DES MOINES -- The Iowa Hall of Pride Challenge has concluded its community service initiative this basketball season with nearly 80 schools participating in projects all across the state. Community service award winners comprising the NW, NE, SW, SE, and Central geographic areas of the state have been determined. In addition, one middle school award was chosen. The winners are:

NW - South Central Calhoun - Alzheimer's Association Fundraiser
NE - Cedar Rapids, Jefferson - Adopt-A-Family
SE - North Mahaska, New Sharon - Coaches vs Cancer
SW - Bedford - Lady Bulldog Food Drive
Central - Ballard - Ally oop for Autism
Middle School - West Central Valley, Stuart - Madhatter Day/Holiday Caring & Service

Each of the service award winning schools will receive $500 for the school's student government program. The award winning schools will also be presented a plaque to recognize their efforts. Every school that participated in the Pride Challenge will also receive a certificate of recognition.

The Iowa Hall of Pride in Des Moines sponsors the statewide Challenge, which grew from the Richard Jacobson Education Fund at the Hall of Pride. The initiative provides educational experiences for students and provides support to the Iowa Hall of Pride and other charitable causes. Joining the Hall of Pride as the promotional partner for the initiative was Mediacom. Participating high schools, for their part, conducted community service project(s) during the first part of the 2011-2012 basketball sport season.

"Part of the mission of the Iowa Hall of Pride is Educating the future, which includes Iowa's students," said Chad Elsberry, IHSAA and Hall of Pride Marketing Director. "The quality of the community service projects is inspiring as students and educators stepped forward to make a difference."

Schools that registered their service project(s) as part of the Iowa Pride Challenge were also eligible to participate in a Pride Scrimmage/Exhibition in boys' and / or girls' basketball.  The Pride Scrimmages were held throughout the state with thousands of community members impacted by the corresponding community service projects. Hall of Pride Challenge organizers noted that many officials across the state also donated their services during the scrimmages.

"We left the service project decisions at the local level and schools responded very well," said Elsberry.

One example of a unique community service project came at South Central Calhoun where the high school girls' basketball team and coaches worked on an Alzheimer's Association Fundraiser. The local movie theatre is a volunteer operation and the team pitched in to run the theater and raise money for the Alzheimer's Association.

"We had the girls and coaches take shifts at the theatre and help with the operation of the movies for a weekend," said Dave Birks, Head Girls Basketball Coach. "Our jobs included taking tickets, running the concession stand, and cleaning up after the shows. We also made cookies and sold them at the theatre and school to raise funds. Alzheimer's
bracelets were also sold."

Schools were required to do a community service project before approval was given to compete in a Pride Scrimmage where schools were permitted to use one of their three allotted basketball scrimmages to play a "regulation" game-like scenario under normal game conditions. Pride Scrimmages/Exhibitions DID NOT count on a team's record. Both the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) and Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) governing boards approved the high school scrimmage modifications and were supportive of the Hall of Pride effort.

For many participating schools, their service projects were conducted during their scrimmage in the form of a food drive or fundraiser. Thousands of non-perishable food items were collected and distributed during the holiday season.

In addition to the dozens of local charities that benefitted, a portion of the proceeds from each Pride Scrimmage were donated to the Richard Jacobson Education Fund at the Iowa Hall of Pride.  Those contributions will be used to further the Hall of Pride's mission to "educate the future" through their educational programs and work with students and
schools across the state. The Hall of Pride hosts several hundred field trips at its Des Moines location each year and performs school programming through the Iowa Pride Academy in schools around Iowa.

Background Information - The Iowa Hall of Pride interactive museum in downtown Des Moines showcases the achievements of all Iowans, from student athletes to sports legends, movie stars to scientists. Interactive, hands-on exhibits tell the stories of Iowa heroes while teaching about the state and its history. A project of the Iowa High School Athletic
Association (IHSAA), the Iowa Hall of Pride honors past and present Iowa high school students involved in extracurricular activities including athletics, academics, and the arts. The Hall was designed to celebrate notable graduates and their achievements in all Iowa communities over the past 100-plus years!