Great Hearts Announces Presenting Sponsor and Co-Chairs for its Signature Gala

“A Journey to Emerald City” Happening Sept. 19

PHOENIX – Great Hearts Academies is proud to present “A Journey to Emerald City” at the Great Hearts Gala, happening on Saturday, Sept. 19, from 5:30 to 11:00 p.m. at Chateau Luxe, located in North Phoenix. The 5^th annual gala will be an evening that celebrates teachers, Great Hearts families, corporate partners and community leaders from across the Valley. Proceeds benefit the Teacher Excellence Fund, an annual campaign used to retain, reward and recognize excellent teaching in the classroom.

This year’s Presenting Sponsor is Casas Bonitas, Great Hearts’ janitorial provider for its network of schools in Arizona. Casas Bonitas’ was founded 19 years ago by Darcie Saunders, who is now a proud parent of a 4^th grade student at Cicero Preparatory Academy in Scottsdale. Early on, one of Casas Bonitas very first business accounts was one of Great Hearts first schools – Chandler Preparatory Academy. Great Hearts was just beginning to grow at the time, and Casas Bonitas was the perfect partner to grow right along with them. Casas Bonitas has since grown to employ hundreds of people, serving 200 residential clients and dozens of business clients throughout the Valley.

“Since we have grown with Great Hearts over the years, we have witnessed first-hand, the truly devoted group of teachers,” said Saunders. “Day after day, and year after year, we have always stood in awe of the caring, nurturing, and loving spirit shared throughout out all of the campuses we are proud to serve. As a parent of a Great Hearts Scholar, it only makes us more proud to serve each and every campus. Knowing our child is loved and cared for and that his success is so important to everyone makes all the difference in the world.”

This year guests will be taken on a journey to the Emerald City from “A Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, with a hosted cocktail hour, dinner and a program filled with teachers and students showcasing talent learned at Great Hearts.

Last year more than 600 guests raised over $500,000 to benefit the 2019 Teacher Excellence Fund. The funds were distributed to Great Hearts teachers across the network as bonus compensation in December 2019.

Evan and Lindsay Schube, parents of three children at Cicero Preparatory Academy, will serve as Co-Chairs for the event.

“Being involved with the Gala and the Teacher Excellence Fund is our way of giving back to and supporting the teachers, so that Great Hearts scholars can inspire audiences with their intellectual curiosity and knowledge,” said Evan Schube.

Lindsay is a real estate attorney, specializing in land use for Gammage & Burnham. She also co-leads both of her daughters’ Girl Scout Troops and is a member of the Parent Service Organization at Cicero Preparatory Academy. Evan is an attorney at Tiffany & Bosco, P.A. law firm. Both are passionate about teachers and hope to top last year’s amount raised.

Founded in 2003, Great Hearts grew from a single school to become the highest performing nonprofit charter school network in Arizona. The mission of Great Hearts is to develop great scholars and young men and women with character to serve a greater purpose.

Sponsorship packages and individual tickets are available to both families and corporations at www.greatheartsgala2020.org. Contact Brenna Norris, Major Gifts Officer, at 602-438-7045 x 322 for more information.

Great Hearts is a nonprofit network of tuition-free public charter schools dedicated to improving education nationwide through classical preparatory K-12 academies. There are 22 schools and 14,000 students throughout Phoenix. More information can be found at greatheartsamerica.org.

About Great Hearts Academies

Great Hearts is a nonprofit network of tuition-free public charter schools dedicated to improving education nationwide through classical preparatory K-12 academies. As the largest provider of liberal arts classical education campuses in the country, Great Hearts Academies serve more than 17,000 students at 29 tuition-free public schools in greater Phoenix, Ariz. and San Antonio and Irving, Texas, with waitlists that typically exceed enrollment. Great Hearts provides a robust liberal arts curriculum incorporating advanced math and science, a focus on the arts and foreign language, and a range of extra-curricular activities and athletics. Learn more at www.greatheartsamerica.org.