At Ankored we’re all about learning from experience! So we sat down (virtually) with three experienced professionals for a live panel discussion. In 30 minutes they shared surprising lessons and insights from the challenges they have faced in building and growing youth sports programs - both in the non-profit and for-profit spaces.
And we got to pick their collective brains with a live Q&A session. We had dozens of very thoughtful questions from the community during the live session and we’ve shared a few of our favorites below, along with the insightful answers from our panelists!
Firstly, for context, let us tell you a bit about our three panelists and their extensive backgrounds in youth sports! Each panelist has a strong background in youth sports and brings a unique perspective to the discussion. Their experiences range from managing grassroots programs to overseeing national-level initiatives.
We have Courtney John, Community Recreation Director for the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota’s Parks and Recreation Department. The Department has more than doubled Saint Paul's rec sport programs in just the last couple years with some innovative approaches.
We also have Jason West, a youth sports consultant with over 30 years building and executing experiential programs designed to enhance young lives through the vehicle of sport. Including as the former Chief Strategy Officer for Nike Sports Camps.
And we have John Engh, Executive Director of the National Alliance For Youth Sports (NAYS). NAYS has reached countless members of the sports community, having thus far partnered with more than 3,000 community-based organizations.
You can watch the full webinar recording here.
Courtney: I suppose we do lose some kids to travel programs, which, if that's their sport, it's understandable. I was in the same situation; I played travel softball, but I play recreational volleyball. So, we're not necessarily upset about it. If a kid has a certain skill set, yes, we want them to get the additional training that we can't offer in a recreational program.
But, we also see more kids coming in. Sometimes, parents invest in travel sports, and their children make the team but end up sitting on the bench. Then the parents are upset that that investment was lost or wasted. As a result, we see them come back to the rec program, because, again, the kids just want to have fun.
Often, it’s the parents who want that college track for them or have these ideas that their kid is going to go pro. And a lot of times, the kids just want to play. So we see a little bit of both.
Courtney: We see way more kids trying new sports. We would love for them to stick with things through the season, but those conversations happen at home.
John: I agree with Courtney that conversations at home dictate those outcomes. I personally believe that kids, especially young ones, should try a variety of sports before the push to specialize takes over. A great resource on the broader topic of specializing is Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein.
Courtney: Our issue right now is with travel teams wanting to use our rec league as a practice platform, and that's not fun for the kids who are just starting out. It detracts from their experience and turns a lot of kids off. Because if you go and you get stomped every weekend, then you don’t want to come back. So, that's one of our current struggles.
Courtney: One thing we’ve done in some sports is to offer Advanced, Intermediate and Beginners tiers when we have enough participants. We also offer playoffs for our older divisions, and our baseball/softball players have the option to try out for MLB’s RBI All Star program, offering a pathway to higher competition within the framework of recreational play.
Courtney: Infighting is so common. We've tried some things, like bringing all the stakeholders together to ask, "Hey, what are you looking for that we're not providing?" A lot of times, people didn't like our bureaucracy. They preferred to run things their own way, without being under our jurisdiction, but they still want to use our field space.
John: To us, it’s always been about staying true to what you guys believe in, what you've learned and what your community believes in – that these sports programs are for this purpose. It's in the permitting process that you have to adhere to these specific behaviors, you sign off on it as a participant. If these agreements are breached, those involved are essentially out. We can take them over, let someone else handle it, or at least introduce new leadership. But we've also talked about the idea of having all the leagues in your community present at an annual meeting so they can learn from each other, address common challenges, and deal with the things they have to deal with. So, to me, that seems like a really good suggestion.
Courtney: If you mean ‘running it in-house' in the format of skills/drills, one benefit is the option to generate income through affiliate programs with private schools, neighboring towns, etc. Additionally, it offers the opportunity to introduce kids to league and tournament play.
We do have in-house leagues in Minnesota that have enough kids to operate a 4 or 6 team mini-schedule throughout their season.
John: As you may be aware, in addition to our sports training programs, we offer what we call supplemental trainings that any league can add onto their coach memberships at no extra cost. We initiated a partnership with ESPN two years ago, emerging directly from the challenges presented by Covid, which highlighted the importance of mental health and the benefits of outdoor activities for children. We recognize that a typical parent, who might be an accountant by day or working for the Parks and Recreation Department, etc, might not have that kind of training. As a result, we introduced additional training on mental health and emotional intelligence. This includes teaching parents and coaches effective ways to communicate with children about these issues within a coaching context.
Courtney: We promote coaching opportunities year-round, but start asking parents and the general public during open registration. So, for summer sports, March. For winter basketball, September.
