The Police as Leaders in Athletics for Youth: Ukraine (UA PLAY) program is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affair’s under the SportsUnited International Sports Programming Initiative, and implemented by PH International. The program will take place from September 2015 to December 2016.
The goal of the UA PLAY Martial Arts is to inspire and strengthen Ukrainian community-based youth sports programs that bring youth and police together to promote positive growth and healthy lifestyles among youth and reinforce community policing practices.
PH will conduct a two-way sports and cultural exchange with participants (adults and youth) from Ukraine and the United States. In early 2016, twelve (12) officials and youth practitioners from Ukraine will visit the U.S. and be introduced to approaches and options for community-based youth sports programming, with special emphasis on programs models that bring youth and police together. Exchange participants will return home, to develop and execute action plans resulting in three regional community-based sports initiatives that can serve as pilot and demonstration programs for a broader effort in the future. In June 2016, twelve (12) Americans, including youth martial arts athletes, coaches, and police officers involved in sports programming will visit Ukraine to provide added technical assistance, conduct workshops, and clinics and build momentum for the new sports initiatives.
