WHO WE ARE
We are coaches and connectors who use lacrosse to guide academic progress and prepare students for life after high school.
what we do
Harlem Lacrosse is a year-round, in-school student success and college access organization that builds long-term relationships with students and families to drive academic success, social-emotional growth, and pathways to meaningful futures.
A full-time Harlem Lacrosse employee serves as a Program Director at each school site. Through our model, we integrate athletics and academics to support students as they define and pursue a pathway towards college or career.
Coach • Tutor • Mentor • Counselor • Advocate
WHAT WE BELIEVE
Click To Expand
-
Children who are Black, Brown, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ are disproportionately impacted by unjust laws, policies, and cultural biases that force them to jump needless hurdles throughout childhood.
-
Individually, lacrosse develops physical, emotional, and relational strength. Globally, lacrosse brings together people, resources, and passion. We believe this sport can be harnessed for equitable youth empowerment.
-
Our students are playing the game of life. They leverage their skills, energy, and networks to score their personal goals. Our role is not to run the field for them, but to coach them toward victory.
-
On-time graduation is possible. Vibrant diversification of our sport is possible. College Lacrosse is possible. Working with our students day after day, year after year, through responsive programming equips them to turn their ambitions into realities.
Our Students
53/47
53% of students are male and 47% of students are female
92%
Identify as African-American, Hispanic, or multi-racial
45%
Speak a language other than English at home
Percentage of Students Qualifying for Free/Reduced Lunch
HARLEM LACROSSE STUDENTS
All students at Harlem Lacrosse School Sites
Percentage of Students Receiving Special Education Services
HARLEM LACROSSE STUDENTS
ALL STUDENTS AT HARLEM LACROSSE SCHOOL SITES
Why Lacrosse?
Lacrosse is at the heart of Harlem Lacrosse’s “college-going culture” and holistic approach to developing the social emotional skill sets of the children we serve. The sport of lacrosse is unique in its emphasis on elite college competition as the goal of every young lacrosse player. The team culture, perseverance, grit, and confidence that Harlem Lacrosse emphasizes translates directly into the classroom and our students’ personal lives.
who we serve
Founded in 2011 with 35 students at one school in Harlem, the organization now works with more than 1,300 student athletes in grades 6-12 in five cities - Baltimore, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia. Harlem Lacrosse offers 40 boys and girls programs with 19 school partners across its five regions.
More than two-thirds of Harlem Lacrosse student-athletes are the first in their family to attend college, and 90% of program participants are Pell-eligible.
Harlem Lacrosse has sent 250 students to college in the past four years and will more than double that number in the next four years.
At a rate more than double their peers, 87% of Harlem Lacrosse students persist through college. Since 2011, Harlem Lacrosse students have passed their core classes at a rate 20% higher than that of their peers at our school sites, and have earned more than $100 million in scholarship offers to independent schools and colleges.