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Talking Standards at the Urban Soccer Symposium tomorrow
Tomorrow morning (Thursday April 22) I’ll be speaking on a panel at the Urban Soccer Symposium in Washington DC. We’ll be discussing the role quantifiable, objective soccer metrics and quality standards play in helping socially oriented soccer organizations achieve their goals. Through our partnership with America SCORES we have witnessed the impact first hand and look forward to working with other organizations that use soccer to improve lives.
Here is the full session description.
Program Quality Standards : The Components of “Healthy” Youth Development Programs
Measureable positive results are essential to the development of a strong program. It is also the key to sustainable funding. In order to achieve both of these goals, certain quality standards must be in place. In this session, you will learn what those are and how to assess/improve your programs.
Moderator:
Nelda Brown, Academy For Educational Development (AED), Center on Youth Development and Engagement
Panelists:
Megan Bartlett, Up2Us
Amy Skeen, Monique Turner, Kristi Skala, Girls in the Game
Abe Geiger, iSoccer.org
but what do the players think?
If you’ve been following this blog you’ve probably seen and heard a lot of the feedback we’ve received from coaches about their iSoccer experiences. Fortunately, sometimes those coaches also pass along responses from their players and parents. Tom Turner, the Director of Coaching for the Ohio Youth Soccer Association North, shared this email he received from one of his ’97 Girls ODP players:
Coach Tom;
I recently looked at the iSoccer program that you sent to me and everyone on the team. I reviewed the program and saw that it was a great way for players to train outside of soccer practice. I thought iSoccer was so cool, I spent the rest of my morning after getting ready for school (before my bus came) looking at the website and messing with my profile. I love that videos also come on the site, because when someone tells you to do a move, you might not understand and not get the move. This way players can practice, develop skills, and train even on the off season. I like the site and felt the need to tell you. Thank You!
- (Ohio North ODP, Girls ’97 player)
Thanks for sharing this feedback Tom, it’s great to hear that your players are excited about using it to improve at home!
Have you used iSoccer as a player, parent, or coach? Have you had a positive experience? We’d love to hear about it. Leave a comment below, post on our facebook fan page, or email us at support@iSoccer.org; we look forward to hearing from you.
New York Red Bulls vs Santos, 3-1 Red Bulls
The first ever game at the new Red Bull Arena against Santos was an all-around excellent soccer experience. We couldn’t have asked for better weather and getting to the stadium on the Path train from the city was a piece of cake. The Santos fans brought their drums, which livened up the atmosphere outside. And of course, the 3-1 result in favor of the home team, mixed with some entertaining, highly technical play from the Brazilians, made for a great night of soccer.
Luckily I captured captain Mike Petke’s goal (the second of the three) and the ensuing crowd revelry on tape. Watch the video and click on the image thumbnails to see them full size. The images below show the first goal. Look at them in order to see the free kick, the rebound, and the celebration.
First Ever Goal in Red Bull Arena:
iSoccer: www.iSoccer.org
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