Skillz Street in review

Skillz Street (pictures here) came to Port Elizabeth on November 15^th 2010 as a pilot intervention for girls on the back of research that points to health benefits from participation in recreational sport and the need to reach young girls who are disproportionately affected by HIV. I was delighted to be part of the team that set up a relationship with the Red location museum, an important cultural centre in Port Elizabeth in the heart of the Red location area of New Brighton. The Intervention happened over an intensive 3 week period where we met 3 times a week with the girls.

Recruiting was done in surrounding schools and on Day 1 we got over a hundred kids and the sessions following saw numbers fluctuate around the 90 mark. I personally learned a lot during this time, having never been part of anything like this. The idea was to test a curriculum in its development stage and send feedback to the Curriculum development team. 

The pillars of Skillz Street are HIV prevention & Life Skills education (taking most of its content from our established curricula), Community Outreach and Fair Play Soccer. 

Fluctuating attendance was a major challenge for us. At any given practice we had at least 80 to 100 girls, but the thing is there would be new kids at almost every one of them, with the new girls replacing the ones who had chosen not to come. Overall 154 girls participated in the intervention for at least two out of the 9 practices. In order for a participant to graduate in any of our interventions they must complete at least 6 practices, 84 girls did so and the rest attended several practices but not enough to graduate. As noted in Skillz holiday below the timing of the intervention coinciding with the end of year holidays is likely to be a major reason why some girls could not complete the required number of practices. Most of the girls live in the surrounding communities, but for a certain few the distance became an issue and they stopped attending. 

It was a pleasure to see the level of enthusiasm that the girls had for activities, discussions and Fairplay soccer. In the end I think we came out with a solid amount of feedback and I look forward to the establishment of Skillz Street alongside other GRS curricula.

At every session/practice we had there was always a group of 15 to 20 odd boys on the sidelines watching the girls play and participate in activities. It felt a bit weird to have excluded them but I understand the need to reach out to girls who frankly do not get as many opportunities to for example play football socially after school. One of our coaches suggested that we do Skillz Street for boys, but perhaps this would defeat the purpose of what we are doing? A tricky questions because in whatever issues, problems or life dilemma young girls may face, there is another side to it, and perhaps bringing boys in would not be such a bad idea? Perhaps not, maybe the emphasis could be placed on separating the sexes but dealing with the hot topics affecting both sides and the kids would equally be more comfortable in a setting where the other sex is not present. Things to think about and suggestions/discussions I will be bringing forward in the new year.

 

Unfortunately we were not able to fully fulfill the community service component of the intervention in the way we would have liked to. The idea was to get the girls involved in some sort of community service or get familiar with a facility in the community. Because we were stretched to the max as an office, we never took the time to really look into what community agents were available, this is something I hope to get done properly at the next Skillz STreet whih will hopefully happen again in February.  

These are exciting times at Grassroot Soccer and within the AIDS response movement. Progress is tangible and the momentum needs to be maintained!

4 months in, and going strong

Yesterday I celebrated 4 months in South Africa with Grassroot Soccer, what an experience and what a time! I head home to Harare tomorrow on the back of a whirlwind 2 month period that has allowed me to learn and grow within the organization. It was a trial by fire one could say, at one point we had 4 programs (1 in its planning stage and 3 in operation - an HIV Counseling and Testing (HCT) Soccer tournament, Skillz Street and 2 holiday programs) going on at the same time!

Needless to say the office and the field had their fair share of highs and lows, but we managed to get through it and I trust that we made an impact in the lives of hundreds of kids while we were at it. I am excited for the year ahead, and the new and exciting opportunities that the year will bring. I want to thank you for your support and I ask that you continue to follow the blog, there is more to come!

Donation Update

2010 is almost over and I am delighted to be looking back on a year to remember. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have supported my internship. From encouraging messages pushing me to take this on, to financial donations that have ensured that I can actually sustain myself here in South Africa, I am truly grateful.

Next week I head home to Harare, excited to see family and friends and to get the chance to share the experiences that have defined the last 4 months of my life. In early January I hope to return and continue playing my part in the AIDS response movement through Grassroot Soccer. I would like to revise my initial fund raising target (set by the organization as $10,000). Looking at my spending so far, I will need to raise $2,000 (making a total of $5,000 for the year) in order to complete my year in South Africa. Monthly costs for health insurance and other living expenses (mostly food) are $250, GRS covers all utilities and rent. The remaining amount covers travel costs back to ZImbabwe at the end of the internship ($200).

