Half Time Advice
"Children are the world's most valuable resources and its best hope for the future."
- John F. Kennedy

The soccer ball is the most powerful tool we possess to reach out to at-risk youth and enrich their lives.

Our Vision

Using soccer as our agent of interaction with DC's low-income youth, Free Kick fosters long-term, meaningful, healthy relationships between participants and staff mentors. As a result, Free Kick helps establish positive role models in these children's lives, builds confidence in their abilities to succeed, and helps their communities grow.

The Value of College Student Mentors

Studies show that at-risk minority youth who have a consistent, positive, role-model influence in their lives are 46% more likely to avoid experimenting with drugs and 37% less likely to skip a class. The power of mentors in at-risk youth's lives cannot be overstated, and Free Kick's young, energetic, dedicated mentors offer guidance in the classroom, on the field, and beyond. Our mentors are youthful, vibrant college students seeking to make a genuinely positive impact in the lives of kids who need it most. We believe that college-aged mentors provide a unique and important angle to relationship-building: They are more in-tune to contemporary social behaviors, pop culture, and generational similarities, enabling them to more powerfully connect with DC's underserved youth.

"Edu-Recreation"

Free Kick works with the model of "edu-recreation," in which sport serves as a catalyst for learning. We firmly believe this strategy is the most effective way to engage today's underserved youth in and beyond the classroom. Studies show that kids learn more effectively when presented with positive incentives and a favorable environment which incorporates their passion (in this case, soccer) with formal education. Students' efforts to improve themselves academically receive with soccer-related awards, such as athletic gear or DC United tickets.

The Importance of Math Education

An often-overlooked academic subject, mathematics plays an integral part of an individual's life. Moreover, recent studies reveal that children in the U.S. are slipping in math performance; Singapore's middle-schoolers, for example, outperform America's three to one. Concerning the more local situation in DC, the 2007 National Assessment of Student Progress reported that only 9% of DC eight-graders are proficient or above proficient in mathematics. Indeed, Obama's administration has listed math and science education at the forefront of our educational priorities (Obama states: "Investments in math and science" provide "new opportunities to young scientists and engineers all across the country"). In other words, it is critical to provide our youth with quality math tutoring to give them a leg up in this increasingly competitive world.

Using Soccer as a Catalyst

Too often, distinctions of social, economic, and racial class prevent us from interacting with each other and supporting our communities. These distinctions, however, are left on the sidelines as we step onto the soccer pitch together, as all players unite around the soccer ball on a "level playing field." Much can be said about soccer as a metaphor for life; playing soccer requires fitness, respect, conflict resolution, communication, patience, teamwork... the list goes on and on. At Free Kick, we strive to cultivate these important life skills and share in the process of learning them with DC's underserved youth.