Kensington Soccer Club

Teen and young adult Soccer programs: our teen and young adult Soccer teams give older teens and young adults a chance to continue playing Soccer with our organization. This is an age group that is especially vulnerable to violence and many of our programs emphasize alternatives to violence, access to government and nonprofit resources, and outreach to participants who seem to be struggling. In addition, many young people this age don't any longer participate in high school or college teams, so we give them a way to continue playing Soccer in a positive, healthy, affirming setting.

Youth travel Soccer: our competitive Soccer program for younger players under age 14 is offered at a very low cost or no cost to children in a variety of settings. Competitive Soccer gives children a chance to play at a higher skill level. The cost of most competitive Soccer programs is cost prohibitive for low-income children. We subsidize the cost of teams so money is not a barrier to participation. Competitive Soccer gives children a chance to learn and practice teamwork, learn higher level Soccer skills, and set and achieve challenging goals for themselves. Many players go on to play competitive Soccer for years and many end up coaching with the organization when they become teens. We average about 200 players on competitive teams annually, many playing for more than one season.

After school programs: our after school program comes to children in the school setting to offer them introductory Soccer. The program has an educational component, emphasizing the importance of exercise and good nutrition. Also, we put an emphasis on teamwork and cooperation as well as informal mentoring. The program serves children ages 3 to 14. We have several hundred participants annually in several schools; it is free of cost to participants. The after school programs also offer saturday sessions in our outdoor fall and spring recreations program, so the players get a chance to meet and play with children from other schools and neighborhoods. We also offer children a chance to join competitive Soccer teams if they want to commit to learning and playing at a higher level. Many after school participants end up joining our recreational and competitive teams.

Summer camp: we held a five-week, full-day Soccer summer camp, with daily meals, for more than 60 participants. Along with Soccer, the camp had educational enrichment activities, other recreation (swimming and games) and field trips. The staff for the program included experienced educators and Soccer coaches with mentoring experience.

Soccer athletes value education (save): save is our reading and educational enrichment program, which includes giving away free, high quality books, art activities and various initiatives to encourage literacy and a love of reading.

Short-term clinics, demos, events: we conduct short-term clinics, demonstrations, initiatives, and events throughout the city of Philadelphia. We bring Soccer to numerous parks and other venues with limited-time programming, and also go to many festivals, celebrations, block parties and similar activities, to add to the fun of those events and to let people know about our other programs.

Work ready: our summer work ready program is a six-week program that trains teens as coaches then brings them to recreation department and Community summer camps where they teach Soccer to young children. The teen coaches get a sizeable stipend from the city and the summer camp children get a chance to exercise and learn Soccer. The teen coaches learn leadership skills and serve as role models for the children they are teaching. In addition, one day a week is set aside for training for the teen coaches in a variety of areas, including antiviolence discussions and job and school readiness workshops.

Fall and spring recreational Soccer: our fall and spring recreational Soccer programs introduce children to Soccer to get them excited about playing the game. The program also has an educational component which emphasizes the importance of exercise and nutrition. An emphasis is placed on teamwork and cooperation as well as informal mentoring of any children who struggle in the program. This program serves children ages 3 to 14. Our program works on a "pay what you can" basis and we do not turn anyone away due to lack

Of funds. Costs are kept as low as possible Through grants and individual donations that allow us to ask less of participant families. Many of our coaches are young adults who graduated Through our program in previous years. These coaches use their pay to subsidize their college education and other post-secondary plans. These coaches serve as role models for the younger children. Other coaches are teens who have participated in the program in the past;

Through coaching, these coaches learn responsibility and leadership skills. Other coaches are parents of children in the programs who bring their perspective as parents to the Club while creating strong bonding opportunities between them and their children. The recreational program also gives children a chance to join competitive Soccer teams if they want to commit to learning and playing at a higher level. Many children from this program end up joining competitive teams.