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Our Work

A Collaborative Approach

The Collaborative serves the sports-based youth development ecosystem in Philadelphia in the role of an intermediary that provides technical and capacity-building services to SBYD organizations that directly serve youth. The Collaborative also serves as a backbone organization that convenes a diversity of stakeholders to align a citywide effort to provide high-quality sports experiences for all of Philadelphia’s young people.

What is SBYD?

Sports-based youth development (SBYD) uses sports to teach life skills and is delivered by trained coaches and mentors. Coaches are the key to the success of sports-based youth development programs. The relationships they build with youth, and the approach they take with their programs are what drives positive outcomes for youth.

The Collaborative works to expand and improve the delivery of youth sports in the city of Philadelphia. We do that with a complete focus on EQUITABLE ACCESS for ALL children to HIGH-QUALITY sports-based youth development programs in their own schools and neighborhoods.

Equitable Access

We facilitate increased access to the power of SBYD through the engagement and coordination of partnerships, programs, and places.

We advocate for favorable public policy to support the work and growth of the SBYD ecosystem in Philadelphia.

We identify and secure financial and other resources that support the expansion and quality of the system-wide work in SBYD.

We convene large youth-facing agencies and other cross-sector stakeholders around a common agenda to achieve the goal of equitable access to quality sport for development programs

High Quality

We deliver comprehensive capacity-building services and programs based on best practices and a standardized agenda for practitioners.

We are committed to coach education that include SBYD and outcome measurement strategies that provide program assessment and tools for improvement.

We collect meaningful data and conduct research to demonstrate and increase positive outcomes on social-emotional outcomes, health, and equitable access.

We drive communication strategies that support awareness and growth of the SBYD system.