Degree Breaking Limits Through the Power of Movement in the US
March 18, 2022
Since April 2021, Rexona (also known as Sure, Degree or Shield, depending on your location) has partnered with Beyond Sport on the innovative Breaking Limits Program to change young people's lives through the transformative power of movement. Today, we're highlighting the impact in the United States (US) - one of the three key regions using the program's digital training series. There, the training series is helping NGOs promote inclusion and get more American youth moving.
Day in and day out, organizations participating in the Breaking Limits Program are working to advance and ensure that young people in their communities have the opportunity to move more. With a focus on inclusion, the program's digital training series addresses everything from race, to gender, to LGBTQIA+ inclusion to financial inequalities to equip coaches and other instructors with tools to address biases that may exclude some groups from participating in physical activity.
Today, learn more about NGO partners Dancing Grounds, Soccer in the Streets, L.E.A.D. Center for Youth and Girls Rugby and how they are breaking limits in the United States.
Since 2012, Dancing Grounds has brought inclusive and accessible dance programs to New Orleans, Lousiana residents of all ages. The non-profit builds community through programs that work at the intersection of arts, education and social justice. It has a particular focus on developing young leaders, promoting health and wellness and advocating for social change through movement.
The Breaking Limits Program has sparked an organization-wide conversation on the scope, depth and intentionality of the training the organization provides to its community of dance instructors, in particular, teachers who live and breathe the values of equity and justice. We spoke to Executive Director, Laura Stein, who said that the training provided a platform for them to examine current practices and make improvements to ensure that BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color), queer and disabled youth feel confident and welcome.
"Beyond the online modules, we launched a new 'Beyond the Studio: Social Justice Teacher Training Program’ for 15 instructors that work with youth-serving groups across the city. We’re working with local partners to deliver intensive training on racial, economic, gender, LGBTQIA+ and disability justice,” she shared.
Dancing Grounds recommends the Breaking Limits training series for all organizations committed to creating inclusive programs for young people. They specifically noted that the training opened their eyes to barriers for dancers with disabilities.
“We may feel like our programs are inclusive and accessible to all, but we haven’t had the foundational tools to implement specific practices in our dance classes to challenge ableism. The module on disability access and inclusion inspired us to look deeper and improve our practices.”
Soccer in the Streets (SITS)
Since 1989, SITS has worked in over 50 cities to create young leaders. Drawing on 30+ years of experience in providing sports-based youth development programs in low-income communities, the organization combines soccer with education, life skills and community development. Now focused on Atlanta, Georgia, they provide youth with skills to create positive change in themselves and their communities.
Diversity in all forms is not only important but also essential for the development of youth. Therefore, the training series’ focus on inclusion became a valued element for Soccer in the Streets because everyone can get involved, not just a select few who have the financial means or perceived physical capabilitiy to do so. The Breaking Limits training series has helped the organization and its coaches refresh their approach to youth engagement.
Coach Jack shared that the training improved his teaching abilities across a range of topics, including how to embed inclusion in his work. “This helps the organization as a whole because my colleagues and I have learned new ways to teach that can help change kids’ lives. In Atlanta, there are noticeable and unfair divisions in wealth, education, sports etc. and we hope to be a part of the bridge, not the barrier.”
Lack of inclusion remains a barrier to movement among youth, with cost being the main barrier in underserved communities. The training series has helped foster activities, which aim to include the disabled, the financially disadvantaged and other groups who face biases.
With the mission to empower an at-risk generation, the L.E.A.D. Center for Youth uses baseball to help young Black men aged 11-18 navigate barriers to their success, including crime, poverty and racism. Operating in Atlanta, Georgia, the non-profit wants to inspire its young participants to become ambassadors who will one day lead their city, and, ultimately, the world.
For L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, the training series provided further affirmation of their work, underscoring the importance on understanding the systemic obstructions that different communities face.
For Black youth from low-income households in Atlanta, movement within their communities was greatly restricted during the pandemic due to closed schools and parks. "Outside of the pandemic, Black youth also have to deal with the social pandemic of racism…black youth from low-income households need advocacy in order to have consistent access to sport for youth development organizations," said Executive Director Kelli Stewart.
"It is important that our coach-mentors understand how to create environments that are inviting and comfortable. Doing this makes marginalized youth feel valued and have a higher rate of participation, engagement and retention."
The Breaking Limits program and its training series have also helped validate and encourage new thinking on the organization's existing programs. Their Human Ambassador Project fosters understanding and community between the youth of different races by connecting participants with other student-athletes from private schools to help break down the wall of bias. The Breaking Limits Program helped spur new thinking on this project through information sharing from other leading sports for development organizations with similar models.
Understanding how vitally important movement is to mental health and wellbeing, Girls Rugby provides programming for young women aged 8-18 across ten cities in the US and Canada. Before it was established in 2017, there were just over 28,700 females registered as rugby players with USA Rugby, making up just 25% of USA Rugby's entire membership.
Co-Founder and CEO Jenn Heinrich shared her thoughts on the multitude of reasons for such an imbalance of girls participating in sports compared to boys. "Cultural messaging that sports are for boys and not girls, marketing that isn't inclusive, the cost for participation, accessibility to local programming and a lack of FUN."
As a female-only organization, Girls Rugby focuses on building young women's confidence through sport. Therefore, they were happy to see a focus on gender equity reflected in the Breaking Limits Program and the training series. The program has provided the organization with engaging and educational content to further encourage inclusion and movement, which has proven helpful in equipping their coaches with the tools to accommodate a wide variety of needs.
Girls Rugby highly recommends the training series, saying that the modules, which are based on the collective knowledge of subject matter experts, provide a valuable opportunity to make a direct and positive impact on the lives of young people.
Our full list of US NGO partners:
Dancing Grounds
Figure Skating in Harlem
Generation Spirit
Girls Rugby
Harlem Lacrosse
L.E.A.D. Center for Youth
Lost Boyz Inc.
New Heights
Peace Players
Play Equity Fund
Soccer in the Streets
Soccer Without Borders
Street Soccer USA
Youth Run NOLA
Training modules for the Rexona Breaking Limits Program in partnership with Beyond Sport are now available for FREE in Spanish, Portuguese and English. Sign up to access the training series here:
CLICK HERE for UK and Global English Speaking
CLICK HERE for USA
CLICK HERE for Mexico (Spanish Speaking)
CLICK HERE for Brazil (Portuguese Speaking)