The signature event of the Aspen Institute Sports and Society Program, the Project Play Summit is the nation’s premier gathering of leaders building healthy children through sports. The 750+ attendees come from across the country and globe to discover new insights, ideas and opportunities to get and keep kids in the game.
This year’s event is in Boston — the City of Champions — on May 5-6 when we’ll dive into how we can be champions for our kids, families and communities. Sessions will be hosted at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza near Boston Common with a reception at iconic Fenway Park.
The Summit is sold out. But you can join us virtually — all mainstage sessions will be livestreamed so register for access and be sure to tune in.
SUMMIT AGENDA
Monday, May 4, 4:00-6:30PM
VOLO + PROJECT PLAY SUMMIT PLAY DAY on boston common
Join fellow Summit attendees for a casual sports gathering celebrating the power of play and community. Network while enjoying cornhole, bocce, grass volleyball, and other fun mini-games. No experience required! Enjoy some music, meet fellow leaders, and jump into the action as we bring people together through play. The event is free but capacity is limited, so register today!
Plenary SESSION I
Tuesday, MAy 5, 9:00-10:45am
All session dates, times and speakers are subject to change.
How to win at sports
In a recent TED Talk, our Tom Farrey offered a roadmap to drive true systems change in the delivery of programs in the largest and most important layer of our sport ecosystem – youth and school sports. How can members of the Project Play network make it real?
Tom Farrey, Executive Director, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
From team captains to community captains
What do young athletes need to lead? How to give them the tools and confidence to not just bring teammates together and win games – but build shared solutions in the places where they live, from access to sport to food insecurity to other societal challenges?
Guywintz Jules, soccer and track captain, Salem (Mass.) High School
Ma’Net Richardson, flag football captain, East College Prep High School (Calif.)
Carol Yan, golf captain, Diamond Bar (Calif.) High School
Moderator: Jeff Price, CEO, The Heisman Trophy Trust
special ANNOUNCEMENT
Lara Beth Seager, CEO, Luka Dončić Foundation
63X30: Progress!
The most recent government data shows 55% of youth playing sports. That’s up from 49% as the nation emerged from COVID. What’s working? How to get to 63% by 2030, the time-bound challenge Project Play has issued to its network of leaders?
Rick Jordan, Vice President, DICK’s Sporting Goods Foundation
Steve Tanner, Senior Director of Player Engagement, PGA of America
Moderator: Ashleigh Huffman, PhD, Senior Director, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
PLAY Talk: PrevenT female injuries
Kate Ackerman, MD, MPH, FACSM, Co-Founder & Director, Women’s Health, Sports & Performance Institute
Safety First: The Next Wave of Youth Sports Reform?
Pressures on the bodies and minds of youth athletes are growing. So are cultural expectations to protect them from harm. How can leaders and providers meet the moment? What policies, tools and approaches will drive compliance at scale?
Benita Fitzgerald-Mosley, CEO, US Center for SafeSport
Seth Lieberman, CEO, Ankored, Inc
Moderator: Tom Farrey, Executive Director, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
Plenary SESSION II
Tuesday, MAy 5, 2:45-4:30pm
PLAY Talk: leverage public funding for afterschool programs
Kari Pardoe, Senior Program Officer, Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation
63X30: What’s Next?
The newest members of Project Play’s national roundtable share their plans to contribute and close gaps in key spaces where youth sports can be provided.
Stuart Brown, Executive Director, Inspire Foundation
Lex Chalat, Executive Director, Soccer Forward Foundation, U.S. Soccer Federation
Jim Clark, President & CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Cindy Nguyen Thomas, Managing Director, Bank of America
Moderator: Marty Fox, Program Manager, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
Laurie Tisch, Founder, Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund
Why We Play: Sport, Art, and Youth Development
Participation in sports is a key component in whole-child development. So is the arts. But too often, athletes don’t feel comfortable exploring their artistic side. We explore ways to break down the psychological and cultural barriers, starting before high school, an extension of our new conversation series on the role that sport has played in shaping society.
LJ Rader, Founder, ArtButMakeItSports
Moderated by: Britt Salvesen, Curator and Department Head, Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Plenary SESSION III
wednesday, MAy 6, 9:00-10:15Am
building youth-centered sport ecosystems
In the Winter Olympics, Norway reminded us of what’s possible when sport systems get built on the foundation of the human rights of children – more athletes, better athletes, more societal health and happiness. Learn about efforts to improve sport delivery models in the U.S.
Cassidy Lichtman, Chair, USA Volleyball
Mariam Mansury, Senior Manager, Monitor Institute by Deloitte
Moderator: Tom Farrey, Executive Director, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
From P.E. to P.E.: How Can Private Equity Be a Good Actor?
Physical Education has faded as an institution for building active kids, replaced by non-school sport programs – an industry increasingly shaped by Private Equity. How can that capital be leveraged to get, keep and develop more children through sports?
Jay Adya, Managing Partner, Elysian Park Ventures
Katherine Van Dyck, Senior Legal Fellow, American Economic Liberties Project
The Algorithmic Athlete: Protecting Play in the Age of AI
AI is disrupting sports, from biometric tracking to automated scouting. These tools can democratize training and help coaches, but risk turning kids into data points. What guardrails are needed to limit surveillance and protect the essence of play?
