Simmons Athletics enters into exciting new partnership
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Posted by , March 31, 2008
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Simmons Athletics enters into exciting new partnership
The Simmons College athletic program has always emphasized student athlete leadership development, and community outreach. So when a chance to further those ambitions arose, Athletic Director Ali Kantor seized the opportunity. Last month the Simmons College athletic department entered into a partnership with the Women’s Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Boston. The Women’s Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! is a grassroots campaign to get underserved girls more involved in sports and fitness. GoGirlGo! Boston gives girls 8-18 the opportunity to be physically active, boost their self esteem, and to understand that sedentary lifestyles have dire consequences. The program provides financial and technical support to schools, parks and nonprofit organizations conducting sports and fitness programs for girls. The program will be based out of the Simmons College athletic center, which is renting out office space for the Foundation to conduct business. ”We are excited to be at Simmons because of the rich history of empowering women. It enables us to have a location central to many sports and community activities. We are excited to work with Simmons, as well as other local colleges to engage female athletes to mentor young girls through the GoGirlGo Program,” said program director Whitney Post. Simmons itself hosts many opportunities to engage with the community through their athletics, the Scott/Ross Center for Community Service as well as the School of Social Work. Simmons College Athletic Director Ali Kantor is excited about the partnership, and is happy to be housing Post, and the program’s Boston outfit. “Our mission, and their, are so compatible! Having the program housed in the William J. Holmes Sports & Fitness center allows us to work collaboratively and synergistically along side each other,” she said. Kantor thinks it can be a beneficial partnership for Simmons athletes, in their efforts to reach out to the community and conduct clinics on fitness and sports, by using the established connections to GoGirlGo! program already possesses. “Simmons teams can support the community programs by providing role models, mentors and serve as a resource for teaching physical fitness skills. It is a win-win situation,” Kantor said. The longtime athletic director is already making a mark with the foundation, as she will serve on the 2008 Women’s Sports Foundation Boston program Grants Allocation Committee, which she says is “an honor and a privilege,” to be a part of. “It is a pleasure having Whitney Post, GoGirlGo Program Director and her staff around our suite of offices to engage with on a nearly day to day basis,” Kantor said. “Their professionalism, dedication, and compassion to which they apply their work is compelling and is inspiring to be around.”
