Equity, Diversityrnu0026 Inclusion

Our Community Development Grants provide financial support and resources for local disc organizations who run programs prioritizing racially and ethnically underrepresented and/or low-income youth.

Since 2019, we have collaborated with u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022http://www.afdc.com/the-color-of-ultimate-atl/u0022u003eColor of Ultimate,u003c/au003e u003c/strongu003epartnering to create opportunities for BIPOC players to build community at major USAU events and to showcase games featuring two teams of elite players of color designed to help raise awareness about the current racial and socioeconomic inequities in ultimate.rnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cemu003ePhoto – Ryan Cameronu003c/emu003e

u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eWe have published two – and look forward to publishing more – feature stories highlighting some of ultimate’s prominent players of color in an effort to bring attention to their diverse experiences and enhance the visibility of such players.u003c/spanu003ernrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/news/2020/02/the-spice-of-life-how-the-mob-brought-a-fresh-ingredient-to-the-ultimate-recipe/u0022u003eThe first all-Black ultimate teamu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003ernrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/news/2019/06/your-perception-forces-our-reality/u0022u003eJesse and Khalif of national champion Seattle Mixtapeu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e

u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eLed by an internal staff chair and an external consultant, with active participation of 75% of USAU staff, our DEI Team is dedicated to managing and implementing our DEI initiatives and programs.u003c/spanu003e

In 2019, D.C. Truck Stop’s Delrico “Rico” Johnson organized a fundraiser to support players of color attending tryouts for the U-24 National Team. Inspired by Rico’s initiative, we’re amplifying the call to u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://secure.theultimatefoundation.org/np/clients/ultimatefoundation/donation.jsp?forwardedFromSecureDomain=1u0026amp;campaign=11u0022u003econtribute to this fundraiseru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e and broadening its impact to support memberships for players of color at all levels.

The u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/programs-services/play-it-forward/u0022u003ePlay It Forwardu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e program provides membership and financial assistance for youth from underserved and underrepresented communities to give them the opportunity to experience ultimate.

The u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://theultimatefoundation.org/u0022u003eUltimate Foundationu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e hosts annual fundraising campaigns, including the Signature Series disc campaign, encouraging donations to support youth development programs utilizing ultimate to build character and strengthen community.

In December 2020, USA Ultimate announced the unanimous passing of its most recent u003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/news/2020/12/usa-ultimate-announces-new-gender-inclusion-policy/u0022u003eGender Inclusion Policyu003c/au003e! After a year of undergoing research and revisions by our DEI co-chairs and Community Liaison Volunteers*, this new, inclusive policy advocates for the ability of all athletes to participate in the division in which they feel most comfortable and safe based on their indicated gender identity.rnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cemu003e*USA Ultimate’s Community Liaison Volunteers have evolved into the LGBTQ+ Advisory Council. They are paid volunteers who identify across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum and who we work with to address and examine policies and practices that impact them and other members of the LGBTQIA+ community.u003c/emu003e

In an effort to begin to normalize the conversation around pronouns and leveraging input from ultimate athletes and coaches of the LGBTQIA+ community, we publish of pronouns for players and coaches who request it on online rosters and in our printed event guides.

In collaboration with u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022http://withoutlimitsultimate.com/u0022u003eWithout Limitsu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e and u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://gum.usaultimate.org/u0022u003eGUMu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e, the u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/HSGURM_full_081120.pdfu0022u003eHigh School Girls’ Ultimate Resources Manualu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e – catered to anyone involved with a high school girls’ program – features articles and resources from some of the most knowledgeable individuals in ultimate and some of GUM’s biggest advocates and allies of GUM.

The u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://gum.usaultimate.org/blog/u0022u003eGUM Blogu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e features voices and perspectives of girls and women in the ultimate community to empower girls and help them connect to a shared experience.

Annually held at the U.S. Open Club Championships, the GUM Ball brings together girls, women, non-binary folks and more from across the adult and youth divisions to break down barriers, build long-lasting friendships among people who might otherwise never cross paths and highlight girl- and woman-matching players.

The u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://usaultimate.andrewlovseth.com/programs-services/college-startup/u0022u003eCollege Women’s Startup Projectu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e was launched in 2017 to help foster the growth of college women’s ultimate by incentivizing the creation of teams and facilitating the development of new women’s programs. The initiative provides some of the resources needed most by developing college teams.

After inviting US Lacrosse Director of Diversity, Equality u0026amp; Inclusion Eboni Preston-Laurent to speak at our 2020 Coach and Organizer Convention, we continued to work with her to adapt and share with the ultimate community some of US Lacrosse’s Diversity u0026amp; Inclusion resources.

In April 2020, we broadcasted a u003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbXXYBIIe8Mu0026amp;feature=youtu.beu0026amp;t=1u0022u003efree webinaru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e featuring a panel of coaches providing insight on how to create an inclusive team environment. The discussion covered a variety of important topics, including key qualities to look for in an inclusive coach and the importance of recruiting coaches from underrepresented communities.

Since 2020, our Coach u0026amp; Organizer Convention has featured panel discussions with representatives from local disc organizations, National Governing Bodies (NGB) of Sport, youth-serving organizations and more to discuss best practices on how local organizations can best engage youth from underserved communities and work with coaches to create an inclusive team environment.rnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://zoom.us/rec/play/Dv5cu-BGRL2WSTqM6JV59yikTyn-I1BWunqwru7FFMzJ0GHXkqMf7b6rd0y5zFbugPuVpVU0QA0DXT7k.FPL0cmLQLx2gdADu?continueMode=trueu0026amp;_x_zm_rtaid=F1DoOt_rT8mrONKuNI1d0g.1613493025990.d9444dc57a39e043fc6caff1db2ca547u0026amp;_x_zm_rhtaid=901u0022u003eREWATCH EDI NIGHTu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e at the 2021 Coach Conventionrnrnu0026nbsp;rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://play.usaultimate.org/events/2021_convention/u0022u003e2021 Coach u0026amp; Organizer Convention Pageu003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e

u003cspan style=u0022font-weight: 400;u0022u003eAt our D-I College Championships and U.S. Open Club Championships, we have hosted and supported equity and diversity forums featuring panels of youth, college and club players sharing their experiences with these issues on and off the field. Topics of discussion have included racial and gender equity, as well as the intersection of implicit bias and microaggressions in ultimate.u003c/spanu003e

Recognizing that coaches set an important example, the inclusion sections of the certified coaching manuals and the coach facilitator’s manual were reviewed and revised to allow coaches to lead the way for ultimate players everywhere.

While Spirit of the Game (SOTG) is one of the great aspects of ultimate, we recognize how it can also be an inroad for bias. Along with reevaluating and modifying our SOTG resources, we encourage all teams to discuss how implicit biases impact our interpretations of the actions of others (e.g., when deciding spirit scores), to examine their expectations of “mutual respect among competitors” to be more inclusive, and to use SOTG practices and procedures in place as a means for enhancing understanding of cultural differences.

We acknowledge that Spirit of the Game, in its current form, can be an inroad to bias, significantly impacting underrepresented members of our community and their experience in ultimate, on and off the field. That acknowledgment led to the review and extensive revision of the spirit score sheet and the spirit captains’ packet.