Students from three Atlantic City Public Schools participated in a Healthy Games Soccer Festival on October 28 at Sovereign Elementary School, co-sponsored by AtlantiCare and Next Gen USA Leadership Foundation.
"To see the excitement and happiness on the kids faces was heartwarming," said Williams. "The response from the teachers, Principal Payton and parents was tremendous."
Futbol 101
62 students from several Atlantic City Public Schools came together on Saturday, October 28 for a Healthy Games Soccer Festival, co-presented by AtlantiCare, Atlantic City Board of Education and the Next Gen USA Leadership Foundation.

According to Tony Williams, Next Gen USA's President and co-Founder, the very-first Healthy Games Soccer Festival brought together happy, smiling faces from across Atlantic City.
Inspiring Healthy Habits
The Next Gen USA Leadership Foundation Urban Promise Program provides a progressive pathway of opportunity for youth participants in Atlantic City Public Schools to access and engage in educational services that inspire, enrich and educate through hands-on learning. The program aims to teach life skills, conflict resolution strategies and help students embrace the importance of leadership in academic and athletic settings.

Saturday's event was the first engagement of students, teachers and family members, together from several pilot elementary schools, to play soccer, participate in character education and leadership training and learn more about healthy habits activities from an expert panel of coaches and educators. Students and their families also learned new information related to personal health, wellness, nutrition and the importance of regular physical activity from AtlantiCare healthcare professionals.

Urban Promise Programming in Atlantic City equates to hands-on, learning by doing.

Please consider a tax-deductible gift to the Next Gen USA Leadership Foundation to support our Urban Promise Program.

100 percent of every dollar we receive between now and December 31st will go directly to programming and help expand opportunities for youth to become better students, athletes and leaders on and off the soccer field.
Support Urban Promise Programming in Atlantic City
Studies suggest that the adolescent years are extremely formative, and athletic involvement is a powerful influence in value and identity development. At Next Gen USA, we believe that a holistic approach to engaging youth in values-based educational and life skills curricula can and do influence how a child develops character, leadership skills, intellectual curiosity, and a passion for a career in sport.

Through our partnership with Atlantic City Public Schools and AtlantiCare, we will offer outcome-driven character and wellness programming through the Urban Promise after-school initiative that inspires children to rise up and become advocates for their own learning.

Urban Promise Program participants in Atlantic City will acquire academic and life skill strategies related to the importance of health, wellness, personal responsibility and accountability through regular and active participation in the after-school program during the 2017-18 school year . #CharacterofChampions #UPP