Global Sports Mentoring program – report # 1, by Ilina
Arsova
The first Global Sports Mentoring program was initiated by
Drs. Sarah Hillyer and Ashleigh Huffman, Center for Sports, Peace and Society,
University of Tennessee. The great support from the US State Department, ESPNW,
all Mentor's organizations and institutions involved, brought this program on
such elite educational, professional and communication level. Local U.S. Embassies have big part in the
cooperation by nominating the Emerging Leaders of their countries.
17 women from across the globe are bringing their stories
willing to make things better in their communities.
The aim is to empower
women and girls through sports initiative which brings positive changes in
other related sectors of their lives.
“Strong women better world ” is the slogan that describes
this program the best. 
All emerging leaders
were having great 5 days together in Washington DC. The inauguration started
with warm welcome by the US State Department, represented by the Assistant Secretary
of State Ann Stock and Ms. Beth Fine, Program Specialist, Sports United. The
strong women had intensive program participating in discussions, panels and platforms
on valuable topics such as: women in leadership, social media training, mentorship
value, network communication etc. Powerful women from leading US Organizations
as well as the U.S. Sports scene elite were in different ways sharing their
experiences.
The creative teambuilding activities as an alternative way
of learning and connecting, was crucial for turning this international group of
perspective female leaders into one big family. In less than five days a group
of 20 strangers with various ideas and goals, became one global “spider web” of
a pioneer’s strong women team.
Following activities involved introduction to the US women,
historical turning point – the “Title IX”, and meeting with the US system for
sports in education, visit of schools, college campuses and University, speaking
about partnerships and fund raising issues. The girls met closely with the U.S. Capitol
and other cultural and historical monuments and leading figures. Personal story:
As an emerging leader and women sport's advocate from
Macedonia, I am grateful to the U.S. Embassy, Macedonia, for nominating me for
the Global Sports Mentoring Program.
As a passionate athlete in all mountain sports I was
connected with Burton Snowboards and Ms. Donna Carpenter as my Mentorship host. Entering their company in Burlington, Vermont
( yesterday 10 Sept 2012), I was amazed by
the professionalism and warmness I have seen in such a healthy environment. It
is a perfect match of success, passion and creativity what Burton has created
throughout the years. Success driven by the heart
beats and experince turned snowboarding into a
lifestyle.
I am pretty excited about the opportunity I will have, meeting professionals from all sectors of the company, giving Burton’s image as it
appears to all of the fans worldwide. Looking forward to see how this experience
will help me in creating a healthier action sports community, represented by
increasing number of strong women.
Check my blog regularly to find out the end of the story. J
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