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From left: Coach Stephen Silvaggio, Luula Ali, Andrew Loyuk and Coach Pat Osborne
Kennedy Collegiate Institute basketball coaches Pat Osborne, Stephen Silvaggio and Jeff Neckers have seen the positive difference combining top tier athletics and academics has on racialized and marginalized students.
Basketball is engrained in the culture at Kennedy and the opportunity to transfer that commitment into post-secondary and eventually real-world student success is the goal of the Kennedy Prep Team.
All 48 students - 46 of whom are racialized - that have played on the Senior boys’ team in the last seven years have graduated on time and 40 have gone on to a post-secondary education. Thirty-two received scholarships. Compared to Provincial data, the outcomes of the Program are staggering.
Thirty students - 23 of whom are racialized – from the senior girls’ program are enrolled in post-secondary schools and seven were awarded scholarships. Again, students who participated in the Basketball Program at KCI realized significant and life changing outcomes.
The teams are about much more than basketball. They are mentorship programs that track success in the classroom, offer tutoring, proper nutrition and the chance to position players as leaders in their school community. The student athletes are expected to achieve as students and citizens at KCI – no exceptions.
The Clippers’ success was amplified when KCI was accepted to play in the Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association. OSBA’s goal is to develop players for post-secondary, national and international competition while also ensuring a focus on education.
Kennedy will spend roughly $70,000 on its Prep program in the coming year, approximately $6,000 per student athlete, compared to an average per-player cost of $10-15,000 at similar programs across the province.
“We’re investing heavily in the Program at the school level in the hope that sustainable funding will be secured for next year… we have many fantastic and supportive partners that are supporting our effort with design, programming and funding. Everyone who sees the Program in motion are moved by impact on kids – people see and know it changes lives” says Kennedy’s Principal, Kyle Berard. “We are just getting going, but we’ll need systemic and community support moving forward”. KCI has established a board of directors to support and oversee the Program. Partners include St. Clair College, University of Windsor, the United Way, and many invested members within the community.
Coach Osborne adds, “We could find kids who are willing to pay to participate in the program but then it goes against our mission statement. I want kids who can’t afford it - that’s the whole point. You would be taking away someone’s opportunity because they don’t have the funds.”
The success of combining athletics and academics is demonstrated by the students who have experienced it. Luula Ali is a Kennedy graduate who went on to attend St. Clair College and is now leading a basketball program for Muslim girls at the Windsor Islamic Association. Coach Silvaggio mentored Ali while she played at Kennedy. “She went from a kid who was on the wrong path - to becoming a leader not just in the school but in her community and she now sits on our Board of Directors.”
Andrew Loyuk is a Grade 12 student who chose Kennedy for its basketball program and is now on the Prep team roster. “The atmosphere and the people at Kennedy were better for me, I knew they could help me in the future. I came to Kennedy in Grade 9 and it was hard at first, but Osborne and the other teachers always made me feel at home. I’m an athlete, so for me it’s always been sports first but they helped me realize you need education. They helped me see what I want to do in the future and gave me a lot of opportunities. It’s a great program, a great school. I suggest to anyone younger that they should come here because they really care about you.”
When asked what he plans to do in the future, Loyuk happily shared that he plans to become a teacher.
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