Promoting positive youth development through a values-based sport program

The increase in youth programming has been a response to societal concerns over the increase in school violence and juvenile drug abuse, incarceration, and prostitution. Since many of these problems have trickled into our schools teachers are found struggling to make sense of kids who are alienated to learning and disruptive in their classroom. Costs to the taxpayer to protect against the problems caused by "troubled youth" have further fueled the fires of public discontent. Some of these costs have supported the many "quick fixes" seen in our public schools (e.g., metal detectors, resource officers, stringent law enforcement, cameras in the hallways, zero tolerance policies, background checks). In essence these approaches have viewed youth as a nagging burden to the community. Fortunately, programs that focus on the strengths of youth, rather than their weaknesses, have begun to grow. Many of these programs include sport learning experiences that teach responsible behaviour and citizenship to children and youth. This article describes one such program, Project Effort, that teaches personal social responsibility to underserved youth. The genesis of the program is profiled along with a description of Project Effort's: a) sport clubs, b) mentoring program, c) teacher and parent involvement, and d) Youth Leader Corps. We also suggest some strategies that have helped us move the club members forward within each of Project Effort's programs.