NEWTOWN — The Walt Disney Co. has agreed to help expand an educational program developed in response to the 2012 mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school.
Sandy Hook Promise, an organization whose founders include the parents of some of the children killed in the Newtown shooting, announced Thursday that Disney will help fund and further develop its Start With Hello program. That is a curriculum that promotes inclusion and combats social isolation among elementary school students.
The program is designed to reach children who feel marginalized and let them know that they are seen and valued. It is available to schools at no cost.
Sandy Hook Promise says it expects to train 2.8 million students and adults in 6,000 schools and youth organizations in the program’s first three years.
