OVER BGN 3,500 RAISED BY 80 IT PROFESSIONALISTS FOR TEACH FOR BULGARIA MISSION

The cause for equal access to quality education brought together nearly 80 IT professionals in the first QuizIT. The charity event, which took place on 16 March at betahaus Sofia, was organized by Teach for Bulgaria Foundation at the initiative and with the support of Questers technology company. The main purpose of the event was to bring together motivated players from different IT companies while having fun and testing their knowledge in different thematic areas (music, science, education, sports, etc.) to support together the mission of Teach for Bulgaria for transforming students.

During the quiz, everyone present had the opportunity to learn more about the work of Teach for Bulgaria straight by the co-host of the event, Emilian Kadiiski, teacher from the first cohort of Teach for Bulgaria’s Program and founder of Vratsa Software Society. Emilian, who is one of the Bulgarians in the prestigious Forbes Europe “30 under 30” Rating for 2017, told stories from his classroom and why it is important that we are all engaged in the topic of equal access to quality education.

“The support of each donor and like-minded person is very valuable for us because it shows personal commitment and attitude to the mission we have set, it is a sign of trust and shows that we are moving in the right direction. We are delighted that QuizIT managed to attract many new friends, and unite our loyal partners. We hope this format will become a tradition that will help more children develop and realize their potential in Bulgaria,” Angela Deyanska, Development and Fundraising Manager at Teach for Bulgaria commented.

The participants raised BGN 1,500 through the charity lottery within the event. The Questers team made an additional donation of BGN 2,000 on top of the funds raised. Thus, the total amount raised in the evening will support the financial incentive of a Program teacher for seven months (BGN 500 per month).

“This is yet another gesture towards a cause that does not need further clarification — a better education for every child in Bulgaria. The format was successful inside the company, so we offered Teach for Bulgaria to extend it and gather more friends and colleagues from the IT industry and find more opportunities and ways to help,” Alexander Drangazhov, CEO of Questers, said.

The cause of the event was also supported by several other friends of Teach for Bulgaria, who provided the prizes for the winners in the quiz and charity lottery. The grand prize for the best performing team was a voucher for adventures with Dextrophobia rooms, and the lucky winners of the lottery got two tickets for the TED Cinema Experience, a dinner voucher for Umamido, a Burger voucher for Skaptoburger, “Innovators” — a book by Walter Isaacson from SoftPress publishing house, a box of handmade Delifideli chocolates, designer socks from Happy Socks and an invitation for two to the Forbes E-volution Awards. Bankya mineral water, Coca-Cola and Stolichno also supported the event by providing free drinks for the evening.