“When we took over the Watts Bears and renamed them the Watts Rams, we always envisioned a program bigger than just youth football,” said Executive Vice President of Community Impact and Engagement Molly Higgins. “Today is a continuation of the evolution of the program. We are allowing our Watts Rams coaches to continue to develop professionally and tapping into the expertise of UVA to help them grow as mentors, teachers, and coaches.”
The PYD program will act as a valuable guide for Watts Rams coaches, who also serve as LAPD officers, and includes the best approaches and practices for supporting the Watts Rams athletes’ growth and development as thriving youth as well as athletes. Throughout the workshop series led by Youth-Nex: The University of Virginia Center to Promote Effective Youth Development, Watts Ram coaches will focus on the principles of positive youth development, identify the strengths and challenges of the Watts Rams athletes, use engagement and behavioral strategies to promote positive youth development and implement strength-based strategies to challenge experiences associated with systemic oppression.
“This is way deeper than just football,” said Watts Rams General Manager Marc Maye. “Football is just the hook that brings the kids together. It helps to create the umbrella of fun, that we all have the same synergy for. The wrap around services that we can provide through this program are for the social and emotional wellbeing of the child. Getting the officers to learn what mentorship is and looks like and gives them the tools to be proper mentors. Whether that is meeting the kids where they are academically or figuring out where their struggles and trauma come from, we want to provide those services and resources to them and then have some fun.”
This series will include five workshops throughout the 2022-23 season. Following each workshop, participants will leave with actionable ideas and approaches to apply to their interactions with youth, both on and off the field. Additionally, participants will have access to a groundbreaking simulation program to develop their mentoring skills in a virtual environment.
“Youth programming is important for us because it keeps us engaged in the community and provides an opportunity to change the trajectory of a young person’s life which is huge for me as a police officer, plus the ripple effect of change is powerful,” said LAPD Lt. James Michael Bland. “Without our partners that provide the avenue to…
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