Jackie Robinson Foundation and New Era Cap Unveil Extensive New Partnership

Buffalo, New York Based Headwear Manufacturer to Make Significant Investment in Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship and Mentoring Program

New Era to Donate to the Jackie Robinson Foundation $1 of Each Cap Sold at New Era Flagship Stores and New Era Website During February

NEW YORK, Jan. 30 /PRNewswire/ — As the nation celebrates what would have been the 90th birthday of pioneering baseball and civil rights legend Jackie Robinson (January 31, 2009), New Era has unveiled a new partnership with the Jackie Robinson Foundation, which provides four-year college scholarships, graduate school grants and extensive mentoring to academically distinguished minority students with financial need and records of leadership capacity.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090130/NY64895 )

In addition to making a substantial investment of $250,000 which will support the Foundation’s scholarship and mentoring program, New Era has announced that it will commit $1 from each cap sold during the month of February at New Era Flagship Stores and at www.neweracap.com to the Foundation.

“This exciting partnership between New Era and the Jackie Robinson Foundation is a natural fit, reflecting our shared commitment to integrity, innovation and excellence,” said Jackie Robinson Foundation President and CEO Della Britton Baeza. “Through this unique public effort, New Era and the Foundation will honor Jackie Robinson’s guiding philosophy, ‘A life is not important except in its impact on other lives,’ while advancing the Foundation’s vision of promoting effective access to higher education for all Americans and molding future leaders who will carry forth Jackie’s values and ideals.”

In addition to financial support, the partnership will also see New Era provide mentors to Jackie Robinson Foundation scholars along with internships and career placements. New Era will also provide in-kind

contributions through product donations to Jackie Robinson Foundation events.

“As the official on-field cap of Major League Baseball, we couldn’t be more honored to be working with the Jackie Robinson Foundation,” said New Era CEO Christopher H. Koch. “Our goal is to help elevate awareness for the important work being done by the organization to educate the next generation of business and social leaders.”

A list of New Era Flagship Stores can be found at www.neweracap.com. To make a contribution to the Jackie Robinson Foundation, please call (212) 290-8600 or visit the Foundation’s website at www.jackierobinson.org.

About the Jackie Robinson Foundation

Established in 1973, the Jackie Robinson Foundation (JRF) is one of the nation’s premier education and leadership development programs. It provides four-year college scholarships and graduate school grants to minority students who demonstrate academic distinction, leadership capacity and financial need. Transcending financial assistance, the Foundation provides to its scholarship recipients a comprehensive set of support services, including mentoring, career guidance and practical life skills, resulting in an impressive 97% graduation rate, more than twice the national average for minority students. JRF’s innovative approach over the last 35 years of matching extensive mentoring, academic support services and career planning programs with generous financial scholarships has become a national paradigm in minority higher education intervention. There are currently 279 JRF scholarship recipients in the program representing 106 colleges and universities across the country and hailing from 34 states. In 2008, the Foundation welcomed its largest freshman class ever. Since its inception, the Foundation has supported over 1,200 young men and women and distributed more than $18 million in scholarship assistance and program support.

About New Era Cap

Founded in 1920, New Era Cap Company, Inc., is the nation’s leading headwear manufacturer and creator of New Era Apparel, bringing products to market that transcend time, culture, sport and fashion. New Era produces over 35 million caps per year and is the exclusive manufacturer of the official on-field cap of Major League Baseball, its Minor League affiliates and other licensed entities. On the street, New Era is known as the Originator of the True Fitted for its signature cap style, the 59FIFTY. The company, headquartered in Buffalo, New York, employs approximately 1,700 people world-wide in New York, Alabama and at its operations in Canada, Europe, Japan and Hong Kong. New Era is a ‘Category A’ affiliate of the Fair Labor Association.

SOURCE New Era Cap