About the CSAA
Charter School Athletic Association of New York (CSAA) is a non-profit 501c3 organization was founded in September of 2003.
The organization was founded by Ty Moore and Miriam Suazo with the desire to provide interscholastic sports and arts programs as enrichment tools to enhance student growth and personal development of NYC Charter school students.
Miriam Suazo was given the opportunity to provide an arts enrichment program at KIPP in 2001/2002. Ty Moore was given the opportunity to coach the boys basketball team in 2002/2003. Without opponents for his team, Ty recognized that there was a need to start a charter school league for NYC charter schools. Miriam recognized charter schools sharing common arts enrichment programs, such as cheerleading and step-teams would enhance program excitement and effectiveness, making the CSAA a well-rounded program. With our cheerleading program and step teams performing at half time and giving their schools positive cheers, the csaa basketball games are some of the most exciting games in the city.
Charter schools share common philosophies about education, discipline, and school pride. The charter school community understands the importance of education as a priority. For this reason we think it is necessary to provide our children with an outlet to experience athletic competition with peers who share common goals. The CSAA believes that physical fitness is an integral part of personal and s ocial development.
Most of the charter schools in New York City were pleased to learn about CSAA and elected to participate in the CSAA program. David Levine, the Superintendent of KIPP Academy, and Mandy Gauss, the Director of Development at KIPP recognized the profoundness of such a program and have dedicated themselves to the success of the CSAA. Both served as board members.
In September 2003, CSAA became the official league organizer of one of the first charter school athletic organizations in the country. The CSAA was initiated with the Charter School Flag Football League, which was successful. This was an exciting new experience for all of the students who participated.
The Charter School Basketball League began in January 2004. The schools participating included: Bronx Preparatory, Harbor Arts & Science, KIPP Academy, Reisenbach Charter, and Renaissance Charter School. The CSAA invited other alternative schools to participate such as: The Young Women’s Leadership School and Mott Hall 3. Five out of the six junior high charter schools participated in the 2003/2004 season. In 2007/2008 over 40 schools participated in the CSAA and it's programs.
Over 50 new charter schools were approved for New York City, which bodes well for CSAA’s continued growth.
MissionThe Charter School Athletic Association is a 501c3 non-profit organization that strives to provide all New York City charter schools with the resources and facilities necessary to support a high quality extracurricular program of interscholastic athletics and performing arts. By forgoing community and school partnerships, the CSAA is determined to ensure that all children in New York City charter schools have equal opportunity to grow into healthy and happy adults committed to the value of cooperation, fairness, and respect.
VisionThe Charter School Athletic Association’s vision is to develop and maintain inter-scholastic sports leagues and arts programs that charter schools and communities can rely on yearly. Our vision is to nurture the charter schools’ appreciation for the arts, sports, physical fitness, and nutrition.
GoalsMotivate students to maintain good academic grades through eligibility requirements Showcase the athletic talents of our charter school students Provide charter schools with annual interscholastic leagues Encourage good sportsmanship Give our charter school community an organized athletic outlet Increase the level of school pride in our charter school community Increase student interaction in our charter schools Encourage parent participation and volunteer support and community involvement Strengthen the communication among charter schools staff through common sports and arts programs Assist in nurturing the relationships among charter schools, staff, students and parents To provide a friendly competitive arena, amongst students with similar
