Play Equity and Healthy Outcomes through Sports

Play Equity to Advance Mental Health (sponsored by the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation)

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

Studies indicate that students who participate in sports are less likely to suffer from stress and depression. The 2022 LA County Youth Sports Participation Equity for the Play Equity Fund survey, reported a widened play equity gap that affects low-income youth and youth from communities of color - most of whom we serve. Results also reflected that LA County parents felt there were not enough opportunities for their children to play sports, especially from low-income households. To address, we provide access for youth to participate in sports focusing on low-income youth and youth of color. Through sports, our youth develop skills in leadership, teamwork, discipline, character, and critical thinking. We prioritize professional development focused on social-emotional competencies and positive youth development and offer a holistic approach offering programs in academics, healthy lifestyles, mental health support, life skills, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and more.

A grant would support our sports programs for youth ages 6-18. We provide sports leagues at Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) elementary and middle schools, sports at our Club branches in Santa Monica and branch site located at the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) affordable housing complex, Mar Vista Gardens (MVG). At MVG, 100% of youth come from low-income families; most are Latinx (76%) and African American (18%). Many of our youth would not have the opportunities to participate in programs and sports that our Club provides. We serve about 1,300 youth annually in sports, including basketball, flag football, soccer, baseball, T-ball, track, and volleyball. Our sports leagues consist of four 8-week seasons/4 seasons per year with seven weeks of league play and a playoff/tournament in the eighth week. We provide access for all youth regardless of skill level, age, gender, or family income and eliminate sports participation barriers. We subsidize lower-income students to participate in school sports. All MVG youth are not charged a fee for sports participation and also participate in some SMMUSD leagues. We provide transportation for kids who need it. We utilize a positive youth development approach focusing on developing our staff on trauma-informed sports programming and promoting life-skills-building experiences and social-emotional competencies that help develop character, leadership, social-emotional skills, and healthy habits.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica serves youth from 128 zip codes throughout Los Angeles County and targets economically disadvantaged youth. We are honored to serve Los Angeles County children and youth during out-of-school hours. We are aware of the immense responsibility to offer programs that change the lives of Angelenos for generations to come. Therefore, we are committed to our youths' success and mental health by providing access to sports and recreation to our current and future Club members that will uplift individual members, their families, and their communities for years to come.

To measure impact, we use the annual Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) National Youth Outcomes Initiative survey (NYOI) which informs how our kids are doing in key indicators. Our most recent survey reveals some of the following data about our members: 92% said when they have a problem, they work to figure out a solution 97% said if they try their best, they could do most things 91% reported experiencing low-risk behaviors such as smoking, alcohol, and substance use Through participation in sports, we want our youth tol: Be exposed to fundamental skills to build confidence and desire to participate in sports. Develop positive attitudes in adopting a healthy lifestyle. Build social-emotional skills in decision-making, resiliency, and communication. To evaluate, we use the David P. Weikart Center for Youth Program Quality Intervention tool, which allows youth development leaders to observe and provide input about strengths and opportunities and to engage youth more deeply.