Sydney Park

More than double the number of girls will drop out of sports by high school as compared to the number of boys. On average, girls have fewer opportunities to play sports and many of those programs go underfunded and under-supported.  It is crucial that girls stay involved with sports: studies have shown that girls who play sports up through high school graduate at higher rates, perform better on standardized tests and experience lower rates of stress, anxiety and depression. 

 

You Go Girl began as a small idea in my last year of college. Working in college athletics, I was regularly surrounded by accomplished and inspirational female athletes, and I thought about how impactful it would have been for me as a kid to have a mentor like these women. 

​

Over the past few years, You Go Girl has grown to be a movement towards increasing the number of girls in sports by supporting mentorship programs, recruiting more women to coach in youth sports, and fostering a sense of excitement around women's and girls' sports programs.  As a youth coach, I aim for 100% retention of my team as they transition between seasons and age divisions. 

​

Through You Go Girl, I am recruiting new female coaches to join me on the sidelines, and focusing specifically on underserved communities. I am pairing girls with mentors by working with Strong Girls United, and I am serving as a mentor myself for girls and young women in the South Bronx United Mentorship Program. 

​

​

​

​

​