Jones Soda Co. Partners with Young Audiences and Veer to Launch a National Educational Photography Curriculum

Students learning interactively via the National Education Photography Curriculum (Photo: Business Wire)

SEATTLE--()--Today Jones Soda Co. (OTCQB:JSDA), a leading premium beverage company known for its customer-designed packaging, announced its partnership with Young Audiences Arts for Learning (YA), a national nonprofit organization which provides arts integrated workshops and residency programs to public schools. YA partners with organizations across the United States to ensure the arts remain an integral part of youth education.

Jones Soda and YA began their partnership in early 2014 with the launch of the Jones Soda Photography Curriculum, which was created to teach children about the art of photography. For this significant cause, Jones Soda enlisted its original photographer and designer, Victor John Penner, to help teach the course and mentor students. Jones also brought in partner GoPro to assist the donation of cameras for this curriculum. At the end of each 10-week program, a winning student photo is selected to appear nationally on a Jones Soda label.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive response of the curriculum, which was originally launched at the Urban Promise Academy in Oakland, CA, Jones and YA partnered for a second time in 2014 to replicate the program at St. Martin de Porres High School Cleveland, OH, where student Brandi Herring had her photo selected to appear on a Jones label in 2015 across North America.

Jones Soda has aligned with Veer, a Corbis Corporation owned brand based in Seattle, WA which provides affordable stock photography, illustrations, and fonts to help fund the future of this program. Jones will offer the images of participating photographers for sale to the creative community through the Veer website, and any royalties received by Jones from the licensing of photos through Veer will go directly to funding the YA network throughout North America.

Feedback on the program from Jones consumers has been extremely positive.

“Over the years, we at Jones have seen how much our brand can inspire kids to get into photography and the arts in general,” stated Jones Soda CEO Jennifer Cue. “This is truly a testament to the value of the Jones brand and its fans. Without taking essentially any resources away from our core business, we will be able to utilize the value of one of our key assets, customer-submitted photos, and to give back to communities in a meaningful way. We look forward to expanding this curriculum into more schools in 2015.”

“We are thrilled to partner with Jones Soda whose innovative brand captures the essence of YA’s mission. It encapsulates the qualities we seek in the development of young people — to be creative and analytic thinkers — that will help them persevere in school and their future careers,” stated David A. Dik, Young Audiences Arts for Learning’s National Executive Director.

About Young Audiences Arts for Learning

Established in 1952, Young Audiences Arts for Learning’s mission is to inspire today’s youth to expand their learning through creative outlets. As the nation’s largest arts in education learning network, they serve over 5 million young people each year in 8,984 schools and community centers across the country through their diverse network of 30 local affiliates.

About Jones Soda Co.

Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, Jones Soda Co.® (OTCQB: JSDA) markets and distributes premium beverages under Jones® Soda, Jones Zilch®, Jones Stripped™, and Jones Sparkling Water brands and sells through its distribution network in markets primarily across North America. A leader in the premium soda category, Jones is known for its variety of flavors and innovative labeling technique that incorporates always-changing photos sent in from its consumers. The diverse product line of Jones offers something for everyone – pure cane sugar soda, zero-calorie soda, an all-naturally sweetened sparkling beverage with only 30 calories and a sparkling water with no sugar, artificial flavors or calories. Jones product lines are available through traditional beverage retailers and in many retailers you would not expect to find carbonated beverages. For more information, please visit www.jonessoda.com or www.myjones.com.

About Veer®

Veer makes it easier to be creative with an affordable selection of creative stock photography, stock illustrations, fonts and creative merchandise. Veer provides an uncomplicated shopping experience that lets customers stay focused on their creative work. Its visual elements help people add style to business, marketing and personal design projects from websites and blog posts to business presentations and ad campaigns. Veer is a Corbis Corporation brand and serves its global customer base through its website at www.veer.com.

Contacts

Jones Soda Co.
Andrew Baumann, 206-436-8711
abaumann@jonessoda.com
or
Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Marcus Romero, 212-860-1563 ext. 108
marcus@ya.org

Contacts

Jones Soda Co.
Andrew Baumann, 206-436-8711
abaumann@jonessoda.com
or
Young Audiences Arts for Learning
Marcus Romero, 212-860-1563 ext. 108
marcus@ya.org