Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation grants $6.3 million to six Atlanta School Districts for sports access

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The Portal Panthers made a return trip to the GHSA Flag Football Championships on December 9, 2021 at Center Parc Stadium in Atlanta where they lost to Southeast Bulloch in the A-4A Final.

Credit: Javier Gonzalez/GPB Sports

The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation (AMBFF), in partnership with Atlanta United, the Atlanta Falcons, and PGA TOUR Superstore, announced it is granting $6.3 million in funding to six Metro Atlanta school districts over three years.

The funding will increase access to sports at the middle school and high school levels. Data shows that the average family spends about $1,000 on the child's primary sport, up 46% from 2019.

"It's really just crazy how much it costs to play sports in today's world. And unfortunately, when you go to some of these underserved communities, the price still exists for these kids to play," said AMB Sports and Entertainment Senior Vice President of Community Engagement and Sports Philanthropy, Chris Millman. "And a lot of these parents have to make a choice. Am I going to have my child play sports, or am I going to put food on the table and ultimately you can probably guess what most parents are choosing to do. So we want to do our part in trying to help these kids play sports, and so we've partnered with a number of school districts around this area to create those opportunities for the kids."

According to a press release, the funding will help aid the cost of participation in sports and provide Metro Atlanta students with a variety of sports offered in schools.

School districts could apply for grant funding to address their county's needs, ranging from coaching to new equipment.

The grant was distributed to the following school districts:

• Clayton County Public Schools - Create the district’s first coaching development program in partnership with A Better Way Athletics for its 27 middle and high schools.
• DeKalb County Public Schools - Establish girls flag football programs at 18 middle schools and alleviate the cost to participate in middle school girls flag football.
• Fulton County Public Schools - Alleviate the cost to participate – including transportation costs – in high school boys and girls soccer, golf, tennis and wrestling; provide high-quality performance equipment for athletes in these sports.
• Griffin-Spalding Public Schools - Establish boys and girls soccer programs at all four middle schools; launch girls flag football programs at the middle school level; alleviate the cost to participate in middle school boys and girls soccer and girls flag football, and improve the quality of athletic fields utilized by its four middle schools.
• Gwinnett County Public Schools - Establish girls flag football programs at 14 middle schools beginning in 2026; alleviate the cost to participate in boys and girls soccer at the middle school level, and install field lighting to improve safety and enhance scheduling capabilities at six athletic fields across the school district.
• Rockdale County Public Schools - Alleviate the cost to participate – including transportation costs – in boys and girls soccer, girls flag football, tackle football and volleyball at the middle school level, and in boys and girls golf, swimming, tennis and wrestling at the high school level; improve field conditions and play-space access at four middle schools, and provide high-quality performance equipment at the middle and high school level for athletes in these sports. 

AMB Sports and Entertainment and the AMBFF anticipates the funding will impact more than 7,500 athletes at the middle and high school level throughout Metro Atlanta.