StubHub Commits to Put $1 Million Worth of Musical Instruments in U.S. Classrooms with The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation Partnership

More than six million U.S. elementary and middle school students do not have access to arts or music classes, resulting in a generation of young people lacking much-needed school programs. Today at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Social Good Hub, StubHub, the world’s largest ticket marketplace, furthers its support of music education by announcing a commitment to put $1 million worth of musical instruments in U.S. classrooms, working in partnership with music education non-profit, The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation (MHOF).

StubHub is collaborating with Dr. Martens, indie band Portugal. The Man and various other major companies and artists to award instrument donations at schools nationwide throughout the year, particularly in low-income areas. In recognition of the home of the SXSW music festival, and its great strides toward prioritizing arts education, Austin will be the first city awarded in 2015 with two benefitting schools receiving more than $80,000 worth of musical instruments from MHOF, thanks to funding support from the StubHub Foundation (a corporate-advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation) and Dr. Martens.

“Monetary support will always be vital to keeping school music programs alive, but at StubHub, we aim to do more than that. In combining our sheer reach as a company with the voice and inspiration that only musicians can bring, we hope to increase our impact by shining a national spotlight on the issue itself,” said StubHub Head of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Emma Leggat.

“Growing up in Alaska, we did not have many opportunities to play music, let alone get exposed to it,” said John Gourley, lead singer of Portugal. The Man. “We were lucky enough to have parents who supported our passions, but we know without them we would have never had the opportunity and who knows what I would be doing now. It is great to see supporters like StubHub and MHOF giving underfunded schools and students the chance to chase their passions. Music and arts education is very important to us and are we stoked to be part of this program.”

“Sadly, due to the high cost of musical instruments, school music programs around the country are struggling, even when the will to keep them alive is strong,” said Felice Mancini, President & CEO of The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation. “Combining StubHub’s funding support with ways to raise awareness around the issue itself will be game-changing for our organization and the countless children who will benefit.”

Working in collaboration with MHOF, brands and artists, including those from its 2014 Next Stage Concert Series and 2015 StubHub Music Experience at SXSW, StubHub aims to achieve a truly collective impact through combined investment, elevated exposure for the cause and opportunities for youth to be inspired by musicians themselves. Selected markets will be chosen collaboratively between StubHub, MHOF and partner artists and brands, with awarded schools to be chosen by MHOF through its established selection criteria. Interested schools are invited to inquire or apply directly through MHOF.

StubHub’s expanded commitment to music education builds upon its 2014 partnership with MHOF through its Next Stage Concert Series, which enabled nearly $600,000 in instruments donated to 16 U.S. schools in 2014. Since the creation of the StubHub Foundation in 2012, StubHub has allocated more than a quarter of its $3 million in charitable giving to arts non-profits, primarily in music education.

FOR MORE ABOUT HOW STUBHUB HAS SUPPORTED MUSIC EDUCATION:

View a film about its partnership with The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6x_o_xoUK8

Meet The Roots of Music, another StubHub Foundation beneficiary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNl4F5mXRqo

Learn about StubHub’s 2014 Next Stage Concert Series: StubHub.com/Next-Stage-Concert-Series

Learn about the StubHub Music ‘1 for 1’ donation campaign: http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/37572-StubHub-Kicks-Off-the-Season-of-Giving-With-a-1-for-1-Donation-Campaign-to-Support-Music-Education

About StubHub

StubHub is the world's largest ticket marketplace, enabling fans the choice to buy and sell tickets to tens of thousands of sports, concert, theater and other live entertainment events on desktop, tablet or mobile, as well as the ability to discover local live music through its iOS app StubHub Music. Offering a superior fan experience at its core, StubHub reinvented the ticket resale market in 2000 and continues to lead it through innovation through numerous industry firsts, including the introduction of the industry’s first ticketing application, first interactive seat mapping tool and the first live entertainment Fan Rewards program. The market leader, StubHub is partners with major organizations and brands, including more than 60 teams in MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS and NCAA, plus ESPN, NBC Digital, AEG and Paciolan. Throughout North America and Europe, StubHub provides the total end-to-end event going experience that is the way ticket buying should be. StubHub is an eBay company (NASDAQ: EBAY). For more information on StubHub, visit StubHub.com, Twitter.com/StubHub, Facebook.com/StubHub, or YouTube.com/StubHub.

About The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation

The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation was inspired by the acclaimed motion picture Mr. Holland’s Opus, the story of the profound effect a dedicated music teacher had on generations of students. The film's composer, Michael Kamen, started the foundation in 1996 as his commitment to the future of music education.

The Foundation donates musical instruments to under-funded schools in an effort to give students the many benefits of music education, help them achieve more in school and inspire creativity and expression through playing music. Hundreds of thousands of students across the country have benefited and thousands of instruments have been donated to 1,311 school music programs. Please visit mhopus.org for more information.