I would like to take this opportunity to seek your assistance in reaching my new fund raising target either through donations of your own, referrals to potential donors or any other suggestions you may have. I would truly appreciate it, and I promise to make the most of the opportunity of being here.

I also write a monthly newsletter that goes out every month, if you would like to receive the first three issues and subsequesnt issues going forward please let me know and I will add you to the email list. I hope all is well with you and thanks in advance for your help!

Happy holidays

Skillz Holiday

Over the last two weeks we have completed 2 holiday programs known as Skillz Holiday. During the World Cup, Castrol sponsored and raised awareness about these crucial interventions aimed at kids 12 to 14. Below is a promotional video for Skillz Holiday:



I was happy to help plan and implement 2 holiday programs similar to the one above in Kwazakhele and Walmer townships. Needless to say it was not quite like Skillz Holiday leading up to and during the FIFA World Cup when football fever was rife in South Africa and kids were eager to make the most of sponsored equipment and a chance to attend a World Cup game. Indeed post-World Cup Skillz Holiday seemed to suffering from a severe World Cup hangover.

The Holiday programs are a way for GRS to connect with kids during the breaks when they are most at risk to encountering situations that are most likely dangerous or harmful to their health. There is also idle time that kids have to contend with, and in some areas this idle time can end up being filled with all the wrong sort of things. Teenage pregnancy and HIV are major problems in South Africa and across the continent's lower income areas, Skillz Holiday is an opportunity to provide the kids with something to do and valuable information that can be used to empower them to make smarter choices. The intervention is a tweaked version of our Skillz curriculum and it takes place over an intensive 5 day period where kids play games, do activities and Fair Play soccer from 9a.m. to 3p.m..

Our cumulative goal for participants in Walmer and Kwazakhele was approximately 500 kids. We barely scrapped over a hundred at the end of the day. In fact attendances by kids who did come were sporadic and it was rather disappointing to have worked so hard on recruiting kids and planning the event to only get that number of kids. As mentioned prior it was easier to use the carrot of the World Cup to get kids in. This time around I feel that the December holiday conspired against us. One of our coaches informed me that kids usually travel during this break and kids are less likely to commit to something for an extended period of time as long as a week, unless they see it as more beneficial than what they are already doing.

I just wonder if the kids even go as far as making such a calculation or if they simply forget. Next time around we will need to work on a better recruitment strategy - with no World Cup in sight it will need to be a full proof strategy!

GRS Feature

Profiling Titie, one of the Project Co-ordinators I work with in Port Elizabeth. She plays for City Lads, a local PE team that provides a lot of our Skillz coaches here. They are role models in the community making a difference through their incredible work delivering the Skillz curriculum.

Skillz Street in pictures

On December 6th we had our last Skillz Street. I plan on putting out a detailed blog highlighting what each practice was about and my impressions of it later this weekend. But for now here are some pictures from the Red location museum where we had the intervention:

An aerial view of the Red location museum .

Coach Amy leads an energizer with some of the kids:

Coaches, G and Zoe explain the Skillz contract to their group of girls:

The opening circle (we had one at the beginning of each section).

The museum in the background:

The Red Location community surrounds the museum:

whew! November was some month. After managing to get through the Skillz Street intervention at the Red Location museum, our second HCT as interns and two one week Holiday Programs I am still standing eager to reflect on what has been a whirlwind month! I will do so one by one and I am working on keeping things up to date as the summer break approaches next week.

I am delighted to be doing this internship and I couldn't have asked for more so far. I am excited to use the lessons I have learned so far in order to continue making a contribution to the Grassroot Soccer site in Port Elizabeth.

Stay tuned for detailed updates.

T.

Week 2 of Skillz Street coming up.

Week one of Skillz Street came and went like a whirlwind, over one hundred girls attended on each of the 3 days and they really seemed to enjoy themselves which was great to see. Being in such a central location has made our tournament an attraction in the Red location area. The field is gated but many community members have stopped by to have a look at events on the front lawn of the Red Location museum.

A phenomenon that we predicted before the start of this intervention was a number of boys being drawn to the field, wanting to somehow get involved in the soccer. It is simply not common to see a group of 100 girls playing football in the township, and the boys are frankly used to having all the action when it comes to football. Droves of boys have sort of stood on the sidelines each day (we meet on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays), quizzically looking at the girls participating in Skillz activities and Fair Play football. I feel a bit bad that we cannot currently engage them, but the importance of including girls is well documented and the need to provide a safe space for the girls is great.

