Lincoln programs featured in new report, State of Play: Oakland
Lincoln Recreation Center called out as model for Oakland in new Aspen Institute Report, State of Play: Oakland.
The Aspen Institute released a new report on the state of play and youth sports in the City of Oakland in partnership with Stephen and Ayesha Curry’s Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation. According to the authors:
State of Play Oakland shows a divide based upon race, gender and income in youth sports experiences for some children in Oakland. Among the report’s findings:
Oakland girls (9%) are less likely to be sufficiently physically active than boys (19%).
Access to quality parks and teams is unevenly distributed based on race and ethnicity.
White children are three times more likely than Latino/a youth and two times more likely than Black and Asian kids to play sports on a recreation center team.
Although Oakland is largely viewed as a football and basketball town, youth said they are very interested in trying other sports. However, children lack sustainable ways to keep playing these new sports to establish healthy habits for life.
“Lincoln Square Park and Recreation Center is a model for other rec centers.”
In addition, the programming at Lincoln Square Park, under the leadership of Gilbert Gong, was called out as an example of what is possible at our recreation centers. Excerpt from the report:
Lincoln Square Park and Recreation Center is a model for other rec centers.
Many community members expressed two major frustrations with Oakland rec centers: They lack engaging programming for youth, and city leaders don’t hold the rec centers accountable. Residents question where the funding goes as they see many centers with small numbers of regular kids that don’t equate to how many adults are on staff. One exception is Chinatown’s Lincoln Square Park, which serves about 400 youth in person and reports about 1,000 total (including virtual attendees during COVID-19). Most rec centers focus on basketball as the primary sport. Lincoln Square director Gilbert Gong, a resident of Oakland for over 50 years, creates programs to expose kids to as many sports as possible, including tennis, softball, lacrosse, and swimming. The parks and rec summer swim league is held at Lincoln Park, which offers swimmers a junior lifeguarding program to develop skills as future employees. “Without deliberate design, nothing will happen,” Gong said. His work hasn’t gone unnoticed. Lincoln Square Park is scheduled to receive an $8.5 million renovation to create a new community center, outdoor classroom, badminton court, two patio and garden areas, and renovate the outdoor lighting and three existing basketball courts.