Zarif Haque, CEO, The Good Game
Travis Roache, PhD, author, Coaching in the Age of AI
Calli Schroeder, Electronic Privacy Information Center, Senior Counsel and Director of the AI & Human Rights Program
Moderator: Jon Solomon, Research Director, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
Plenary SESSION IV
wednesday, MAy 6, 10:30AM - 12:00pm
PLAY Talk: open college campuses for local youth teams
Brent Richard, CEO, IMG Academy
Turning Crisis into Opportunity for Boys
Aspen and a leading think tank on trends in boys spent the past year researching why boys are playing sports less. Now we have answers – and policy solutions. Learn about ways to keep more of them in the game without taking opportunities from girls.
Alanna Williams, Vice President, American Institute of Boys and Men
Moderator: Zach Moo Young, Consultant, Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program
How to Save the Levers of Life
Three years ago, Aspen partnered with HSS to launch the National ACL Injury Coalition. Now, many groups have introduced policies to reduce preventable knee injuries. Learn how your organization can take steps to keep athletes on the field and active for life.
Cindy Chang, MD, NWSL Chief Medical Officer, AMSSM Past President, CIF Sports Med Advisory Comm, UCSF Prof Emerita
Ryan Lingor, MD, Primary Sports Medicine Physician, Hospital for Special Surgery
Moderator: Vince Minjares, PhD, Program Manager, Aspen Institute Sport & Society Program
How Champions Lead
In a society that increasingly looks to individuals over institutions for leadership, what’s fair to ask of high-profile athletes and coaches? What leadership can they provide related to the development of youth through sports?
Tim Brown, Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL receiver
Moderator: Binta Niambi Brown, Entertainment Partner at Manatt
PLAY talk: KNOw what The Nose knows
Chi Kim, CEO, Pure Edge Inc.
PROJECT PLAY summit 2027 announcement
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
Tuesday, MAy 5
Play is Parent-Led
Sharpen your approach to engaging families with new research on how parents introduce and facilitate sport activities. Explore strategies to empower parents as active partners, helping them build meaningful, lasting bonds with their children.
What kids today really want
To get and keep more children playing sports, starting with understanding what kids truly seek from an experience. Explore revealing findings from Project Play’s exclusive surveys of youth in the U.S. and Canada.
How to Partner in Communities with High Needs
Musician and philanthropist Stix (Brandon Salaam-Bailey) guides conversation on effective national-local partnerships, shaped by his experience building as much in the Watts community of Los Angeles.
Breakthrough Ideas from State of Play Communities
We’re always working with partners in local communities, identifying innovative programs and models worth exposing to our national network. In this session, partners in several of our projects share what they’ve learned about what’s winning.
American Coach Development: Building Strategy
Leading organizations are rallying around the importance of coaches to youth sports. Hear from those building long-term strategies to recruit, support and train coaches at scale – in line with Aspen’s American Coach Development Model.
What States Can Do to Build Better Ecosystems
States have enormous, largely untapped power to create the sport environments that best serve children, families and communities. Explore Project Play’s comprehensive set of ideas, drawing on our leading research on state and national models and work through Project Play Colorado.
Wednesday, MAy 6
GRANT-MAKING to Build Better Systems
Foundations are starting to invest in programs that fill gaps in the landscape – mostly with low-income youth. Now, how can grantmakers and grantees work together to build ecosystems that don’t create gaps in the first place? What are the best approaches to leveling the playing field, growing access, lifting standards, and ensuring safety for all?
Meeting Families where they are
If parents are the enablers of play today, what tools do they need to get and keep their child playing into adolescence? With the Project Play Parent Checklists as our guide – including new ones for Spanish-language families distributed with help of Telemundo – we explore practical resources.
Deep dive on the power of the permit
Facility use permits aren’t paperwork – they are youth sports policy in disguise, quietly determining which programs get space and opportunity. How to redesign permitting as a transparent, data-driven system that promotes equity, safety, and quality in programs?
Rising up in mass
The state of Massachusetts is rich with innovative youth sport providers and enablers. We distill lessons from several leaders with strong track records of growth and progress.
Breakthrough ideas from abroad
Around the globe, traditional sport delivery and governance models are being reimagined, and more often with the needs of grassroots sports being central. Learn about how other countries are meeting the moment of disruption with reform.
Aspen Policy Academy: From Advocacy to Action
The Institute’s policy expert leads a fast-paced, high-impact workshop designed to help attendees drive real change in their sports communities. Get a sharp, practical overview of the Academy’s advocacy playbook, learn from a sports policymaker about how policy actually gets made, and experience a live pitch session where attendees can test their ideas and receive immediate feedback.
All session dates, times and speakers are subject to change.
About Project Play
In 2013, Project Play was launched as the nation's first cross-sector effort to build healthy communities through sports. Today, with the Aspen Institute serving as field catalyst, it's a movement of thousands of organizations across the U.S. and beyond –- sharing knowledge and developing actions aligned with our strategic frameworks.
With Thanks to Our Sponsors
Interested in sponsoring next year’s Summit? Contact Katherine.Quinn@AspenInstitute.org