Announcing the Return to Play Fund
ESPN & BEYOND SPORT LAUNCH “RETURN TO PLAY FUND” TO INVEST IN BLACK & BROWN YOUTH WHO HAVE BEEN MOST AFFECTED BY COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Leading experts within and outside of sport meet to set plan targeting equal opportunity and access to the therapeutic benefits of sport for communities of color
NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2021 – In direct response to the ongoing pandemic and its disproportionate effect on Black and Brown communities in the U.S., ESPN and the Beyond Sport Foundation have launched the Return to Play Fund (RTPF) to support Black and Brown youth and the community sports organizations that serve them at the intersection of race, sport and community development.
Sport provides a powerful platform to promote youth mental and physical wellbeing, address inequities and help work through trauma. However, research recently released by Project Play reflects that only 42% of African American and 47% of Hispanic parents anticipate their child resuming sports activities at the same or higher level from before COVID-19. Since the start of the pandemic, 44% of families have also reported that their community-based program has closed, merged or returned with limited capacity.
The collaborative new Fund is designed to center health, wellbeing and systemic solutions to the heart of community recovery and ensure that Black and Brown youth are not further disadvantaged. RTPF will seek additional funders in order to facilitate the greatest possible resources for organizations dedicated to getting young people of color moving again.
“At ESPN, we believe that sport can be a great equalizer, and a catalyst for youth to develop physically, mentally and help them envision the futures they imagine,” said Kevin Martinez, vice president of ESPN Corporate Citizenship. “We’re proud to launch the Return to Play Fund with Beyond Sport so that Black and Brown youth can use sports-based programming to foster skills development including leadership, perseverance and confidence.”
Utilizing a whole child approach, the RTPF will be guided by an Expert Advisory Council (EAC) of leaders across diversity, equity and inclusion, health/trauma-informed approaches and youth sports, including representatives from RISE, The Center for Healing and Justice Through Sport, Play Equity Fund, Howard University School of Medicine, the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation, the National Recreation and Park Association and more.
On Monday, the EAC met to set the course for the next three months building on a 2021 national mapping conducted by Beyond Sport and the Play Equity Fund to better understand how sports are being used to address racial inequality and to identify gaps in provision. Areas of focus for support will include: 1- Operations and Strategic Guidance, 2- Advocacy and 3 – Infrastructure.
"Collaboration, direct investment and intersectionality will be key to ensuring that the people hit hardest by the pandemic are not further disadvantaged coming out of it," said Fred Turner, Executive Director of Beyond Sport. “Through Beyond Sport's partnership with ESPN and other likeminded organizations, the Return to Play Fund has the ability to create genuine systemic change for Black and Brown youth, using a platform – sport – that has proven powerful in addressing some of the most complex issues of our time.
Council members will ensure the Fund is guided by the needs of the communities it will support, and will work directly and collaboratively with the selected beneficiaries on strategic initiatives to help the organizations thrive. The following elements, as highlighted by Project Play, will be specifically considered in order to achieve the greatest possible impact:
• Accessibility: Localized and affordable high-quality sports options available to all kids, particularly accounting for areas such as equipment costs and transportation needs.
• Inclusivity: Ensuring school-based sports programming meets the interests of all, and treats sports as co-curricular and in partnership with community organizations
• Accountability: Built into every level of our youth sport system with better governance to help address coach quality, costs, injury rates, etc.
As the nation continues its rebuilding journey, the Return to Play Fund is on a mission to support and inspire Black and Brown youth who have been challenged the most by the pandemic. The Fund is currently accepting funding partners. For more information, please visit: beyondsport.org/return-to-play-fund.
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CONTACTS:
BEYOND SPORT - Karen Asare, [email protected]
ESPN CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP – Jay Jay Nesheim, [email protected]
ABOUT ESPN CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP
ESPN believes that, at its very best, sports uplift the human spirit. Its corporate citizenship programs use the power of sport to positively address society’s needs through strategic community investments, cause marketing programs, collaboration with sports organizations and employee volunteerism, while also utilizing its diverse media assets. https://www.espn.com/espn/citizenship
ABOUT BEYOND SPORT
Since 2008, Beyond Sport has supported initiatives, generated ideas and built partnerships that purposefully use sport to address the world’s most pressing social issues. Employing a unique and holistic approach, Beyond Sport’s programs leverage a global network of sport for social change innovators, progressive organizations and expertise built up over more than a decade to tackle issues head on and collectively. Through 2020, the organization has provided $4.7M in grants and $9.5M worth of capacity-building support to 490 projects in 150 countries. http://www.beyondsport.org