Several ladies have joined in the intervention, having seen the activities or heard about it from friends. The youngest girls participating are 10 and the oldest 15. Week 2 starts today, and I hope that the high energy and enthusiasm will continue. Most importantly I hope the goals of the intervention are met: in addition to providing a recreational for girls the program aims to educate them about the risks of contracting HIV; the girls get to identify their personal strengths; set goals for themselves; note the dangerous areas in their neighborhoods and become more aware of the resources and opportunities available to them in their community.

Skillz Street: Day 1

I was initially hoping to have a more creative blog title this time around. You know something to do with 111 girls, some stray dogs etc... all in an attempt to summarize what was a whirlwind Day 1 of our Skillz Street intervention at the Red Location museum (details at the end of the blog*). I went for the straightforward one instead and as I get ready for bed I figured it was only right that I gave an update on how yesterday (Monday the 15th) went.

Having recruited girls from 4 schools surrounding the Red location museum we estimated that each school would more or less yield about 30 girls each. This estimate proved pretty accurate, but not exactly. Some of the schools had a lot less girls but the numbers were made up by other girls who we didn't recruit, they heard about the program somehow and here they were, playing and partipating! One school insisted that a teacher accompany the girls to the museum after school (our program starts at 2:00p.m, right after school) and so 25 girls did not attend Practice 1 of Skillz Street. We still had 111 girls show up, which was a great turnout considering our recruiting concerns early in this process.

Truth be told the start was a bit of a mess, because we needed to wait for everyone to arrive, and girls sauntered onto the pitch from different directions, some in their school uniform, while others had managed to change. The sun, accompanied by a typical Port Elizabeth gust made for a very hot day.

We ended up starting 40 minutes after our proposed start time of 2:00p.m. but I was delighted to see the large number of girls that had committed to participating. The opening circle was led by one of our coaches who introduced the rest of the coaches and led an energizer with all the kids.

Although concerns about fatigued school kids coming to our program in the unrelenting sun came up, the enthusiasm if the girls gave us the answer we needed and I think our staff and coaches fed off of the energy coming from the kids, I know I did.

Once we divided the teams between the coaches there was a lot more order to the day. The ladies played a game of bingo in order to get familiar with their team mates (they were divided into teams of 10) and then they went into Fairplay football. Fairplay football emphasizes player power and responsibilitries. Both teams meet at the beginning of the game and decide on 2 or 3 Fair play rules that both teams must adhere to. Examples of rules include: "No swearing; Help an injured player up and No fighting."

The girls were very enthusiastic in their play, and although there were various levels of play on show, it was clear that all the girls were happy get an opportunity to play the game. I have no doubt that all the girls will return Wednesday, I think we started Skillz Street on a high note, I just hope our program has a real impact on these young ladies.

*In response to overwhelming research promoting the value of girls’ participation in sport, coupled with the need for effective HIV prevention, GRS launched “Skillz Street” in early 2010. A girls-targeted intervention, Skillz Street combines an activities-based HIV prevention and life skills curriculum with fair play soccer and peer-led community outreach activities.

Led by GRS’ community role models, Skillz Coaches, and enhanced by the unique culture developed within Skillz programs, this girl-centered initiative creates a safe space for adolescent girls to play non-competitive soccer, take action in their community, and have vital conversations about HIV and AIDS.

In Port Elizabeth GRS has established a partnership with the Red location museum allowing the coaches to utilize field space in front of the museum. The museum chronicles the harsh realities faced by the anti-apartheid movement and now through Skillz street, it will play host to a movement that is striving to deal with one of the harshest realities of today.

Red City football club: More than a club...

On Friday, myself and Joel went out to the Red Location which is a small area that forms part of New Brighton township. We were recruiting teams for the upcoming HIV Counseling and Testing Soccer tournament on December 4th. We need about 12 teams of 10 kids, half boys half girls totaling 120 kids. The tournament is an opportunity for us to reach kids in the community with our curriculum through an all day event that will involve soccer, some life skill and HIV prevention lessons in a fun environment at an event that will also be open to the public - with free HIV Counseling and Testing for all.

That is the background. Moses is one of our business associates, whose work involves printing certificates for our graduations, printing shirts for events and other printing related jobs we need done. He also works after hours as the head coach for City Lads. A lady's soccer team playing in the provincial league and the team that provided GRS with its first group of female coaches back in 2007 (most of these coaches, including Titie are still with us). He is a resident of New Brighton, and the Red Location area in particular. After mentioning Skillz street to him, he set us up with a meeting with an influential person at the Red location museum who has since allowed us to use the museum premises for Skillz Street. On Friday we were looking for teams for the HCT though, and Moses was once again on hand to assist.

