BALTIMORE, Md.- US Lacrosse and its Youth Council hosted the first-ever US Lacrosse Youth Summit at the Lacrosse Hall of Fame and Museum in Baltimore, MD on September 22, 2007. Over 25 key leaders from across the United States, representing a diverse array of youth organizations, came together with a common goal: to develop, grow, and support youth lacrosse. The summit served as a facilitated forum where US Lacrosse listened to and took recommendations from these vital advocates.
 "The inaugural Youth Summit created an excellent opportunity to bring together individuals from all types of youth lacrosse organizations" said Mary Cate Slay, US Lacrosse youth development coordinator. "Leaders from small start-up programs and representatives from well-established groups with tens of thousands of youth players were all at the same table. Each voice was unique though all shared common concerns."
Summit attendees, along with the Youth Council, an 18-member group charged with promoting girls and boys lacrosse in a safe and sportsmanlike environment, and US Lacrosse staff members tackled a number of subjects. Education and training, sportsmanship, diversity, and communication were just a few of the topics covered at the Youth Summit.
Education and training of youth lacrosse coaches, officials and parents was a primary point of discussion during the weekend. US Lacrosse is looking to expand the resources presently available to these groups. Currently, the national governing body provides an outstanding Level 1 and 2 Coaches’ Education Program, both currently available online. Enrollment in the course provides comprehensive text, streaming video, flash animation, graphics and lifetime access to a resource library full of drills and downloadable resources. In addition, US Lacrosse hosts numerous Level 1 instructional coaching clinics across the country. Level 2 clinics are expected to pilot later this year. For those looking to earn a whistle and stripes, men’s and women’s officials training resources can be found on the US Lacrosse web site or through local chapters.
Sportsmanship was another hot topic at the Youth Summit. Through a partnership with the Positive Coaching Alliance, US Lacrosse’s goal is to be a leader among all national governing bodies and to be a voice for the issue of positive sportsmanship. In the youth game, these players are highly impressionable and exhibit the behavior of their role models – coaches, parents, and spectators on the sidelines. With the Sportsmanship Card Program and increased sportsmanship education, US Lacrosse aims to educate the role models as well as the youth players.
A third key discussion item at the Youth Summit was the accessibility of the game of lacrosse. Parties at the table suggested how to decrease barriers to youth play and how to level the economic playing field. Bridging racial, economic, and geographic gaps and promoting overall diversity were key points of conversation. US Lacrosse’s relationship with not-for-profit and for-profit leagues was also evaluated.
Finally, the summit took note of US Lacrosse’s communication strategies. As always, US Lacrosse is looking for ways to better improve its channels of communication and get information, tools, and resources to the youth community in a clear and effective manner. In August, the national governing body updated its web site with a cleaner and more polished look while continuing to improve user-friendliness. Specifically, it gave special attention to the youth membership, adding a dedicated "youth" tab at the top of the site’s homepage. Other communication tools include regular member e-newsletter, Crosse Connection, and US Lacrosse’s popular print publication, Lacrosse magazine.
"The 2007 Youth Summit was extremely productive and a great opportunity for us to engage youth lacrosse leaders from across the country in development of US Lacrosse priorities related to youth lacrosse programs and events," said Steve Stenersen, executive director of US Lacrosse.
Slay added that US Lacrosse "could not have put this summit together without the dedication and hard work of the Youth Development & Retention Committee, the USL staff, and the participants who traveled to Baltimore. We hope to make this an annual event in order to formally connect and further enhance the development of youth lacrosse programs, services and events."
US Lacrosse’s mission is, through responsive and effective leadership, to provide programs and services that inspire participation while protecting the integrity of the sport. For more information on US Lacrosse, U-15 membership, or the Youth Council, please visit www.uslacrosse.org.
US Lacrosse, a 501(c)(3) corporation, is the national governing body for men’s and women’s lacrosse. US Lacrosse has more than 215,000 members around the country. |
