BY KYLE VUILLE
New exposure to a
unique sport is making a
positive impact on middleschoolers
in the Bronx.
Dan Leventhal, founder
and president, of Bronx
Lacrosse attended Community
Board 4 meeting on
Tuesday, November 26 and
shared with board members
what a success his program
has been on the two middle
schools he’s worked with
for the past two years.
Players in his program
have 96 percent attendance
rating and a hundred percent
graduation rating
among his eighth grade
players, he shared.
As of 2019, Bronx Lacrosse
offers their program
at two schools: Highbridge
Green Middle School and
Rafael Hernandez Dual
Language Magnet School.
Leventhal said he was
inspired to start the program
when he began teaching
at Highbridge Green
Middle School in 2015 and
saw students didn’t have
many opportunities for extracurricular
activities.
With 20 years under his
belt playing lacrosse and a
yearning to connect with
the children outside of academics,
he knew this was
chance to introduce the
sport.
With no prior knowledge
of what lacrosse even was,
it took a lot of enthusiasm
and compassion to ‘sell’ the
sport to the kids at fi rst,
Leventhal said.
“I had to be enthusiastic
about it and explain to them
lacrosse is a combination of
different contact sports,”
Leventhal said.
In one short year, Leventhal
rounded up enough
gear for 30 players and offi
cially started the lacrosse
team at Highbridge Green.
The program started at
Highbridge Green in the
spring of 2016 with Bronx
Lacrosse being founded the
following year in summer
of 2017.
The program at P.S./I.S.
218 started in the fall of
2018.
After a few months of
practice, scrimmages along
with the program’s individualized
tutoring sessions
with kids, parents
and teachers started to see
noticeable changes in participants.
“I remember the principal
calling me in to offi ce
and telling me how well the
kids in the program were
doing,” Leventhal said.
“That’s when I realized we
had a good recipe going
there.”
The program also offers
incentives to participating
students through special
outings to encourage them
to want more out of life.
The popularity of the
sport had reached unexpected
popularity within
Highbridge Green.
“Lacrosse is so embedded
into the school now,”
Leventhal said, “Fifth graders
coming into the school
are excited about trying
out.” He said this past fall,
half of the sixth grade boys
tried out for the team.
This past July, the boys
and girls teams at Highbridge
Green won the Middle
School Athletic City Lacrosse
Championships.
This was the fi rst time
in the history of the sport
that a Bronx team won the
title.
Leventhal hopes the program
will take a similar
route at P.S./I.S. 218 and
plans to expand the program
to local high schools
in the area.
“We are in the process of
forming a partnership with
a Bronx high school so students
interested in continuing
to play lacrosse after
middle school will be able
to do so,” Leventhal said.
However, Leventhal said
there are many challenges
Bronx Lacrosse faces as a
new organization.
One obstacle Bronx Lacrosse
has had to deal with
is fi nding accessible fi elds
to play on.
Lacrosse is typically
played on a standard sized
soccer fi eld, ranging from
110-120 yards in length and
70-80 yards wide.
“The closest place for
us to play our games is on
Randall’s Island, where it
can easily be a three hour
round trip commuting using
public transportation,”
Leventhal said. “So we
have to work with what we
have.”
Leventhal emphasized
the program is really an academic
program, but uses
lacrosse as a confi dence
builder.
“The students fi nd a
sense of pride,” Leventhal
said, “standing out from
the crowd carrying the lacrosse
stick.”
Leventhal attributed the
ongoing academic success
of the program to the chief
program offi cer, Jess Westermann,
who has worked in
education for 14 years.
Westermann was a former
director of the NYC
Department of Education
New Schools Intensive and
helped launch the School
Empowerment Network.
“Right now our work is
focusing on kids math fl uency,
where we are bringing
in extra tutors to help
with both homework and
state exam prep,” said Leventhal.
The recently named
captain of the Highbridge
Green team, 13-year-old
eighth grader, Muhammed
Krubally, attested to the
program’s infl uence on his
life.“
I was pretty excited to
join because my brother
played and everybody in
the Bronx plays basketball
or soccer and this was new
to me,” Krubally said.
Krubally said he’s been
involved in the program
for two and a half years
at Highbridge Green and
has grown a lot since he
joined.
“It’s helped me academically,
it’s helped me as a
leader, and it’s helped me
create bonds,” Krubally
said.
He added the lacrosse
team has become a brotherhood
and all the teammates
look out for each other.
As for his studies, Krubally
said he’s noticed the
progress he’s made in math
and English, noting math
is now his favorite subject
in school. He said he meets
with the program’s tutors
about three times a week
to work on homework.
Krubally and others in
the program hope to carry
their newfound confi dence
and potential into high
school and eventually to
college.
With more and more focus
on student’s academic
improvements in progress
and CB 4 Parks Committee’s
approval of fi eld use
of Mullaly Park, Bronx Lacrosse
is ready for spring.
“The most important
takeaway for students in
our program is a greater
belief in themselves, a
sense of belonging, and a
vision for their futures,”
Leventhal said.
3 BRONX WEEKLY December 8, 2019 www.BXTimes.com
Lacrosse program shows promise for middle schoolers
Dan Leventhal, President and Founder of Bronx Lacrosse, gives his boys a quick pep talk during a game.
Leventhal has started boys and girls teams at two local schools: Highbridge Green Middle School and
Rafael Hernandez Dual Language Magnet School.
Photo Courtesy of Bronx Lacrosse
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com