A Court of Their Own

Lawrence Irvin comes to West Philadelphia's Sayre High School every Saturday to watch his 13-year-old son play basketball.

"I can't say enough good stuff about this," Irvin says, watching player No. 4 bound down the court in a red jersey.

Less than two months ago on a Saturday afternoon, this gym would have been empty. Budget shortages have forced some West Philadelphia schools to terminate sports programs.

For College sophomore Matt Impink, the fact that the underfunded schools do not have the resources to offer students after-school programs was not merely an unfortunate circumstance to lament. It was something that he could remedy.

"These kids should have the same opportunities as I had growing up," Impink says.

Impink played in a youth basketball league when he was a child growing up in Indianapolis, a place where basketball is a major part of everyday life. He was baffled that students did not have the chance to play organized basketball in West Philadelphia, and set out to change that at the end of his freshman year.

Armed with a passion for basketball and the belief that every child should be able to play on a team, Impink and a group of friends from a Penn intramural basketball team started the Penn West Philadelphia Basketball League, a free after-school program offered to students ages 10 to 13.

"I want them to just get a chance to play basketball, first and foremost," Impink says. "That's what any kid deserves -- the chance to play the sport they want to play."

The league kicked off in September with just under 80 students participating. Eight teams are supervised by two coaches per team. Practices are held once a week for each team after school, and the teams play against each other on Saturday afternoons at Sayre.

Clearly, a project like this doesn't happen overnight -- and it doesn't happen without obstacles. Yet, these problems did not faze Impink or his colleagues.

"I had to work on getting gym space," Impink says. "I had to talk to this other program that was wanting the gym at the same time, and it was like a hostage negotiation."

College senior Heather Cisowski, a coach in the league, says that one of the biggest problems was finding students to play.

"It started off kind of rocky," Cisowski says. "There was a big challenge in recruiting from the school for actual players."

Impink and his coaches extended the sign-up period for two weeks, during which they began visiting students after school to talk to them about the league, which helped boost player registration.

The league attracted players from all over Philadelphia, including students attending Bryant Elementary School, Andrew Hamilton School, Lea School and the Penn-Alexander School.

For Cisowski, watching the players develop individually is the most rewarding part of coaching.

"It's fun, because you never know what the kids are going to be able to do," Cisowski says. "They just have so much room to grow at this age. It's amazing when you see those sort of Rudy stories."

Impink's vision of a free basketball program drew funding from the Penn community -- to the tune of $200 from the Student Activities Council and $800 from Say Yes to Education, a service organization affiliated with the Graduate School of Education. The money went toward team uniforms, among other expenses.

"I got pretty lucky, actually," Impink says. "I had a connection that I knew at the Say Yes to Education program, and the person I talked to, once they heard about [the league], really liked the idea because a lot of the parents she talked to said that this is a real need of the community."

West Philadelphia residents share this positive characterization of the league.

"It's very well-organized," Irvin says. "The people that run [the league] take time out with the kids to explain to them how to enjoy themselves without putting too much pressure on them to win the game."

And, indeed, the games are competitive but relaxed.

In the somewhat cramped gym at Sayre, parents and siblings fill the rows of seats, always clapping when points are scored, but never critical when shots are missed. The atmosphere is one of a laid-back Saturday afternoon spent with friends.

Irvin says he is happy that the basketball league gives kids an alternative extracurricular activity in an atmosphere where they have to behave well in order to play.

"I think it's great that they have to shake each others' hands at the end of the game," Irvin says. Chuckling, he adds, "Keeps them from beating on each other after the game."

Only in its first semester, the Penn West Philadelphia Basketball League has ambitious plans.

Next semester, Impink and his group of coaches are planning to implement mandatory tutoring sessions before every practice. Before donning their jerseys, students who want to play must bring homework to work on with their teams. Trained tutors will be on hand alongside the two coaches from each team to aid the players.

In the fall of 2005, Impink hopes to double the league's size to 16 teams with a total of 160 players.

With the upcoming addition of the tutoring program and the expansion of the league, the need for additional Penn students who are interested in working with kids from West Philadelphia is still great.

Impink expects to collaborate with the organization America Reads*America Counts to be able to pay every coach and tutor who qualifies for work-study.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.