ASTON, Pa. – There is still time for youth coaches, parents and sports administrators to register for the Soul of Youth Sport Conference, which is being held this Sunday-Tuesday at Neumann University in Aston, Pa. The National Catholic Education Association is sponsoring the conference.
According to the NCEA, the conference approaches Catholic secondary school athletics “with a focus on how to maintain an excellent athletic program while supporting and enhancing the overall mission of the school.” It will focus on student and team spiritual formation, common respect athletes should show one another, and how to build programs that are examples of ethical as well as athletic excellence.
More information about the conference and how to register are available at www.ncea.org/events/soul-youth-sport-conference.
Anthony Gargano, the midday host on Philadelphia sports talk radio station 94 WIP, will give the keynote address Sunday evening at the Mirenda Center for Sport, Spirituality and Character Development at Neumann. Sessions on Monday and Tuesday include topics such as achieving athletic success with honor, legal issues and sports, mission-driven hiring, concussion management and heat acclimatization, dealing with parents, college recruiting and using social networks.
Haley Scott DeMaria will deliver the capstone address, “Swimming Back from Paralysis,” on Tuesday. DeMaria was injured in a bus accident in 1992 when she was a freshman member of the women’s swimming team at Notre Dame University. Two teammates were killed, and DeMaria was injured and unable to walk for a month. She returned to the swim team in the fall of 1993.
