PARTNERING WITH NEWCOMERS SINCE 2009
Soccer Without Borders Baltimore emerged in 2009 in partnership with leaders in the refugee communities in Northeast Baltimore. The organization works to provide opportunities to newcomer refugee, asylee and immigrant youth through programming that integrates soccer, education, and community. Our programs provide participating youth with the opportunity and safe space to play the game they love, while encouraging healthy living and developing English language, teamwork, academic success, and cross-cultural skills.
While our youth come from diverse backgrounds, they share a passion for soccer and a genuine interest in and desire to engage with their new surroundings.
While our youth come from diverse backgrounds, they share a passion for soccer and a genuine interest in and desire to engage with their new surroundings.
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OUR PROGRAMS
Soccer Without Borders builds bridges across language and cultural divides through the power of soccer. As the world's beautiful game, soccer has a unique power to engage youth from every corner of the globe, finding common ground on the field. Soccer creates the context for developing life skills crucial to success now and in the future, including teamwork, communication, discipline, future focus, and leadership skills. SWB programs incorporate soccer in a variety of ways, including an English language development integrated soccer model, daily soccer practices, an SWB soccer league and participation in other leagues and tournaments, and trips to soccer matches.
SWB serves newcomers from over 40 countries, speaking over 15 languages other than English. Our educational programs are designed to help newcomers overcome the first and most challenging obstacle they face: learning English. Beyond English language development and support, SWB programs support newcomer youth to catch up to their peers academically, and overcome the challenges of gaps in their formal education, and diverse educational experiences prior to arriving in Maryland. 100% of our participants graduate from high school, and 94% have matriculated at post-secondary educational institutions. Our educational programming includes tutoring and homework help, SAT preparation and college access workshops and support, and direct English language instruction.
Built upon the foundation of shared passions on the soccer field, SWB creates a youth-centered safe space within which youth feel comfortable being themselves, and feel valued and respected. SWB fosters cross-cultural connections and a thriving network of young people fostering collaboration, mutual support, learning, fun, and collective action! The SWB community is often referred to as a second family among participants. SWB participants are involved in formal and informal team building activities. Community interconnectedness transcends age groups, with participants in elementary, middle, and high school programs coming together with their families throughout the year as a part of a larger 'team'.
SWB programs are effective because of the relationships that lie at the center of our work. SWB participants connect with each other and with their coaches and mentors in authentic, mutually respectful, supportive relationships that create the safe space for learning and growth. In addition to the mentorship that is threaded into all of our programming, SWB also matches Family Mentor volunteers with newcomer families, serving as Welcoming Ambassadors and supporting the individualized needs of each participating family. The relationships that lie at the center of our work are trauma-informed, and follow a restorative approach to working with youth, many of whom have experienced trauma prior to arriving in Maryland.
SWB serves newcomers from over 40 countries, speaking over 15 languages other than English. Our educational programs are designed to help newcomers overcome the first and most challenging obstacle they face: learning English. Beyond English language development and support, SWB programs support newcomer youth to catch up to their peers academically, and overcome the challenges of gaps in their formal education, and diverse educational experiences prior to arriving in Maryland. 100% of our participants graduate from high school, and 94% have matriculated at post-secondary educational institutions. Our educational programming includes tutoring and homework help, SAT preparation and college access workshops and support, and direct English language instruction.
Built upon the foundation of shared passions on the soccer field, SWB creates a youth-centered safe space within which youth feel comfortable being themselves, and feel valued and respected. SWB fosters cross-cultural connections and a thriving network of young people fostering collaboration, mutual support, learning, fun, and collective action! The SWB community is often referred to as a second family among participants. SWB participants are involved in formal and informal team building activities. Community interconnectedness transcends age groups, with participants in elementary, middle, and high school programs coming together with their families throughout the year as a part of a larger 'team'.
SWB programs are effective because of the relationships that lie at the center of our work. SWB participants connect with each other and with their coaches and mentors in authentic, mutually respectful, supportive relationships that create the safe space for learning and growth. In addition to the mentorship that is threaded into all of our programming, SWB also matches Family Mentor volunteers with newcomer families, serving as Welcoming Ambassadors and supporting the individualized needs of each participating family. The relationships that lie at the center of our work are trauma-informed, and follow a restorative approach to working with youth, many of whom have experienced trauma prior to arriving in Maryland.
SWB provides year-round programming for newcomer youth in Baltimore and Prince George's County, Maryland, in the form of after-school, summer, and mentor programs. We do not have a limit to the length of time someone can be enrolled in our programs, but instead have a leadership pipeline embedded in our work, providing authentic leadership opportunities in the form of peer mentorship, team leadership, summer employment, and alumni professional development and employment. It is our firm belief that the leaders within the newcomer communities we work with are the most valuable resource for our programs, and work to ensure leadership by our youth participants informs our program design process.
Our work is supported by charitable foundations and individual donations.
Our work is supported by charitable foundations and individual donations.
