Soccer Haven is a new afterschool soccer program that started in the spring. It targets five inner-city public schools in the New Haven, Conn. area. The goal is to promote soccer and provide an opportunity for kids who have few opportunities to participate in organized sports and to teach them the vales of fair play and teamwork. Soccer Haven is a partnership between New Haven Youth Soccer, Connecticut Junior Soccer Association and the public schools served. The program is starting with 50-60 children and is run one afternoon per week in the spring. With the help of the grant the program plans to expand to two days per week in the fall.

 

The Soccer Start program at Flushing Meadows Park was created in 2005 to fulfill the need for a spring and summer program targeted to inner-city children of Latin descent. They hope to expand the Soccer Start program and reach out to Asian and Caribbean communities as well. Soccer Start also hopes to increase the enrollment of female participants. The program attracts publicity in the Latin press and radio and they are working to create relationships with other minority media to promote the available opportunities. Another benefit the program offers is the opportunity to train with guest coaches from the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program and the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association.

 

Buffalo Soccer Club has formed to fulfill the need of organized youth soccer in the Buffalo, N.Y., area. Clinics have been held in the area and have attracted 150 children and the goal is to have 600 kids attend the clinics and camps and 300 participate in the house league. Buffalo Soccer Club is offering a flexible fee rate to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to participate and also hopes that this helps increase the amount of volunteer requests. The clinics and camps are ready to be scheduled now and the league will kick off in the fall. In 2010, Buffalo Soccer Club hopes to establish itself as an after school extracurricular activity, also providing an educational element.

 

Allentown Youth Soccer Club started 11 years ago to provide children in the area the opportunity to play where there previously had been none. In 2008, they were able to move their program to fields within the community and they anticipate this move will result in greater participation. The program grew from 80 players when it started, to nearly 600 participants last fall.

 

The Moshannon Valley Soccer Association started with the goal of creating one team and has quickly grown to 200 kids, which is 20 percent of the school enrollment. The Moshannon Valley area is low-income and the club has kept their fee at $20 to provide everyone with the opportunity to play. They hope that the grant will help more players receive the skills training they need in addition to just participating in pickup games. Also, they hope to train their coaches and referees on how to educate their players and improve their skills and abilities. Referee development and further training on the rules of the game will also be improved through the grant award.

 

The Inner City Soccer program trains and develops youths in Fort Wayne and Warsaw's inner city areas. Through the Camps and After School Enrichment program, they are developing more opportunities for kids to play soccer and additionally be mentored and coached by qualified coaches. They hope the grant will free up funds to provide professional development of coaches and to upgrade their existing facilities.

 

The six-week Dynamo in Schools program focuses on players 7 to 10 years old in urban Indianapolis schools. The program trains players twice a week while also providing the opportunity for high school and adult volunteers to mentor. Their format incorporates technical work, team play and character evaluation. They discuss the core topics of what being an MVP entails and provides opportunities for the players to learn leadership skills. They hope to spark children's interest in soccer and provide valuable team building activities.

 

The Inner City Program seeks to provide a safe and fun program for disadvantaged youth in Chicago. Currently, weekly programs target daycare, after school and weekend programs for at-risk children. Illinois Youth Soccer is trying to expand its offerings to include an elite program for talented inner city players who cannot participate in the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program because of lack of transportation. An underlying goal is to provide an extracurricular activity to keep children active and healthy when they cannot go out to play in their dangerous neighborhoods and to teach them the game and self esteem.

 

Rineyville Community Youth Soccer Association is growing due to the growing population in rural Rineyville because more off-base military families from the nearby Fort Knox. Their community park association has developed two new fields. With the nature of a military community, many children have already played soccer in a different location and their families have experience volunteering and coaching, which is a strong benefit to a small rural league.

 

Harrison Youth Soccer League is open to children ages 5-18 and encourages exercise, a love for the game and a positive atmosphere. The grant will assist the 25 percent of participants who are unable to purchase equipment and free up funds to assist with registration fees for their 180 participants. These benefits will encourage greater participation and self esteem.

 

The Eastern Lawrence Youth Soccer Association serves over 200 children in their rural community. For many when the program started two years ago, this was their first opportunity to play organized sports. Soccer does not have a presence in the school districts yet, but hopefully through this program targeting children ages 4-12, the interest will continue to grow. Eastern Lawrence's goal is to foster sportsmanship and continue to increase participation in their program. The grant will assist families in providing their children the proper equipment. They also plan on purchasing instructional books for their coaches and holding a state association sponsored clinic.

 

The Boys and Girls Club of Maury County is creating a soccer program to target low income, inner city youth in the Columbia, Tenn., area. The program was started as a pilot and has proved successful. The youth are eager to participate and the program has been continued. The Soccer Start program filters players into the local soccer association program. The grant will help secure continual growth within the program.

 

Compton United Soccer Club plans to expand with a new futsal league to further grow the skill development and reach out to a broader audience. The Compton United Youth Soccer Academy is being built on the El Camino College – Compton Center campus to provide opportunities for players to train at a world class site and also provide academic opportunities. The goal of the Compton United Soccer Club is to provide a safe and positive athletic experience through soccer. They also help to encourage civic responsibility and ownership through service projects and the program helps to bring the Hispanic and African American communities together. The Compton United Soccer Club said, a soccer club cannot change a city, but a holistic soccer club can make a significant impact, especially for the athletic-oriented youth.

 

Jaboneria Road to Success runs recreational and competitive soccer programs and offers community service to promote positive values and soccer development and competition. The name of the program is such because an elementary, intermediate and high school are all located along the road. The program stresses the importance of sports leading players to also be good students and citizens.