Disney Attempts to Win Over Floridians with $100K Donation to Local Schools

It seems clear that Disney is on an all-out PR offensive to try to win back the hearts and minds of Floridians. While that may not have gone so well in the shareholders’ meeting, you can’t say they’re not trying.

 

A recent blog post on the Disney Parks blog highlights a major attempt by the company to engage in good will improvements between the local governments and peoples of Florida. Not only does the company highlight STEM donations (while not clarifying where all the rest of their donations are going), but it comes with public appearances of the “Fab Five” (think Mickey) with special costumes and pyrotechnics. That’s not the normal sort of marketing that goes along with giving a relatively small check to local schools. But perhaps Disney World is getting ready to attempt new inroads with local citizens?

Check out the following post from the Disney Parks Blog and see if you agree this feels a little over the top:

 

The grand opening of TRON Lightcycle / Run presented by Enterprise is just a day away, and we’re excited and ready for new “users” to experience this incredible new attraction. Before that though, we had the chance to celebrate this milestone with the Central Florida community while sharing some exciting news: Disney World will be donating $100,000 to help enhance STEM education in Orange County Public Schools! I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of a better place to commemorate this next step in giving back than on the Grid.

“We can always count on Disney to provide for our schools and students in innovative, fun and thoughtful ways,” said Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Maria Vazquez. “This generous donation will help our teachers bring STEM to life in the classroom and will help provide our students with experiences they’ll treasure for a lifetime.”

Just like the attraction, the evening was epic – check out some of the memories we made during our adventure together:

Empowering the next generation of diverse storytellers has always been important to us, and this latest donation builds on our long legacy of supporting local schools, students and teachers. This continued commitment is part of Disney Future Storytellers and ensures that our future innovators receive the skills and hands-on experiences they need to dream about their futures, build their talents and become who they imagine they can be – which could one day lead them to a career at Disney.

This was the perfect way to close out the 50th Anniversary celebration which was filled with so much community magic. Over the course of the 18-month celebration, we gave more than $6.5 million in grants to 60+ nonprofits, and Walt Disney World cast personally volunteered more than 233,000 hours at local organizations through our Disney VoluntEARS Program – proud is an understatement.

Looking ahead, we’ll continue to support the people and places around us throughout the next 50 years and beyond, bringing the power of Disney’s stories, characters and immersive experiences directly to our community.

 

For all the latest news that should be fun, keep reading That Park Place. As always, drop a comment down below and let us know your thoughts!