New York

Michael R.
Michael R. joined the America SCORES New York program in fall 2009. It soon became clear that he and one of his teammates did not get along. While coaches separated them during programming, in the school parking lot after dismissal one day, the issue escalated into a fist fight.

Faced with expulsion from the program, Michael R. and the other student apologized to each other. While both students adjusted their attitudes and remain on the team more than a year later, Michael made a 180-degree turn. He is an asset to his coaches and a calming presence among his teammates. Following a stellar performance in the America SCORES New York Community Poetry SLAM!, Michael was one of three finalists for the opportunity to represent America SCORES New York at the 2011 National Poetry SLAM!

Tommy A.
Tommy A. joined the America SCORES New York program in fall 2009 and quickly emerged as a “Renaissance Man.” Fast and agile on the field and writing beautifully in Spanish during poetry workshops, he impressed both his soccer and writing coach with his abilities. What did not impress his coaches was Tommy’s tendency to hog the ball on the field and interrupt during poetry workshops. The day of the 2009 Community Poetry SLAM!, with Tommy scheduled to perform an individual poem, he again acted up and his coach chose an alternate, whose behavior was more deserving of the honor.

Extremely upset, Tommy left school before the SLAM! and many thought he would leave the program. Yet he returned for the spring 2010 season with a new attitude. Tommy began passing the ball more often and, along with his peers, designed, wrote and illustrated “The Health Squad versus the Junk Food Team,” an imaginative health-themed comic book, for their spring service learning project. Tommy performed an individual poem at the 2010 Community Poetry SLAM! and went on to win the honor of representing America SCORES New York at the 2011 National Poetry SLAM!

Davon
Davon A. joined the America SCORES New York program while in third grade, and his talent for and enjoyment of soccer quickly became evident. He joined the club team soon after and began taking his soccer ball with him wherever he went, practicing his skills at every opportunity. Yet Davon had trouble containing this enthusiasm and concentrating at practice and in school, often preferring to act up and show-off to his peers rather than listen to and respect his coaches. On the field, he had a tendency to criticize his teammates, ignore his coaches and give up in situations where his team was struggling.
During his final year with ASNY, Davon was asked to captain the team in the hope that the added responsibility would inspire him to develop an attitude to match his talents. Sure enough, Davon embraced his role as one of the team’s senior players and was soon heard admonishing teammates who acted up in practices, helping the coaches with equipment, encouraging younger players and displaying a positive attitude on the field, even when things weren’t going his team’s way. In addition, Davon’s soccer skills drew the attention of administrators from a prestigious local charter school, who offered him the opportunity to attend the school and play on their soccer team. Through ASNY, Davon developed leadership skills and a sense of personal responsibility that extends beyond the soccer pitch, into the classroom and the community.

Angel
Angel W. was, like many third-graders, a bit too playful in class. Not always focused, his writing showed difficulty with subject-verb agreement and general paragraph structure. When he joined the America SCORES New York program and was introduced to soccer, he exhibited a lot of raw talent but early on was frustrated when fourth- and fifth-graders who were veterans of the program received more playing time.
Angel soon realized playing in games was not as easy as it looked and his coach explained to him the relationship between practicing and playing. Angel noted the advanced skills of the older players and began improving. By season’s end, he had earned significantly more playing time and could be heard encouraging his teammates to “keep playing hard” or assuring them they were “close to a goal” at half-time.
In the classroom, Angel underwent a similar transformation, offering to hand out papers, organize seating and often tidying up. His grades improved, as did his writing, and his peers noticed his increased level of focus. After one year in the program, Angel demonstrated the America SCORES values of leadership, teamwork and commitment, both on the field and in the classroom.

Berson H.
Berson H. was 18 when he applied for America SCORES New York’s After-School Apprenticeship Program. He had emigrated with his mother and sisters from Haiti to New York City two years earlier and was excited by the chance to coach soccer, his “first love,” and to connect with children of a similar age to his nephew in Haiti. Under the curriculum, he spent nine hours per week for 10 weeks coach-training, mentoring elementary school students in the America SCORES New York program and assistant-coaching, culminating in eight weeks of full-time junior-coaching experience with a local soccer summer camp.

Working with between 14 and 20 4-12-year-olds each day, Berson learned patience as his charges at first had difficult understanding his accented, improving English. When an activity wasn’t engaging the kids, his coach-training helped him to adjust accordingly, refocusing their attention and keeping the day on track. Berson also improved his own soccer skills, passing more often in the games he played with other coaches.
He plans to carry this newfound patience and his communication and soccer skills into his senior year, along with hopes for a championship as right-back of his high school team, before pursuing a sports-oriented business management degree.