Since it was established in 1985, the Malden Neighborhood Basketball League has reached over 1,500 Malden youth who have enjoyed the game of basketball in a safe, adult-supervised environment with their peers. By offering a program centered on a popular athletic activity that provides participants with sportsmanship, teambuilding, and self-confidence, the League has been able to meet the needs of Malden’s youth for the past thirty-two years.
In January, 2006 the North Shore Black Women’s Association, Inc. honored the Malden Neighborhood Basketball League, in recognition of its dedicated efforts “to provide an opportunity for at-risk urban high school aged youth in grades 10-12 to participate in organized basketball program, regardless of experience and ability in the sport.”
Historically, the League has been supported through private donations from local businesses and organizations, player registration fees, funding derived from a concession stand held at games, and income derived from hosting Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournaments and raffles. Due to a stagnant economy, there is still over $1,600.00 in sponsor money outstanding from last year’s donors..
Therefore, the Malden Neighborhood Basketball League is seeking grant funding to cover the decreased income and increased expenses so it can continue its valuable program to serve Malden’s low to moderate-income youths.
FUTURE PLAN FOR SUSTAINING THE MALDEN NEIGHBORHOOD BASKETBALL LEAGUE
The goal of the MNBL is to provide an organized basketball program for at least 80-90 at-risk, primarily low- income Malden residents in grades 10 through 12 who do not play for their school basketball team. In the short-term, the MNBL will know if it has met this goal by keeping accurate files of all students who register, along with each student’s basic demographic information. MNBL staff can count how many students registered, how many attend each game, how many attend each practice, and how many attend the Annual League Banquet by keeping attendance logs.
The MNBL will also be able to determine how many students participated in multiple years by comparing attendance rosters from year-to-year. Through collaborative partnerships with public and private high schools in the area, the MNBL will also be able to measure the number of students who participated in the MNBL that went on to participate in a school-sponsored basketball team.
Informal feedback from participants, parents, and coaches has provided anecdotal evidence of the program’s success. For example, students have shared positive stories about how the school enrollment requirement to play basketball provided the incentive to stay in school when they had wanted to drop out.
MALDEN NEIGHBORHOOD BASKETBALL LEAGUE’S COLLABORATIVE PARTNERS
The MNBL collaborates with the Malden Public Schools by using space at three of the school locations, including the Malden High School and the Ferryway School. Facility fees include space and custodians. The MNBL also collaborates with the Malden High School in particular to promote the program to students. The Malden High School will announce registration and try outs over the loudspeaker, and will post flyers in the classroom and Main Office. The MNBL has a similar relationship with Malden Catholic High School, Northeast Regional Vocational Technical High School, and other private schools in the area that enroll Malden high-school age youth.
Healthy Malden 2000 is a community health coalition that addresses the priority health issues of the community, including youth health issues. Staff and volunteers from Healthy Malden 2000 will provide information and guest speakers who will have a presence at MNBL practices to share prevention and education materials.