Moses' story is as important as anyone's story told on this blog. Here is a man who is so invested in the well being of his community that he is willing to take time out to make sure important work such as life skills training and HIV prevention is being done for the benefits of ids in the area. Speaking to him about the area he lives in, one can easily tell how important it is to him, and his assistance so far has proven this. After being introduced to a few community members Moses took us to a weekly club meeting hosted by Red City Football Club, a men's team. I know next to no background on the team but the sequence of events that occurred at the meeting inspired me.

We walked into the Red City meeting, and from the start I felt like we had invaded their space. Moses assured us that it was ok, and encouraged us to seat ourselves to grab seats in a very conspicuous corner next to the most senior member of the club who was discussing what seemed to be a very solemn issue with a room full of club members whose age ranged from (I speculate here) 15 to 55. The small living room packed in about 12 men and boys and in we walked, clearly disrupting the meeting. We were soon reassured though by the old patriarch of the team, who welcomed us and gave us the floor to say our bit. Moses spoke most of the time, on our behalf and then me and Joel followed with our appeal to get the younger members of Red City F.C. involved. When it was time for questions/comments a senior member of the team thanked us for reaching out to them and he hoped that the relationship could be maintained. The welcome was a warm one and I am sure we will get at least 2 teams from Red City.

One thing that came up was the fact that the guys playing for Red City are disadvantaged in several ways, and even playing football the game they love so much is affected by a lack of resources like balls, kits and other supplies. I could not promise these guys anything at all, except valuable participation in an important life skills curriculum for their younger members.

The club has clearly been around for a long time, judging from the age of it's most senior member. I would really like to find out more about the club, because if it hasn't already been done I think their story should be told and if I can assist them in any way I would certainly like to. My short encounter with the Red City football club was just one instance that shows the true importance of the game in so many African communities. The club's structure fosters a system where people have a sense of belonging and investment in a structure that gives the younger guys an opportunity to keep busy, have fun and learn directly from older men in the community through the club.

It was a truly "grassroot" moment. I wonder what the World Cup legacy would be for clubs like Red City and people involved. These are the people that truly love the game, and I am not sure if enough was done to connect them to global extravaganza. This can be a discussion for another day, but I am thankful that Moses introduced us to some of the people that make up the community in the Red location area.

Updates

Here's what I've been working on:

Skillz Street: The last few weeks have been hectic to say the least. We managed to secure the Red Location museum as a location for Skillz Street which commences next week! This week we will be making sure our coaches are up to speed with the new curriculum, and getting ready to introduce approximately 100 girls to a curriculum that focuses on empowering them through recreational sport after school.

The Red Location museum front lawn will serve as our center of operations, the museum will be some back drop considering its historical significance. The museum honors the resistance movement to apartheid, with Port Elizabeth and New Brighton in particular (where the museum is) serving as an important hub of operations as the black majority sought to overcome the oppressive apartheid regime. Our work is very different to this, but hopefully this new curriculum will serve the community just as well. The importance of empowering and educating young girls in the community is especially important since research has shown that there are health benefits to recreational participation in sports for girls and the fact that HIV is disproportionally concentrated among women and girls.

HCT: We have secured a venue for the December 4th HIV Counseling and Testing soccer tournament, and now we're working on recruiting kids 14 to 17 to play in it. this time around the HCT is being run by myself and the 3 other interns. The responsibilities have increased significantly compared to the last one.

Skillz Holiday: An abridged version of our full Skillz curriculum, Skillz holiday reaches kids we haven't reached during the school year. All 9 Skillz lessons are delivered in a 5 day period as opposed to a few weeks. Skill holiday has its own feel and vibe, the kids get o play more soccer and the sessions are longer per day compared to the normal Skillz curriculum. Along with my direct supervisor, Titie I will be helping facilitate the delivery if the curriculum by our coaches in Walmer and Kwazakhele communities. The forst one will happen the week of December 26th and the second one will begin the week of December 6th. Each holiday program is anticipated to accomodate 300 kids - wow!

I'm enjoying the fact that I have been assigned much more responsibility. The opportunities to learn and grow are part of the reason I am doing this internship. The next few weeks will be enthralling, let's go!

Inspiration: The story of KIVA

Intern updates on the way, just thought I would share this TEDtalk by Jessica Jackley

Busy times in PE..