We have also started stepping outside of just the parent realm and peppering our community at large. So we make it easy for people to sign up on our website. Like hey, I wanna volunteer! And then they can choose where they want to volunteer sports, our zoo and conservatory, our ice rinks. We've got a lot of options.
And then every season I select everybody who has said that they want to coach a sports team. And I say, Hey, we're looking coaches for right now - it's volleyball and football coaches, you know, in the summer it'll be based on softball. So then we reach out and let them know about the openings, because if you don't have a kid or a family member, or you didn't necessarily grow up in a Rec center, you don't necessarily know that that's a need. We're also targeting our high school and college athletes.
John Engh: Well, we get requests. We go to State conferences, state Parks & Rec conferences all the time. That's one of the number one things in dealing with parents, recruiting volunteers and retaining volunteers.
Those are the two big requests we get, and I can tell you that one thing, if I'm focused and if I'm in Courtney's position, I wanna make sure that my volunteers, who are typically parents, understand that becoming a coach is easier than you think. There's so many more resources that are available now.
Jason: There's this unbelievable movement and groundswell around women's sports right now, which is so long overdue. But I think this is a really good time for people at the youth level to lean into girls sports and offer programming specifically. So you can kind of ride that wave that's been created by initiatives from Nike, from Professional Women's Sports Leagues, etc. Now is the time to really embrace that trend, be creative, and figure out how to create a community around female participation.
Courtney: While combines and other skill assessments can be frowned upon in recreational leagues, they can be an effective way to evenly distribute players. For us, the practices are when the coaches are available. If a child is unable to participate, we would try to find them a different center to transfer to with a practice slot that works for them.
Courtney: In Saint Paul, we do not allow it in our 10u level, but it is allowed at 12u, 14u, 18u.
Courtney: I’ll assume this was for our gender identity language. We apply our gender identity language across all youth and adult leagues. You can find it in full here: Gender Inclusivity in Youth Programs 2021.pdf
Courtney: Yes, we've phased out tackle football, partly due to Covid. We couldn't play for a couple of seasons. But it was on the decline even before that, and we have transitioned away from it. We've tried some different things, like tackle bar, which involves a thing around the waist – it's less contact but still retains a tackle format. And we've done 7v7, which is more of a passing league kind of thing. Football is not my wheelhouse, but I have a colleague who runs that program. Then we have a decent-sized flag program, and we partner with the NFL.
I'm pretty sure football's on a decline, especially in the inner city. Part of that is because football is very expensive, right? We're talking helmets, pads, and all that kind of stuff. So, our suburban communities, certain cities around us, still have decent football participation. But we're also seeing a lot of adult flag.
So when the adults are playing flag, and the kids go to mom and dad's games, they start their flag participation. A lot of them don't even like wearing the helmets and the pads, and that kind of thing. Flag allows for more free movement. So, yeah, at least here, that is definitely where we're headed.
Courtney: You could stress the importance of fun and friendly competition. Another strategy could be offering sports 'out of season,' such as summer basketball, if it's a feasible option.
Jason: Unfortunately, nearly 70% of kids drop out of sports by the age of 13. This goes back to the professionalization of youth sports, which often sacrifices fun for competitiveness. Lose the fun, and you lose the kid. You're definitely not alone in facing this challenge. It might be worthwhile to explore emerging sports that don't yet have a defined club or college pathway. There's a lot of opportunity to provide something new and fresh. Get creative!
Jason: First off, I love the idea. Women’s/girls’ sports are exploding at the pro and college level from a media and investment perspective, and flag football, with its introduction into the Olympics and huge support from the NFL, will likely stick around for a while. I can’t speak directly to league formation but I can offer up some suggestions for starting off on the right foot.
First, look around. There are some national players (Next Level Flag comes to mind) offering leagues. I’d study up on what they do well and where they fall short. Second, it’s likely your entire audience, girls and parents alike, will be new to flag. You’ll have to educate them in some ways, and definitely clearly define your purpose with this league. Is it a fun league, a competitive league, a little of both? You have to set the expectation straight away.
Finally, and most importantly, focus on finding the right coaches and volunteers and give them the necessary tools from an organizational standpoint. The complaint I always hear from parents is the lack of organization. Get that aspect right and you’re off and running!
Click below to watch the full on-demand video discussion for more insights, lessons and challenges. We could not be more grateful to our panelists for sharing their experience and insight.
Title: Beyond the Game - Unleashing Growth in Youth Sports
Was live on: February 6
Duration: 43 minutes
Watch the full webinar recording below!