Photo Credit: ABC

Fresh off winning “Best Breakthrough Athlete” at the ESPY Awards (Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly), Louisiana State University’s Angel Reese has followed up with news that she is leveraging her platform to start her own foundation.

As AfroTech previously mentioned, Reese is the “highest projected earner in all of Women’s College Basketball,” with an estimated name, image, and likeness (NIL) valuation of $1.3 million due to cementing deals with Coach, Amazon, JanSport, Wingstop, McDonald’s, and Raising Canes, among others.

Now, the 2023 NCAA women’s basketball champion is turning her blessings into opportunities for underrepresented groups who aspire to create their own imprint.

Per Variety, the Angel C. Reese Foundation will equip girls and women in areas that include education, sports, and financial literacy.

Reese’s intention behind the charitable gesture is to level the playing field for underrepresented groups by proving the necessary tools to advance them in life.

According to a news release shared with On3, the Angel C. Reese Foundation will  “foster equity for girls and underrepresented groups through innovative and impactful initiatives, develop practical solutions to overcome systemic challenges, and provide comprehensive resources that empower a new generation of girls to excel in sports and successfully transition to the real world.”

The foundation will hold a back-to-school block party at Saint Frances Academy, in Baltimore, MD, Reese’s alma mater, on Aug. 19.

Children in need will receive school supplies, backpacks, food, clothing, and hygiene products, among other essentials, courtesy of the foundation.

What’s more, it has been reported by Variety that basketball camps, scholarship initiatives, financial literacy programs, and holiday events will be launched soon, as well as community programming and engagement.

Reese’s actions prove the era of NIL deals are not only benefitting athletes but their communities too.

As AfroTech previously told you, UCLA quarterback Chase Griffin donates a portion of his earnings from every NIL deal to charity.

“As a Christian, I feel compelled by my faith to give and to be in a position where I’m on scholarship and I’m earning money,” Griffin told AfroTech.

“I consider it a blessing to be able to be generous and to give a piece of all of my NIL deals to various initiatives.”

He continued, “My main partner is the LA Food Bank. I grew up with friends with some growing up with food insecurity, and to be able to help children in the LA area who deal with some of those same issues that some of the people around me dealt with growing up, it’s a huge blessing.”