SCORES Builds Three New Fields of Dreams
Schools may have shut down in March of 2020, but SCORES’ transformation of asphalt playgrounds to turf playing fields has continued strong. Since then, America SCORES Bay area has created three new green play spaces in San Francisco public schools as part of the organization's ongoing Field of Dreams Initiative.
As in person school returns, the students of Dolores Huerta in the Fairmount neighborhood, Moscone Elementary in the Mission District, and John Muir in the Western Addition will have brand new fields to run and play on.
Critically, these new fields have increased field space in areas of San Francisco defined as “equity zones,” communities with a high concentration of economically and socially vulnerable residents. In boosting access to recreational play fields, SCORES furthers a growing national movement for “park equity”, a top priority for the San Francisco Park and Recreation Department and the City Parks Alliance.
Parks, fields, and green spaces are not spread equitably in San Francisco, with a disproportionate number of them located on the west and north sides of the City. In low-income neighborhoods, playing fields are far harder to come by, particularly in the south and southeast parts of the city -- areas where SCORES programming is in full force. At Moscone Elementary and John Muir Elementary, 80% and 84% of students respectively qualify for free or reduced lunch. At Dolores Huerta (formerly known as Fairmount) Elementary, 61% of students qualify.
SCORES Field of Dreams Initiative has been an ongoing effort. Since installing its first field at Cleveland Elementary in 2013, SCORES has installed fields at 15 other San Francisco schools.
“SCORES operates programs at John Muir and Moscone, and for years the kids have been practicing soccer on the asphalt playgrounds,” explains Colin Schmidt, Executive Director of America SCORES Bay Area. “In these situations, where you can’t get the kids to a field because it’s not safe, there’s not enough time to transport them, and it’s too complicated, we bring the field to them.”
How much do the fields cost?
Cost depends primarily on the size of the field. Custom designed to fit the playground and existing space at each school, fields range in size from 3,000 - 20,000+ square feet and cost between $25,000 and $250,000. Funding for the fields comes through a combination of sources, with SCORES raising a higher proportion of funds at schools where the organization already operates programming.
“In schools where we don’t have a program, we’re still able to assist with field-building projects, but we don’t carry as much of the cost,” says Schmidt. “We expect those fields—at Rooftop, Alvarado, Sunset, for example—to be largely funded by the school or the school’s PTA. SCORES comes in and helps pull it all together, securing the materials, the contractors, the permits from the district.”
The field at Moscone is on a second-level playground above a parking lot and resulted as part of a bigger bond-funded renovation at the school. “The field was something the community determined they wanted, and SCORES was able to partner with the school and the school district to bring in this addition to their schoolyard,” says Schmidt. The John Muir field was created in partnership with DCYF, the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth, and Families. The Dolores Huerta field grew out of a parents' initiative through the school’s PTA.
“At some of the schools, we’ve added in some landscaping improvements—hillsides for sitting and relaxing, and little play areas that we call ‘cartwheel spaces’ where kids can sit, play, or roll around without fear of getting hit by a soccer ball,” says Schmidt. And who doesn’t like a cartwheel space?
