New York Mets Education and Service-Learning Program

Each year, more than 150 players reach approximately 7,000 underserved elementary and middle-school age children in the various communities in which the Mets have minor league teams:  Port St. Lucie (FL), Buffalo, Brooklyn and Binghamton (NY), Savannah (GA) and Kingsport (TN). The service programs focus primarily on health, fitness and screen-time awareness and are designed to combat the rising tide of obesity and the ever-increasing addiction to television and video-games among young people in our society. The specific content of the service program was designed by Dr. Sharon Akabas who administers the graduate program in nutrition at Columbia University, and players tailor components of the program to fit the needs of the children with whom they work. Programs are delivered in schools, in after-school programs, and – during the summer months – to children enrolled in Boys and Girls Clubs and YMCA summer programs. We partner with local service organizations and with community leaders in each community – (i.e. Junior Achievement in Kingsport, WSAV – the local NBC affiliate in Savannah, and the Binghamton and Port St. Lucie public schools and Boys and Girls Clubs.

Because the service programs are designed to provide a learning experience for our players as well as for the young people they serve, they are true service-learning experiences. Players are asked to reflect upon their experiences and complete both oral and written assessments of their work. In addition, Richard Astro teaches a six week course on sport and social issues to players during Extended Spring Training which prepares them for their various service assignments.

The education program helps players begin, continue and complete their college degrees and so prepare for productive lives once their baseball careers end. More than fifty players have completed their degrees since the program began, and some of our “alumni” have gone on to graduate study. At present, we have one alumnus in law school and another who is preparing to enter medical school this fall. We also work with the large cadre of Latino players whose backgrounds are radically different from those of their US teammates. Specifically, we work with them to identify other interests and help them identify the skills they will need to enter the workforce when they return to their countries of origin.  The dramatic increase of the Latino population in professional baseball carries with it new challenges and opportunities – see, for example, the recent movie “Sugar” about a young Dominican player who is drafted to play in rural Iowa and nearly self-destructs in the process – and the Mets have been in the vanguard of a movement to help their Latino players as they transition into and then out of  professional baseball.  Our service programs help Latinos develop a culture of service which is rare in their countries and become functioning members of the American communities in which they play – both on and off the field.