The University of Montana, in partnership with Salvadoran NGO FUSALMO, implemented a program focused on working with youth who are susceptible to gangs and crime from July 15 – 23, 2018. The university sent 21 American participants, eight young adults and 13 coaches and administrators, to San Salvador and Santa Ana, El Salvador. The participants from Montana included individuals from three Native American reservations from around Montana.
The exchange between the U.S. and El Salvador employed basketball and Native games to provide youth and youth influencers with concrete skills to address issues related to sport for social change.
Nearly 135 participants from El Salvador learned leadership skills, teamwork, and communication from the U.S. group through sports clinics and workshops. The power of sport once again demonstrated that it can create sociocultural ties through the shared passion for play!
