Each day, hundreds of Milwaukeeans dedicate time, energy and financial resources to important work for non-profit organizations in the community.

These people -- who work on the front lines for causes including the environment, education, the arts, social issues, charities, health care, politics, religion, animal protection, sports and other endeavors -- go about their business without a great deal of fanfare or recognition.

In order to help rectify that, and create awareness for worthy causes throughout the area, OnMilwaukee.com created the Non-profit Spotlight. The featured organization today is America SCORES Milwaukee. We talked with program director John Eggebrecht about the organization.

OnMilwaukee.com: What is America SCORES?

John Eggebrecht: A national non-profit organization, America SCORES is a unique after-school program that empowers students in urban communities using soccer, writing, creative expression and service learning.

Teamwork built through each of these activities unifies all participants and inspires them to lead healthy lifestyles, be engaged students, and become agents of change in their communities. America SCORES Milwaukee (ASM) is one of 14 affiliate sites.

SCORES hires and trains accredited public school teachers at each participating school to conduct the program. This enables a ripple effect where these same teachers can continue to inspire reading, writing and academic success using SCORES resources throughout the school day.

For 10 weeks each fall and spring, America SCORES provides a comprehensive after-school program that is free for students. Public school children, ages 8-12, meet every day after school to participate in: soccer practices with their team (two days per week); poetry and service-learning workshops (two days per week) and a soccer game (one per week).

Every day, after school, SCORES students are in safe, supervised activities that empower them to be confident on the field, in the classroom, and in daily life. Together they bridge the cognitive and kinesthetic and bring together a diverse group of children with different language and communication skills, helping them to develop self-confidence and a life-long appreciation of sports and dedication to healthy behaviors.

OMC: How many kids does it serve and what are the participating schools?

JE: ASM serves 160 children total, with 32 children (16 boys and 16 girls) at each of its five schools. SCORES is currently working with three South Side schools (Hayes Bilingual Elementary, Riley Elementary, and Windlake Elementary) and two North Side schools (Lloyd Street and 21st Street School).

ASM serves children in areas that provide limited, low quality, or unaffordable after-school programming and where poverty and violence are common. Children at SCORES schools are primarily of Hispanic or African-American ethnicity. More than 50 percent of ASM children are learning English as a second language.

Most have little or no access to recess or physical education as part of their school day and 94 percent of SCORES students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches. Fifty percent are girls who have traditionally been excluded from after-school athletic programs.

ASM plans to add one additional North Side school and implement a middle school program during the 2008-'09 school year.

OMC: When you think about urban kids, soccer and poetry aren't the first things that come to mind. How does the mixture work?

JE: You're definitely right; most people would not consider soccer and poetry common activities when thinking about urban communities. But as we all know, two major crises exist in our public schools today (especially in major metropolitan areas): more children are obese today then at any time in our history and illiteracy levels are on the rise.

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