The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation (LADF) and Up2Us Sports agreed to a three-year agreement to identify, place and train the organization’s coaches in youth sports programs to further strengthen the impact of sports-based youth development in the local community.
Up2Us Sports is the nationwide leader in engaging, training and supporting sports coaches to transform youth, programs and communities. The LADF becomes their first regional partner in Los Angeles.
“The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation has always shown a great commitment to transforming the lives of youth, and we’re honored that they’ve turned to us to amplify their efforts,” Up2Us Sports founder and CEO Paul Caccamo said.
“We both understand that sport is a proven vehicle for healing. This partnership is answering the call for those youth living with challenges and we look to provide real life skills to aid in their growth.”
The Dodgers Foundation’s investment of $1 million will assist Up2Us Sports with recruiting, training and placing over 250 coaches in underserved communities across Los Angeles by giving young men and women from the area an opportunity to serve as mentors and coaches to 20,000 youth.
Coaches will be provided with more than 30 hours of cutting-edge youth development, mentoring and trauma-informed strategies to better prepare them to serve as Up2Us Sports coaches and be positive influences.
“Being a coach extends far beyond the field. You’re a role model, a mentor and someone who can make a difference in a young person’s life and help keep them on the right path,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without the guidance, advice and tough love from coaches throughout my baseball career, and I’m grateful to have had such impactful mentors in my life.”
Up2Us Sports meshes well with the LADF and their Dodgers RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) program, which is dedicated to increasing participation in the sport and using sports as an engagement tool to increase education, literacy, health, wellness and recreational resources.
That will be bolstered by 90 of the new Up2Us Sports coaches, while additional coaches will be placed throughout city parks, related nonprofits and schools across Los Angeles.
“As we embark on our sixth season of Dodgers RBI, we are thrilled to be adding Up2Us Sports to our growing list of partners, all focused on youth development through sport,” Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation CEO Nichol Whiteman said. “
Up2Us Sports has demonstrated great success of empowering sports programs with an emphasis on the physical and mental health of youth through coaching and mentorship. We look forward to their support in our Dodgers RBI program and are proud to be their first Regional Partner, ensuring transformative sports experiences through coaches for hundreds of children in Los Angeles.”
