COLLEGE PARK, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 3, 2026--
Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, in partnership with iHeartMedia and national nonprofit Impact Fitness Foundation, recently celebrated the unveiling of a newly upgraded weight room they provided at Benjamin Banneker High School. The project expands Anthem’s commitment to whole health in the College Park community and supports long-term student wellness by investing in safe, modern fitness spaces for high school student athletes.
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“This investment in our students goes far beyond a renovated space,” said Dr. Shaina Williams (Stallings), Athletic Director, Banneker High School. “A modern weight room helps our student-athletes train safely, build confidence, and develop habits that support their health and success long after graduation.”
The transformation began with a volunteer workday, during which Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield associates and community partners worked alongside the Impact Fitness Foundation to install new equipment and revitalize the space. The project concluded with a ribbon-cutting celebration and formal reveal, followed by an orientation and fitness training for Banneker High School student athletes and coaches.
Chris Welsh, Founder and President of the Impact Fitness Foundation, added: “High school is a pivotal moment for young people as they develop relationships with fitness, teamwork, and self-confidence. Our goal is to create spaces that inspire students to move forward—physically, mentally, and emotionally. This project reflects the power of community partnerships to make a lasting impact.”
The Banneker High School weight room project is part of a broader, multi-day initiative in the College Park community. In addition to the high school upgrade, the partners also teamed up to create a movement hallway at College Park Elementary School, supporting student wellness from elementary through high school.
“Supporting whole health means investing directly in the communities where our members live and grow,” said Amanda Free, President of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia. “By partnering with Banneker High School, College Park Elementary, and organizations like Impact Fitness Foundation, we’re helping create safe, welcoming spaces where students can build strength, confidence, and healthy habits that will serve them for a lifetime.”
"We're grateful to Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Impact Fitness Foundation and both schools for allowing us to contribute to this partnership and commitment to health, nutrition and fitness," said Julie Donohue, President, iHeartMedia Enterprise Business Development Group. "Our goal is to be a media partner as well as a community partner that can support programs like these as they help our local students and families thrive."
About iHeartIMPACT & Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Partnership
iHeartIMPACT is a division of iHeartMedia that focuses on aligning brands with nonprofit organizations. Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and its affiliated companies are working with iHeartIMPACT to support a series of fitness and movement transformations in a total of six schools across Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta and Indianapolis. This partnership with national health and wellness organization, Impact Fitness Foundation, is an extension of the companies' multi-year commitment to providing whole-health resources for communities across the country.
About Impact Fitness Foundation
The Impact Fitness Foundation is a national nonprofit with a mission to provide fitness spaces, movement spaces, instruction, and educational resources to communities that need it most. We transform unused or unsafe areas into motivational fitness and mindfulness spaces designed to promote healthy habits and inspire people of all ages to MOVE FORWARD. Learn more at www.impactfitnessfoundation.com.
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of GA, RVP, Rob Teas, and Founder and President of Impact Fitness Foundation, Chris Walsh, hang a plaque on the wall of the new weight room.
Duke ended the regular season sitting right where the 13th-ranked Blue Devils were expected to be in the Atlantic Coast Conference: atop the standings.
The journey there was hardly direct, down to those final steps heading into this week's ACC Tournament as the reigning champion and No. 1 seed.
Coming off a trip to the NCAA Elite Eight, the Blue Devils started 3-6 against a wicked nonconference schedule as the headliner in the league's bumpy overall start. They regrouped to win 17 straight and take control of the ACC race despite an injury-shortened rotation — only to lose two of their last three and ultimately back into the outright regular-season crown when No. 12 Louisville lost its finale against Notre Dame.
Last year's ACC title marked the first for Duke since 2013. The Blue Devils (21-8, 16-2) chase another against a field that includes the Cardinals and No. 16 North Carolina as play begins Wednesday in Duluth, Georgia.
“I don’t want an extra brownie from you guys for it,” coach Kara Lawson told reporters after Sunday's loss to the rival Tar Heels. ”But what I'm saying is: I'm proud of my team how — on the fly to lose three players to season-ending stuff, with seven players —we were able to navigate the 18-game schedule and win the league.
