Play to Lead enables young women to develop the skills, confidence and relationships to become leaders, while improving gender equity and diversity in sport. The hybrid program unites a group of female athletes and their coaches, empowering them to reach their full potential and fostering a powerful network of girls in sport in Canada.
Jumpstart is excited to be launching our second year of the Play to Lead program! This year the program will be expanding and will be open to young female athletes and their coaches from both the Greater Toronto Area and the Edmonton Metropolitan Area. The program will kick of with in-person Summit at both locations in in Fall 2023.
Each Summit will have athletes coming together for a weekend of networking and leadership skill development. Supported by their coach, athlete participants can expect to learn about leadership in sport in a fun social setting and make lasting friendships.
Following the Summit, Play to Lead programming will move online. Athletes will be required to participate in regular online sessions and complete short assignments throughout the program to support their learning. The virtual component of Play to Lead will be hosted on a web-based platform accessible through a computer, tablet, or smartphone that is connected to the internet.
Athletes will be mentored by their coaches throughout Play to Lead, identifying opportunities to apply their learnings during practices and games.
Our Commitment
At Jumpstart, we know that gender equity builds better sport! Our hope for Play to Lead is for female athletes and their coaches to gather, learn, empower one another, and build lasting bonds to contribute to gender equity in their local sports community.
Athlete Participants
You are a young woman in grade 9 to 12, in the 2023-2024 school year;
You are actively engaged with a local sports organization as an athlete or participate on a school team;
You are applying to the Play to Lead program with parental or guardian permission;
You are applying to the Play to Lead program with the support of a local sports coach or leader; and
You are applying to the Play to Lead program with the intention of committing yourself for the duration of the program.
Coach Participants
You are actively engaged (paid or unpaid) with a sports organization in a leadership capacity (coach, assistant coach, official, etc.) or coach on a school team;
You are over the age of 18 at the time of this application;
You are applying to the Play to Lead program with an athlete from your sports organization; and
You are applying to the Play to Lead program with the intention of committing yourself and supporting your athlete participant for the duration of the program.
Application Review
All applications will be reviewed and scored using a framework that was developed with input from a panel of industry experts. All applications will be evaluated and prioritized using an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion score based on the applicant’s efforts to complete the application.
Timelines
Applications will close on June 30th, 2023 at 11:59 PM ET.
Applicants will be updated on the status of their application by July 31st, 2023.
The two-day, in-person summit will take place in in Toronto, Ontario and Edmonton, Alberta in Fall 2023 – exact dates TBC.
All relevant details regarding the Summit, including venue, will be shared with the successful applicants upon acceptance into the program.
