LeBron James’ charity work is matched by only a few and the Forward is a philanthropist of the highest level. James has been active among various social groups and has associations with grassroots. We know him for giving back to his community. He remains grounded in the Akron culture despite becoming a billionaire. One of his ventures, “I Promise” Schools, which is based in Akron, has been considered a breakthrough.

However, the project has come under the scanner lately.

LeBron James draws ire

The LeBron James Family Foundation took a big step when it supported the formation of I Promise Schools (IPS). These schools cater to the “at-risk” students, youth who are unlikely to have academic success. Students who are disconnected from study and face learning challenges come under the ambit. To smoothen the transition from school to the next step, I Promise acts as an interventionist tool.

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However, it may have failed to deliver on its original promises. The test results haven’t been up-to-the-mark. According to Beacon Journal, during the last three years, the school hasn’t produced a single student who can pass the state’s eighth-grade maths test. As per the Akron Public School Officials, these results are “discouraging”.

IPS costs taxpayers around $8 million. Public officials are concerned that such an exorbitant amount of funding isn’t paving the way for encouraging results.

School Board President Derrick Hall had the following to say, “For me as a board member, I just think about all the resources that we’re providing. And I just, I’m just disappointed that I don’t think, it doesn’t appear like we’re seeing the kind of change that we would expect to see”

The schools are in operation since 2018 and the LeBron James Family Foundation has pledged a support of $2 million per year when the schools are full in capacity. 

For now, James is occupied with an urgent issue. His son and USC athlete Bronny James recently suffered a cardiac arrest, and the family is busy rallying around him.

However, this didn’t stop James from sharing a story about his famed schools.

LBJ celebrates six years of IPS

Ironically, today marks the sixth anniversary of the schools’ founding. The Los Angeles Lakers Forward who has around 157 million followers shared a story to mark the occasion. The story redirects to a post by the official handle of the I Promise School. In the photos, James is speaking at an event.

During that time, the philanthropist laid out the vision of the school and promised widespread change through it. While the vision may have hit a roadblock, the idea of IPS is still in its budding days. 

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Will “encouraging’ results follow soon?