“We always tell the truth to them," Lawson added. “Hey, 'Here's where we broke down.' But hey, 'Here's what you've done well. And here's what we need you to carry over into the postseason.'”
Duke's loss at UNC gave the second-seeded Cardinals (25-6, 15-3) a chance to claim a share of the regular-season crown. And like Duke, Louisville has lost two of three.
First they rallied from 13 down before losing on a late 3-pointer at home to Virginia on Feb. 22. They squandered a 60-56 lead with 4:59 left and failed to hit another basket in Sunday's home loss to the Fighting Irish.
“You've got to be able to finish it off," coach Jeff Walz said.
The third-seeded Tar Heels (25-6, 14-4) have won 12 of 13 games since mid-January. The lone loss was at Duke.
The starting point was regrouping from a 23-point loss at Notre Dame on Jan. 11, a performance in which coach Courtney Banghart said her team “never even got off the plane."
“This is a team that we'd lose, we would be so obsessed on every statistical category: we've got to outrebound, we’ve got take more shots, we got to turn it over less, we gotta get more steals," Banghart said. "It's like, ‘No, you don’t, actually.' Just win as many statistical categories as you can and we’ll see how it all plays out."
UNC hit a program-record 16 3-pointers at Virginia then eight more against Duke to close the regular season, while point guard Elina Aarnisalo has posted new career highs in each (20 points against Virginia, 22 against Duke).
Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo is the tournament's top star as a two-time Associated Press first-team All-American. On Tuesday, she was named league player of the year for the second straight season and defensive player of the year for the third straight season.
Two years ago, she was the fearless freshman who led Notre Dame to the ACC Tournament title and claimed MVP honors. She enters the week as the nation's No. 3 scorer (25.2) and steals leader (5.59) for the fifth-seeded Irish.
The league has nine teams in Tuesday's ESPN Bracketology projected NCAA Tournament field, headlined by Duke and Louisville as regional 3-seeds. UNC is a 5-seed but has a chance to move into a top-16 overall seed and host opening-week March Madness games.
There are also two notable bubble situations to monitor in Clemson and Virginia, with both currently projected in by ESPN. The Cavaliers are chasing their first bid since 2018, which is their lone bid since 2010. The Tigers are chasing only their second bid since 2002, the other coming in 2019.
Wednesday's first round begins with 12th-seeded Miami facing 13th-seeded Stanford in the first of three games. Thursday's second round is headlined by the Irish, followed by 6-seed Virginia Tech and 7-seed Syracuse.
Duke, Louisville, UNC and fourth-seeded N.C. State open play in Friday's quarterfinals, with the semifinals Saturday and the title game Sunday.
This is the second time the ACC Tournament won't have an AP Top-10 team since 1985. The other came in 2000, when No. 12 Duke was the highest-ranked team. ... Boston College, Pittsburgh and SMU didn't qualify for the 15-team event. ... This is the 49th annual tournament as the nation's oldest Division I women's tournament, the first coming in 1978. ... This is the first year the tournament will be held outside the Carolinas since moving to a neutral-site format for 1983 after beginning at campus sites. Greensboro, North Carolina, has been its longtime home by hosting every year but once dating to 2000.
This story has been corrected to show the ACC is playing its first tournament outside the Carolinas since moving to a neutral-site format, not for all years.
AP freelance writer Steve Bittenbender in Louisville, Kentucky, contributed to this report.
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FILE - North Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart gestures towards the court during the first half against West Virginia in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament in Chapel Hill, N.C., March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown, File)
FILE - Louisville head coach Jeff Walz, left, disagrees with a call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Notre Dame, March 2, 2025, in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/John Mersits, File)
FILE - UConn guard KK Arnold (2) and Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo (3) chase a loose ball in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Jan. 19, 2026, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)
FILE - Duke head coach Kara Lawson reacts to a play during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against UCLA in the Players Era tournament in Las Vegas, Nov. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
