In the Schools

Profiling Santa Monica’s Commitment to the Inner City Rugby League

The Inner City Rugby League (ICRL) is a middle and high school based league in South Los Angeles for boys and girls tackle rugby.

The league operates under the auspices of the Inner City Education Foundation (ICEF).

Renowned for its highly successful independent public charter schools in traditionally underserved communities of L.A., ICEF’s rugby programs are one way of opening up a wider world to students, through travel and interactions with the truly diverse rugby community.

Over 200 middle and high school students, male and female between the ages of 11-18 participate during the season.

ICRL students benefit from the discipline and camaraderie that are foundations of competitive rugby, as well as getting a chance to practice sportsmanship outside the classroom. Most importantly, rugby inspires young people to look ahead to college and beyond.

ICRL Success

Students have participated in scholarship trips to:

• Hong Kong
• New Zealand
• England (2009)

Three female ICRL athletes made the Southern California All-Star Rugby Team in 2008.

Students benefit from 10 weeks of intense training and match play.

ICRL provides transportation, equipment, fields and coaching for students who otherwise would not have access to playing fields.

ICRL History

The Inner City Rugby League (ICRL) originated in the spring of 2003, and with the support of an initial grant of $5,000 from the Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles, 80 students from South Los Angeles and Santa Monica played flag rugby from March to May.

As a result, the youth from Santa Monica formed the Youth Rugby section of the Santa Monica Rugby Club. The players from South Los Angeles formed the View Park Middle School boys’ and girls’ rugby teams, and by 2007 included the Frederick Douglass High School boys’ flag rugby team.

In 2008 Inner City Rugby League (ICRL) was formed. Over 150 Middle and High School students, male and female between the ages of 11-18 played tackle rugby, practicing at the Jim Gilliam Recreation Center and playing games at Webster Middle School and at the Rancho Cienega Recreation Center.

International Rugby Scholar Program

ICRL began an International Rugby Scholar Program began in 2006. The program was initiated by a visiting philanthropist at View Park Middle School that suggested students would benefit from traveling abroad with an emphasis on school and rugby.

• In 2006, two eighth grade students from View Park, travelled to Hong Kong to study and play rugby for a week.
• In the summer of 2006, three girls and one boy traveled to New Zealand for two weeks.
• In 2007, two Middle School girls returned to Hong Kong for a week.
• In 2008, the View Park Girls High School Team traveled to Hong Kong for a week, attending two different schools, and played all the top High School girls teams over the week.
• In 2009, a High School Boys team representing all the ICRL schools will attend Wellington College in England for a week, playing the local rugby team as well as going to school.

Status

The majority of these schools are part of the Inner City Educational Foundation (ICEF), a non-profit foundation of Public Charter Schools. All of these schools are based in South Los Angeles, with over 50% of the students on the Free and Reduced Lunch Program.

In 2008 the budget for the Inner City Rugby League last year was $65,000. In 2008, Santa Monica based Evolution Capital sponsored the formation of the ICRL. With expansion of the league to serve more schools and send more students abroad, ICRL is looking to form additional partnerships.

ICRL is excited about the 2009 season and its expansion to serve more schools, students and the possibilities of providing more scholarships abroad. This expansion will create new opportunities for these students to experience athletic competition, explore the world and build their self-awareness. In the 2009 season, ICRL will serve 23 different rugby teams, with students from grades 6 through 12.

In order to build on the past success, ICRL is looking for new partnerships to help support the league’s growth. These financial partnerships are essential to the operations and scholarship opportunities of the league.

Contact:

ICRL Director Stuart Krohn
5150 W. Goldleaf Circle, Suite 401
Los Angeles, CA 90056
skrohn@hotmail.com
310-795-3254