ORONO – Twelve Maine school districts have been selected as pilot sites to develop and implement local policy and practices reflecting the University of Maine’s Sports Done Right recommendations at high schools and middle schools.

The 12 sites, comprising 29 separate schools, were selected from 25 applicants, based on geographic distribution, community and school size, expressed commitment and need, and potential for broad community involvement in the initiative. In all, the sites represent 13 high schools, 15 middle schools and one combined middle-high school.

The federally funded UMaine initiative, begun in October 2003, led to the creation and publication of “Sports Done Right: A Call to Action on Behalf of Maine’s Student-Athletes.” Crafted by a statewide panel, the report defines healthy interscholastic sports, promotes competition without conflict, and makes recommendations for shaping the best possible learning environment for student-athletes. The document is unprecedented in its reliance on the voices of student-athletes to examine problems and solutions.

After the report’s Jan. 6 rollout, Maine school systems were invited to apply as pilot sites. An ad hoc committee, established by the Maine Center for Sport and Coaching at the University of Maine, reviewed and narrowed the applications, then offered the pilot site opportunity to 12 school districts.

The official Sports Done Right pilot sites include Brewer High School and Brewer Middle School.

School MCSC director Karen Brown and Sports Done Right co-director J. Duke Albanese will spearhead work with the pilot sites. The schools will receive:

. Affiliation with UMaine, the Institute for Global Ethics and other pilot sites until March 1, 2006.

. Professional development for school staff and representatives from the public focused on Sports Done Right, and community engagement strategies.

. Technical assistance from UMaine staff, especially from Brown and Albanese.

. Waiver of fees for school year 2005-2006 for middle and high school coaches enrolling in the UMaine Online Coaching Eligibility Course. The MCSC already has incorporated the Sports Done Right core principles and core practices, including information that promotes and supports positive and healthy athletic competition, into the course.

. A $3,000 grant to assist with convening public sessions, preparation of informational materials, travel and other related expenses.

Superintendents are responsible for forming school-community leadership teams, which will receive training that focuses on convening and facilitating community forums using Sports Done Right as a guiding document to initiate conversations about sports and the experiences of student-athletes. Ultimately, these local standards for guiding sports – endorsed through compacts – will be approved as policy by local school boards.

A train-the-trainer model will be used to increase the capacity of the leadership teams and its individual members to train staff in their district, help facilitate conversations in other communities and conduct pilot site progress assessment.

Schools that applied but weren’t selected as pilot sites, as well as other schools interested in the Sports Done Right process, should contact the MCSC.