WSA_Youth and Family Master Plan Phase I - September 2009

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ey informant interviews Key informant interviews with city and school district staff responsible for field reservations and oversight were conducted from October 2008-June 2009. These interviews were open-ended and relied on the administrators' firsthand knowledge to identify unmet needs for soccer fields and soccer programming in Santa Ana. The field-use data and GIS maps were analyzed to better understand what field- use gaps remain and what opportunities for open space exist. Athletic league survey The survey of youth sports leagues was administered from December 2008-January 2009 to all athletic leagues that registered with the City of Santa Ana to use fields in 2009. Overall, 11 soccer, 4 baseball, 3 softball and the Pop Warner football league administrators completed the half-hour survey. This survey asked questions regarding ages of youth served, field use issues, coaching, costs, barriers and benefits to youth playing organized sports. ccer parent urv y We did not want to rely solely on the field use and soccer league administration perspectives to inform our understanding of league assets and barriers. When assessing a given program, it is important to hear from the consumers of the program in question; namely, those receiving soccer services in the city. In an attempt to gain a deeper understanding of youth soccer programming, a randomized, representative sample of Santa Ana parents was interviewed in March 2009. A total of 123 adults whose children play soccer in one of the several youth leagues completed the 20-30 minute telephone survey. These data were important for the analysis as they helped to triangulate the data gathered through league surveys and interview data. III. Youth services data & findings Data from Part 1 of the assessment focus on the overall youth services environment. In particular, stakeholder input and various GIS maps are combined with the information and data gleaned from city and county agency programs. Stakeholder interviews and f®cus groups Focus groups and interviews took place with community organizations, city staff and youth. In the various meetings among city, school and community providers, several themes emerged. In particular, the need for sufficient spaces and services for the population was identified repeatedly. In particular, resources, programming and coordination were the common factors that were noted throughout the focus groups and interviews with youth-services providers. From the youth, the issue of mentors and safe locations were key themes. Data from youth service providers As mentioned above, two focus groups were conducted with City staff providing youth and family services and one focus group was conducted with youth-service providers from nonprofit organizations and the SAUSD. Throughout these discussions, resources, programming, and coordination were the key themes of concern, regardless of the focus group participants.~~ Table 1. Major themes from youth service- provider focus groups 11 The table highlights the comments and feedback from the three focus groups; themes and concerns often overlap and may fall into more than one theme' category, but to avoid duplication,'concerns' are listed only once.