Reply to DA dropping the U12 age group?

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[quote=Anonymous]Here's the whole announcement:

Dear Academy Clubs,

U.S. Soccer created the Development Academy in 2007 following a comprehensive review of elite player development in the United States and around the world. At that time, the Academy Program was launched for male players in the U-15 to U-18 age groups. In 2013, the Academy expanded direct influence to include the U-13/14 age group, improving the everyday learning environments for younger players by bringing them in line with the Development Academy philosophy, based on international standards. Then, in 2016, the Academy expanded to include Zone 1 and help Clubs create better environments for developing younger players. To that end, U.S. Soccer introduced the Player Development Initiatives (PDI) simultaneous to the U-12 Academy launch, to help spread uniform, age-appropriate standards to impact player development nation-wide. Together, they set the benchmark and provided the example for all Clubs and leagues countrywide to achieve U.S. Soccer uniform standards.

Since its introduction, here’s some of what the Academy U-12 program has provided to impact the development of players, coaches and Clubs:

Created age-appropriate programming, training and game environments
Streamlined individual players’ learning pathways
Improved the quality of coaching for younger players by extending minimum coaching license requirements—B licenses for coaches and A licenses for Directors
Altered focus from team to individual player development within Clubs and created flexible player pools instead of teams
Shifted focus away from a results-driven philosophy
Increased training frequency (3x/week minimum) and promoted fewer, more meaningful games
Applied age-appropriate standards and philosophy to training and games
Focused on local environments, reducing and limiting travel
Unified player development initiatives and standards across the country
Provided safe and enjoyable soccer environments built on respect and positive encouragement from players, coaches, parents, and fans
The U-12 program expanded the Academy influence to players and Clubs at younger ages. Now, we believe that the time is right to empower and support Clubs and Members across the country to operate standards-based programming. The Academy Clubs have shown a commitment to this collective effort to improve environments, and in many cases have already expanded the philosophy to additional non-Academy teams and ages within their Clubs. In addition, Members have also taken steps to adopt PDI’s. We are confident that the initiative can continue to grow as needed without direct programming hosted or organized by U.S. Soccer or the Development Academy.

Therefore, in the fall of 2019, the Development Academy will no longer operate U-12 programming, and we will begin the transition to a decentralized U-12 initiative led by Clubs and Members. This will allow for more direct management of Zone 1 player needs, while continuing to meet Academy philosophy and standards. Currently, 3,870 players participate in Academy standards-based environments. We want this number to continue to grow through Member influence on the landscape, and to positively impact hundreds of thousands of players. Additionally, we hope that organizing Zone 1 programming in your local communities will limit travel and costs for players and parents, so the players can spend more time on the field.

Beginning in 2019-20, it will no longer be an option for U-12-only Clubs to participate in DA programming. However, U-12 Clubs remain an integral part of the player development pathway. Your efforts to develop and identify individual Zone 1 players are critically important to ensuring they can reach their full potential. Developing affiliations and partnerships with full Academy Clubs or Professional Clubs will help us achieve our collective goal of creating the best possible environments for the development of world-class players.

As part of our Mission to improve everyday environments for all athletes, we will continue to support Clubs and Members through our newly created Club Development department. We believe the time is right for Clubs and Members to take control of their environments and take ownership of the U-12 age group as part of Zone 1 programming. Together, we will continue to create the best environments for player development now and in the future.

We expect Clubs and Competitions to continue to uphold the following Zone 1 programming principles and initiatives:

Adopt and commit to the Player Development Initiative philosophy, focusing on the individual development of players
Be the example in your community—establish partner and affiliate Clubs for cooperation and collaboration
Emphasize training and positive learning environments
Provide all players with meaningful minutes, focusing on development, not results
Ensure every player plays in at least 50% of game minutes each game
Longer periods of playing time and less frequent interruptions to benefit player development
Accelerate learning by allowing teams to move players up or down based on physical needs and/or relative age to appropriately challenge a player
All club constituents (parents, coaches, support staff, etc.) are expected to play a role in creating a supportive and positive environment for training and games
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Development Academy.

Thank you,

U.S. Soccer Development Academy[/quote]

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