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the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
According to Bailey, Kraus realized that
rowing is traditionally a sport that is elitist
and white, enjoyed by students who attend
top schools around the country. She added
that Kraus wanted the sport to be accessible
to everyone in New York City, especially
people of color who may not have access
to the sport otherwise.
Bailey said that there are about 35 middle
school students and 45 high school students
enrolled in the Queens program. Eighty-four
percent of the students in the program are
enrolled for free, based on their income
levels, and 15 percent are enrolled on a
sliding scale. The chief marketing officer
said that the organization puts great em-phasis
on having socioeconomic diversity
in the program.
She added that all of the Queens rowers
are girls because that is how the organization
originated 16 years ago, and Kraus decided
to keep it that way as time went on. Boys
who are interested in rowing can participate
in the programs they have in Brooklyn and
Manhattan. In total, Bailey said there are about
260 students across all programs.
The skills that the youth learn in the pro-grams
include increased physical strength,
tenacity, focus, teamwork and confidence,
according to the Row New York website.
Bailey said the skills that they learn through
the sport translate to the students’ academ-ics
as well. Three to four days a week, the
kids are out on the water, and another three
to four days a week, they have academic
sessions.
“One hundred percent of students in our
program graduate high school, and 96 per-cent
of them go on to college,” Bailey said.
Bailey said that the feedback that she
receives from kids in the program is remark-ably
consistent.
“Almost all the kids talk about how strong
they feel,” she said, adding that the kids in
the program also remark on their increased
fitness levels, athleticism, confidence and
pride for participating in such a difficult sport.
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