Our office has been a hub of activity as we begin a new financial year, and look to end the calendar year on a high before the 2 week Christmas break. Below are a few updates on whats going on:

• I along with a few members of the team, are working on establishing Skillz Street in PE, with at least one intervention before the calendar year. It will be an initial step into an exciting new venture that we hope will prove truly useful and empowering to young girls in the community.
• Planning for the intern led HCT will is well on course. There are tons of details to go through, but we have a determined and talented group. I am excited to be part of it. This will be something we will truly have ownership of, an empowering experience for us. Today me, a few of our coaches, Titie (a Master coach) and Joel(fellow intern) went around New Brighton and we narrowed down 2 venues that we will most likely use. More details on the HCT to come, December 4th is the date.
• Our new site coordinator, Pumeza Lusi began work on Monday. Mpumi is helping her settle in, and she's done that. She's excited to be here and I am looking forward to working with her.
• Yesterday I attended a graduation at Philip Nikiwe primary school in New Brighton. Graduation is when kids get Skillz certificates indicating that they have gone through the curriculum. It was more than just a certificate handover though, the coaches ensured that it was truly a celebration and the kids reciprocated by giving their all, in various portions of a program that showcased their talents. From poetry, to dancing, rapping to singing (at one point all 35 graduates and younger guests who attended from the school) all got up and sang several songs).It was special, and I was happy to hear kids give testimonies on how Grassroot Soccer had impacted them! This was a welcome break from the office, and I was really proud to be part of it!

Moja (OK!) Thats all I have time to write at the moment, stay tuned for more, PE's heating up (our site and the weather - summer's on the way).

Jah Bless

Intoducing: Skillz Street

As mentioned in the Girls Count article earlier, there is an increasing focus on girls in social profit ventures, and Grassroot Soccer is no different. In a society where females have been marginalized and often abused, the need to empower and support young women is imperative.

In our case, this has been manifested in the Skillz Street curriculum which is a new addition to the group of Grassroot Soccer curricula.Skillz Street will include all the lessons from the Generation Skillz curriculum which targets South Africans 15-19 years of age specifically addressing the social norms that fuel this epidemic. In the case of girls aged below 15, the Skillz Core curriculum will be taught. Engaging and empowering young South African women is seen as central to the success of,campaigns to reduce HIV infections in the country.

Unfortunately in many African nations including South Africa, girls have been seen as second-class citizens and not given opportunities to reach their full potential. Sports programs directly challenge such misperceptions about women’s capabilities. Street Skillz aims to empower, inspire and educate young girls, while they enjoy recreational activity through the soccer, participate in community outreach work and learn from the unique Skillz curricula administered by Grassroot Soccer coaches. The idea is to use non-competitive sport to build an atmosphere of collaboration among the girls through fairplay soccer while they learn valuable life lessons.

In a 2008 report, the International Working Group for Sport for Development and Peace stated: “Research on sport, gender and development indicates that sport can benefit girls and women by: enhancing health and well-being; fostering self-esteem and empowerment; facilitating social inclusion and integration; challenging gender norms; and providing opportunities for leadership and achievement.” Access to safe, public space for young women to play soccer is limited, further solidifying gender norms around participation in sport in South Africa and most parts of the African continent. To illustrate this point one can look at the South African Football Association—the 6th largest football association on the planet— which has fewer than 1% registered female players.

An additional aspect of Skillz Street will be integrated testing, with the girls getting the chance to know their status having gone through either the Skillz curriculum, or Generation Skillz.

In its 2009-2011 Outcome Framework, UNAIDS identified “stopping violence against women and girls” and “empowering young people to protect themselves from HIV” as two of its eight key priority areas. To achieve these goals the GRS team that devised Skillz Street feels that "young women in South Africa need increased knowledge about the dangers of multiple concurrent partnerships and older partners, self-efficacy to avoid cross-generational and transactional sex, perception of opportunity, skills to negotiate safer sexual relationships, and support to stay strong when faced with challenges." Skillz Street will hopefully play a role in this educational push, especially among young women of South Africa.

Over the next few weeks our team will be looking to launch Skillz Street in Port Elizabeth. The challenge is getting it done during the holiday period when most kids will be leaving home to travel for the holidays.Most of our regular interventions are tied with the school year, whether it be doing programs during or after school, with teacher supervision. Our first attempt at delivering the Skillz street curriculum will most likely overlap with the school holidays, it will be a challenge but there should be a way to make it work. Once January things will be more clear cut and we can look forward to working with girls in different townships around PE.