Broughton High School Sport & Event Marketing II students recognized as top fundraisers in 2025 Play4Kay Initiative

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Broughton High School students recognized as
top fundraisers in 2025 Play4Kay Initiative
*This press release is written and presented by students of the Sport & Event Marketing II class at Broughton Magnet High School
Broughton Magnet High School’s Sport & Event Marketing II (SEM II) class has once again
proven their dedication to bringing the community together for a meaningful cause. The
students were recognized as the top K-12 Division fundraisers in both the nation and North
Carolina for this year’s Play4Kay initiative. Broughton’s annual charity basketball event not only
raises critical funds for researching cancers affecting women, but also honors survivors in a
halftime recognition ceremony.
This year, students set two ambitious goals: (1) to increase total sponsors by 10% and (2) to
raise $30,000 for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. They surpassed both, securing 70 sponsors (a
15% increase from 2024) and raising $30,009.33 (surpassing last year’s total by $8,379.33).
Their efforts and hard work were honored at this past weekend’s NCAA Women’s Final Four in
Tampa, Florida at the annual Wow4Yow Celebration.
This marks the second time Broughton has been recognized as the National K-12 Divisional
Winner (previously in 2020) and the fourth time as North Carolina’s K-12 Divisional Winner
(2024, 2023, and 2020). Over the past eight years, Broughton students have donated over
$100,000 to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
Students combined event planning, sponsorship outreach, and creative marketing—such as a
silent auction, t-shirt sales, and a "flamingo flocking" campaign—to support a great cause while
gaining invaluable real-world experience. Through this honors class project, students learned
valuable life lessons such as effective communication, teamwork and time management.
“I feel that we made a significant difference in the community. This issue is very personal and
important to me, as I have had people in my family that have fought cancer. I feel we made a
genuine positive impact on people's lives,” says SEM II student Hayden Hicks.
“Doing this event brings the curriculum to life and shows us ways that we can use these skills in
our future careers,” says Lizzie Fenton, another SEM II student.
The Play4Kay initiative honors the legacy of Coach Kay Yow, the legendary NC State women’s
basketball coach, who fought a courageous battle against breast cancer. The students’ ongoing
commitment to the cause reflects their passion for both community service and service project
based learning.