Yale Summer Sports Program for City Youths Wins National Award

Yale University’s annual summer sports camp, operated within the framework of the National Youth Sports Program (NYSP), will be honored at a ceremony in the nation’s capital in January 2002.

NYSP recently announced that the program aimed at city school youth and held on campus during the summer has won the Silvio O. Conte Award of Excellence “in recognition of exceptional 2001 NYSP project performance.” The award will be presented to Yale representatives during an NYSP workshop scheduled for January 17-20, 2002, in Washington D.C.

“In review of the 2001 program evaluation materials and federal reports, the evaluators acknowledged Tim Ford, Yale’s NYSP project administrator, and Queen Edwards, activity director, for their outstanding leadership,” said Edward A. Thiebe, president of NYSP. “Specifically, your NYSP staff is recognized for efforts to exceed its projected enrollment by 106 participants and maintain an average daily attendance of 276, which is more than 100 percent of the projected enrollment, with the expansion of the general store and crew program.”

Thiebe praised NYSP’s involvement within the New Haven community, that participants were served breakfast and a hot lunch daily, and that all medical services were performed at no cost to NYSP.

The National Youth Sports Corporation (NYSC) has been administering the NYSP since 1968. NYSP believes all children deserve opportunities for friendships and fun during the summer. NYSP uses its resources to give children of low-income families positive memories and useful skills by requiring that 90 percent of participants at each site meet U.S. poverty guidelines. With this goal in mind, college and university personnel work to identify economically disadvantaged children who could most benefit from the safe haven and educational activities of NYSP. The program also goes to great lengths to teach its students the value of an active lifestyle. NYSP has established partnerships with national governing bodies of various sports. Organizations such as the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) and the United States Tennis Association (USTA) assist the program by offering innovative and age-appropriate teaching methods in sport-specific areas.

Although each of the 192 program sites funded by NYSP offer different programming, activities outside athletic pursuits are recognized and promoted. NYSP was founded on the belief that all children deserve an opportunity to succeed. On-site evaluations allow each program to be creative in developing its initiatives but promote a common link to all campuses. Thorough evaluations for each local program are conducted to ensure that each site is sufficiently working toward accomplishing guidelines.