In response to the recent rise in hate-based incidents in Massachusetts, Attorney General Maura Healey announced a new partnership with state and school leaders that aims to create positive change and a safe and healthy environment for young people in school sports throughout the Commonwealth.
The collaborative initiative, whose members first convened in April 2022, will expand programming and provide additional resources for school and athletic leaders at an in-person conference in late August / early September 2022 to help prevent hate and bias on the field and in locker rooms. During Fall 2022, Northeastern’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society will deliver 12 regional trainings across Massachusetts as part of the project. The interactive two-day sessions, with at least one held in each of the nine sports districts organized by the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, will aim to empower attendees to bring what they learnt back to their schools and communities and train others.
“Sport is an impact engine of inclusion. It has the power to elevate conversation, inspire individual and collective change agency, and create true, sustainable change. AG Healey, her office, and all the committed stakeholders in this initiative, see and embrace sport as a pathway to positive youth engagement, social-emotional development, and the collective community inherent in teamwork. Hate and hurt have no place in sport, and we remain grateful to AG Healey for her responsive proactivity in creating such an intentional program of hope and healing. We are honored to contribute and be part of the team,” said Dan Lebowitz, Executive Director of The Center for the Study of Sport in Society.
Founded in 1984, and based at the College of Professional Studies, The Center for the Study of Sport in Society specializes in non-degree education and training that “connects the world of sport with social-justice-driven research, education, and advocacy through programming and global community engagement”. The Center developed curriculum and delivered training to hundreds of high schools, police departments, Major League Baseball, the NFL, and at the South African World Cup, among many others.