NEW YORK, July 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, DICK'S
Sporting Goods and The DICK'S Sporting Goods Foundation announced
at its Sports Matter panel event – moderated by
Gruden along with Advisory Board Members Fitzgerald
and Rose as well as U.S. Women's National Soccer Team star
Alex Morgan, DICK'S Chairman
& CEO Ed Stack, Women's
Sports Foundation Senior Director of Research and Programs Dr.
Marjorie Snyder and Harlem
Lacrosse Alumni Jordany
Baltazar – a pledge to provide access to sports for one
million youth athletes over the next five years. As part of
this effort, DICK'S also announced it will match up to $1 million in donations made by customers to The
DICK'S Foundation at DICK'S store checkouts or at SportsMatter.org
from July 14 through September 13,
2019.
"Since 2014, DICK'S and The DICK'S Foundation have helped more
than one million young athletes across the country play sports;
however, new research we commissioned confirms there is still
significant challenges impeding access to sports for many kids,"
said Stack. "That is why we announced today our goal
to provide access to sports for another one million young athletes
over the next five years."
DICK'S latest philanthropic commitment was informed by two
studies recently commissioned by The DICK'S Foundation – one
conducted by the RAND Institute and another by Women's Sports
Foundation. The studies provided actionable insights regarding the
barriers to youth sports participation, and the benefits for kids
who play. Additionally, to expand on the data surrounding girls'
sports participation, DICK'S announced today it will continue to
partner with the Women's Sports Foundation (WSF) to conduct
additional research on youth entry, participation and retention, in
sports.
A sampling of key findings from the studies included:
State of Youth Sports:
- 63% OF SCHOOL SPORTS BUDGETS ARE STAGNANT OR
DECREASING1
- 24% OF HIGH SCHOOLS DON'T OFFER SPORTS2
- HIGH-POVERTY SCHOOLS OFFER 1/3 FEWER SPORTS & SPORTS TEAMS
THAN LOW POVERTY SCHOOLS2
- 58% OF COMMUNITY-BASED SPORTS FEES ARE RISING1
- 42% OF FAMILIES OF MIDDLE AND HIGH-SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO DO NOT
PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS BUT ARE INTERESTED IN DOING SO CITE COST AS
THE MAIN REASON1
- 56% OF TEEN GIRLS DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS COMPARED TO 48%
OF TEEN BOYS2
Benefits of Youth Sports:
- STUDENT ATHLETES ARE LESS LIKELY THAN NON-ATHLETES TO BE
DEPRESSED2
- STUDENT ATHLETES HAVE HIGHER SELF-ESTEEM2
- STUDENT ATHLETES ARE MORE LIKELY TO GET HIGHER GRADES AND
ASPIRE TO ATTEND COLLEGE2
To further support its mission, The DICK'S Foundation created
its first-ever Sports Matter Advisory Board centered
on the impact that sports had on each of the influential sports
figures as well as the current challenges that face youth
sports. In addition to Gruden, Fitzgerald and Rose, beach
volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh
Jennings, LPGA champion Annika Sorenstam, skiing gold medalist
Lindsey Vonn, and LeBron
James' long-time business partner Maverick Carter all serve
as Sports Matter Advisory Board members and have partnered with The
DICK'S Foundation to provide additional opportunities to young
athletes in their respective sport or local community.
This year alone, DICK'S and its Foundation have provided over
$20 million in grants and
sponsorships to support deserving schools and organizations,
including $1 million to help build a
new gym for students at LeBron James' I PROMISE School in
Akron, Ohio; $265,000 to the Beyond Sports Foundation for its
Sport for Reduced Inequalities Collective Impact Award; and
over $780,000 to Girls on the Run to
expand their mission to inspire and encourage young girls to be
healthy and confident.
For more information on Sports Matter, visit
SportsMatter.org.
About The DICK'S Sporting Goods Foundation
The DICK'S
Sporting Goods Foundation is an exempt 501(c)(3) non-profit
corporation with a mission to inspire and enable sports
participation. It was created by DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc.
as a private corporate foundation to support DICK'S charitable and
philanthropic activities.
Contact DICK'S Sporting Goods: press@dcsg.com
______________________
1 RAND Corporation: Who Plays, Who Pays? Funding for
and Access to Youth Sports, July
2019; data based on survey samples of parents of kids
in grades 6-12, middle and high school administrators, and
community organization sports leaders. Samples are not nationally
representative.
2 Women's Sport Foundation: The State of High
School Sports in America, July
2019
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