Famous Footwear™ to Award Up to $100,000 in "Step It Up For Your School" Contest

ST. LOUIS, July 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Famous Footwear™, a division of Brown Shoe Company, Inc. (NYSE: BWS, www.brownshoe.com) kicks off a national contest July 31 to inspire students to propose how they would make their high schools even better, with a chance for one high school to receive a donation of up to $75,000 for a school transformation project and for one individual to receive a cash prize of up to $25,000 – for a total of up to $100,000.  

The "Step It Up For Your School" contest invites students, faculty and staff to envision how they would transform their high school if they had the money – be it through renovating facilities, updating technologies or saving sports, art or music programs from budget cuts.  Participants can visit Famous Footwear's Facebook page for details on how to nominate their high school to receive a donation of up to $75,000 by writing a 250-word essay explaining how their school would use the funds.  Famous Footwear Facebook fans can vote once each day for their favorite essay, and the high school that accumulates the highest number of votes will receive up to $75,000 towards a transformation project.  The writer of the essay that garners the most votes will receive a cash prize worth up to $25,000.  For every vote cast, Famous Footwear will add $1 to the prize, up to $75,000 for the school donation and up to $25,000 for the individual cash prize.

"The most exciting part about Step It Up For Your School is that the students, teachers and staff determine who wins by rallying votes for their school, which encourages school spirit and community pride.  At a time when education budgets are being cut, we are encouraging conversation around engaging students to take an active role in their education," said Famous Footwear senior vice president – retail marketing Will Smith.  

The contest begins July 31, at the height of the Back-to-School season and is open to all non-profit high schools, grades 9-12.  The grand prize winner will be announced in late September.  To enter, visit Famous Footwear's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/famousfootwear).  Entrants must be at least 13 years old.  

About Famous Footwear

Famous Footwear is a leading family branded footwear destination, with more than 1,100 stores nationwide and e-commerce site FamousFootwear.com. The chain offers consumers more than 100 nationally recognized brands through its retail stores and web site, including Nike, Skechers, Naturalizer, Puma, Steve Madden, Converse, New Balance, DC, Rocket Dog and Carlos by Carlos Santana, and features a broad assortment of fitness footwear from brands like Skechers, Reebok, Avia and ryka. A proud national partner of the March of Dimes, the retailer sponsors March for Babies walk events nationwide. Famous Footwear is operated by the retail subsidiary of Brown Shoe Company, Inc. (NYSE: BWS), a $2.7 billion global retailer and wholesaler of footwear. For more information, visit www.famousfootwear.com and www.brownshoe.com.

SOURCE Famous Footwear