proud too Adam, it's pretty crazy impressive. I asked him about how he got Justin to join up - apparently the two had been wanting to do something to counteract the trouble in our schools for quite some time - I loved what he had to say...

AB: Coming up with Schools4All was really a collaborative process between the two of us. We were roommates while on a trip to Africa last September and one morning in the room we just started tossing around ideas about how we could work together to raise money to build new PoP schools. By the time we went down to breakfast we had the entire idea concepted, and I reminded him that it'd require him to visit a school in person. I asked him, "Are you sure you'd be willing to do that?" Without hesitation he looked at me and said, "For Pencils of Promise? 100%." From then on I just ran full steam at making this a reality, and as usual we've had a blast together.

Adam told me that when they first started working on this project, there were 75 million children worldwide without ACCESS to education. That number was staggering to both Justin and himself, and The Biebs knew he was in a unique position to reach out and make change. Now, it's the results of their efforts that are staggering.

In just 2.5 years PoP has broken ground on nearly 40 schools in the developing world, created a movement of over 250,000 individuals and delivered more than 1 million student educational hours in our classrooms. Our goal is to break ground on 100 schools by the end of 2012, and through campaigns like Schools4All we're excited to watch that become a reality.

The ultimate goal of PoP is to grow the movement towards quality education for every child on the planet. We do so by building schools on the ground and hopefully putting out a model for others to replicate, and also by training a new generation of young leaders to take action at home and abroad. We talk a lot about how one person can make a change but only together can we change the world.

Well, Pencils of Promise, their little fundraiser that could has now raised over $200,000.00 for Schools 4 All, and we want to make sure that we help them hit ohhhhh...what do you think, like a quarter million by midnight? I think we BlogHers have the social media wherewithall to make that happen, don't you?

Source: BlogHer

Normal school fundraiser vies to bring Justin Bieber to town

NORMAL -- Epiphany School in Normal may be penciling in a visit by pop superstar Justin Bieber.

Epiphany School in Normal is participating in a fundraising contest in which the grand prize is a local appearance by pop superstar Justin Bieber.

The personal appearance is the grand prize for schools participating in the singer's personally endorsed Pencils of Promise fundraising campaign.

Pencils of Promise, also known as PoP, provides money for the building of schools around the world and creating educational opportunities for underprivileged children.

As of today, a dozen seventh-grade girls representing Epiphany School had raised more than $5,000 over the past two months, with $3,000 of that total collected in the last three days alone, said Michelle Massey, mother of one of the girls, Christine Travis.

Epiphany is currently ranked at around seventh place among schools across the country participating.

"I think it's amazing what they've done," Massey said.

Though Bieber originally said he would visit only the No. 1 fund-raising school, he has since amended that promise to visiting the top five schools, said Massey.

The Epiphany girls have until 10:59 p.m. Thursday to raise more funds and crack the Top 5.

Source: Pantagraph

Justin Bieber raises nearly 200k for Pencils of Promise Organization

Canadian cutie, Justin Bieber, is lending his name to an organization that helps establish schools in areas where education is not readily available for children. Pencils of Promise is a nonprofit charity created by Adam Braun. Braun is hoping Justin’s attachment to the charity will help raise funds for more schools to be built in third world countries. PoP has already built 30 schools.

Justin’s involvement with the actual fundraising is minimal. He just happens to be the prize waiting for the lucky few who raise the most money for the cause. Braun estimates more than 75 million children are not given the opportunity for an education. Something that most people in developed countries could not fathom.

Justin Bieber and Braun got together and created the “Schools 4 All” campaign. Young people are challenged with the task of creating personal fundraising pages in an effort to raise donations for the cause. Whoever raises the most money will get a visit from Justin and Braun to the school of their choice. What an amazing motivator for kids everywhere.

PoP believes it can change the world for the better with just one pencil at a time. The campaign started on April 15th and wraps up on June 30th. The 17-year-old singing sensation sat down to film a short clip promoting the cause with founder, Braun.

So far, the campaign has raised a staggering $192,609 dollars. These funds will build 9 new schools. Katrina Davies is leading the charge with an amazing $17,545! You go girl! Only 2 days are left, and anybody can help out our favorite Canadian by donating to PoP. It looks like Miss Davies is about to meet one of the biggest stars on the planet.




Source: Wakey Wakey News

Singer Natalia Kills Joins Justin Bieber In Support Of Pencils Of Promise

Justin Bieber isn’t the only musician behind Pencils of Promise.  British singer Natalia Kills, signed by Black Eyed Peas member will.i.am, and whose album,Perfectionist, comes out August 16, is already supporting the New York-based charity which builds schools in the developing world.

 “I think it’s actually the fastest rising non-profit that exists at the moment. They’ve built over 35 schools in less than 5 years, so they’re doing really well right now.  I don’t know anyone else [musician-wise] who supports it, but I know me and Justin Bieber do “, she said.

Bieber started Schools 4 All with Pencils of Promise founder Adam Braun, a campaign that challenges students, parents, entire schools and communities to launch a personal fundraising page to help PoP build more schools. The campaign ends June 30 and the person who raises the most money will receive a visit at the school of their choice from Bieber and Braun.

“There are more than 75 million children without access to education, and together we can do something about it,” it says on the site.

Source: SamaritanMag