Together at School with CN and the Alouettes is a community outreach program supporting elementary and high school students in the greater Montreal area.

The Alouettes have been active in Montreal schools since 1998, with CN having teamed up in 2001.

The players are scheduled to visit over 120 Montreal-area schools in 2012, reaching out to over 60,000 students at both the elementary and high school levels. The visits begin on February 1 and run through the end of April.

The Alouettes players involved in the program for 2012 include: Luc Brodeur-Jourdain and John Bowman as well as Anthony Barrette, Martin Bédard, Josh Bourke, Tad Crawford, Dahrran Deidrick, Éric Deslauriers, Danny Desriveaux, Shea Emry, Diamond Ferri, Scott Flory, Chima Ihekwoaba, Ramon Guzman, Kristian Matte and Anwar Stewart.

Players taking part must first undergo 32 hours of training from specialists in the field of mentoring and counseling in order to be best equipped to help the students.

The program's main goal is to encourage kids to stay in school while focusing on a wide array of challenges that students face today, ranging from bullying and academic performance to peer pressure and the importance of staying active. The players look to inspire and motivate the students they meet to make the right choices and to reach their full potential through hard work and dedication.

Together at School with CN and the Alouettes initiatives fall under three categories:

• Elementary: Each two-hour visit includes 4 to 6 players who divide themselves up and go into each classroom to speak to the children. All students then congregate in the gym where activities and games are played by the students and the players.

• High School: Each one-hour visit sees one player lead a motivational conference attended by the student body where the player draws on their own personal experiences to inspire those in attendance. The floor is then open for an interactive Q+A session with the player.

• Tutoring: Launching in October 2012, participating schools will receive tutoring twice a week. The tutors are volunteer students from local Universities and are joined by Alouettes players who provide mentoring, support and leadership to those receiving tutorial aid.