About DC SCORES

We envision a DC where every child - no matter their family income - experiences the joys of childhood: sports, arts, service, and being part of a team. Where every child - no matter their family circumstances - is empowered to grow into an emotionally and physically healthy teen and adult. Where every neighborhood supports and celebrates its children and their accomplishments on and off the playing field.

DC SCORES staff works hard to make all of our programs FREE for all participants. Each year we raise 100% of the money it takes to run our programs in DC. If you would like to contribute to the program or fundraise, please contact us at [email protected].

Julie Kennedy, a former teacher at Marie Reed Learning Center in Adams Morgan, invented the program in 1994 when she began working with a group of 15 girls with little to do after school. Ms. Kennedy learned that the team-centered relationships built on the soccer field translated into poetry workshops, and the development of teamwork and leadership prepared students to act as agents of change in their communities through service-learning projects.

The program quickly expanded throughout DC, and in 1999 Kennedy began sites in Boston and Chicago, thus creating America SCORES, headquarters to 14 programs across the United States: Atlanta, Bay Area, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, New England, New York, Portland, St. Louis, Seattle, and Washington, DC.

DC SCORES’ Core Values are a set of beliefs developed by staff and represent our (staff, board member, coach, and volunteer) governing principles in how we engage and interact with each other, our students, schools, and families, and the community at-large.

YOUTH AT THE CENTER:

Our primary motivation is to serve youth. We focus on the needs of youth and beliefs about youth development can and should drive every decision we make. We believe that every child, regardless of income, geography, or school, should have access to the basic elements of a childhood.

COMMUNITY MATTERS:

We believe in working to develop and foster close relationships that honor individuals and help the group as a whole engage as a larger team, internally at the central office and at every school and community site we serve.

AN HONOR TO SERVE:

We are privileged to work as part of a team that carries out our mission to serve all District youth seeking a DC SCORES team. We uphold that mandate through our approach and methods: respectful interactions; high-quality work; commitment to teamwork; and recognition of fellow teammates.

DYNAMIC LEADERSHIP:

DC SCORES identifies, develops, and supports leadership in students; coaches; service members; volunteers; board members; and staff. We aspire to embody team-centered leadership individually, in our work; through engagement in our many teams city-wide; and organizationally in the city.

COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE:

The DC SCORES community deserves the best from every DC SCORES team member. Thus, we value continual growth and commit to doing our personal and organizational best.

INTEGRITY:

We commit ourselves to accomplishing the mission of DC SCORES with humility, honesty, respect, and dedication.

DC SCORES measures the impact of our model in four ways: 1) school engagement; 2) physical fitness; 3) sense of belonging; 4) self-worth. To read more about our outcomes, please visit www.dcscoresimpact.org.