SANTA CRUZ POP WARNER 

Since 1967, Santa Cruz Pop Warner has been and will continue to be an outstanding educational & athletic organization that provides a high quality experience to every athlete. A high-quality experience is one in which every athlete

• Has fun
• Feels like and important part of the team regardless of performance
• Learns life lessons that have value beyond the playing field
• Learns the skills, tactics, and strategies of the game and improves as a player
• Is coached using the principles of positive coaching
• Stimulates their academic achievements through participation in our athletic program

Santa Cruz Pop Warner is a 100% volunteer organization that develops positive values in our youth. We are committed to creating a positive culture in which coaches, parents, fans, officials, volunteers and athletes work together.

NATIONAL POP WARNER

The mission of Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. is to enable children to benefit from participation in team sports and activities in a safe and structured environment. Through this active participation, Pop Warner programs teach fundamental values, skills and knowledge that children will use throughout their lives.

Objectives:

• To encourage and increase youth participation in football, cheerleading and dance.
• To ensure a safe and positive playing environment for all participants.
• To instill life-long values of teamwork, dedication and a superior work ethic in the classroom and on the playing field.

 Positive Experiences:

• Pop Warner programs have no tryouts or cutting of rosters.
• Everyone participates under mandatory rules of play.
• On-field coaching is allowed for younger age levels.
• Individual awards are given only for academic excellence, not for on-field activities.

Safe Playing Environment:

• Players are matched by age and weight levels.
• There are strict mandatory equipment requirements.
• Pop Warner provides Coaching Clinics and Risk Management Training.
• An enforced national rule book incorporates time-tested rules.

A full-time executive staff supports all local associations and assists in sound policy creation.

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ABOUT POP WARNER

Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. (PWLS) is a non-profit organization that provides youth football and cheer & dance programs for participants in 41 states and several countries around the world. Consisting of approximately 360,000 young people ranging from ages 5 to 16 years old, PWLS is the largest youth football, cheer and dance program in the United States.

Pop Warner was founded in 1929, continues to grow and serves as the only youth football, cheerleading & dance organization that requires its participants to maintain academic standards in order to participate. Pop Warner’s commitment to academics is what separates the program from other youth sports around the world.

As the only national youth sports organization that requires scholastic aptitude to participate, Pop Warner is committed to developing America's young people on the field and off. Each year Pop Warner continues to expand its efforts in team and activity participation, as well as visibility and outreach in the community.

FOOTBALL

Pop Warner football has been around since the inception of the league in 1929 by founder Joseph J. Tomlin as a four-team conference in Northeast Philadelphia. Since then, participation has steadily increased to today’s record numbers. Over 240,000 youths participated in Pop Warner-sanctioned football programs in 2001, and those numbers are continuing to grow.

Kids compete with kids of similar age and size. Pop Warner is the ONLY youth football program (local, regional and national) that sets and enforces a strict age/weight matrix that reduces the risk and reality of injuries.

Did you know that Pop Warner football is safer than soccer? Pop Warner football has 12% fewer injuries per capita among 5-15 year olds than organized soccer in the same age range! (U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, NEISS)

CHEER

Cheerleading was officially recognized in the 1970’s, but has been a part of the Pop Warner program for several decades. The first ever National Cheerleading competition was held in DeKalb County, GA. Today, 120,000 children are participating in cheerleading and dance around the United States.

Participation in the Pop Warner Spirit Program provides kids an opportunity to perform in an organized, supervised, safety-oriented environment. Pop Warner programs emphasize fun for all and encourage the development of qualities important long after Pop Warner days are gone.

The Spirit Program is growing in numbers each year due to the popularity of the sport. In an effort to keep pace with the many new changes in the cheer & dance industry, there are a few basic rules that are unique to Pop Warner Spirit Squads. For a complete list of Pop Warner guidelines, please download the Official Pop Warner.

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