Facing budget cuts, schools across the nation are slashing programs, and parents and students are up in arms.

• In Dover, New Hampshire, a quarter of athletic program funds could all be slashed as the school district struggles to cut more than $1 million to meet the tax cap mandate.
• In Fairfax County, Virginia, the school board is proposing the elimination of freshman sports -- football, volleyball, cheerleading and basketball -- as part of athletics trims that would save the county millions.

So what? Programs have to be cut and sports aren’t that important, it is? Actually, they are. The benefits of youth sports are physical, personal, and social.

• Physical benefits include establishing lifelong habits for good health, which are particularly important at a time when obesity in the nation has reached epidemic proportions.
• Personal benefits include learning the importance of work and preparation to accomplish a goal. That includes mental preparation, physical fitness and practicing with the team.
• Social benefits include developing relationships with teammates and learning how to work in and with a group to accomplish a common goal.

But that's just the icing on the cake!

• Sports offer kids an arena where they can earn attention and respect by showcasing their natural abilities and hard work.
• Kids who participate in organized sports do better in school, have better interpersonal skills, are more team oriented, and are generally healthier.
• Participation in sports provides opportunities for leadership and socializations, as well as the development of skills for handling success and failure.
• When playing games, children learn how rules work: they see that groups need rules to keep order, and that individuals must accept rules for the good of the group.

Girls in particular gain from involvement in sports. They tend to have increased self-esteem, self-confidence, healthier body image, and reduced risk of chronic disease.

Female athletes are less likely to:

• become pregnant as teens
• begin smoking
• suffer from depression
• take pride in their physical and social selves

Female athletes are more likely to:

• Quit smoking
• Do well in science
• Graduate from high school and college

What can you do?

• Online petitions and Facebook pages have sprouted in opposition to the move. Join one or create your own!

Lots of people don’t realize the countless benefits of playing sports. School ‘em!