{"id":149178,"date":"2026-03-01T20:50:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T20:50:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/149178\/"},"modified":"2026-03-01T20:50:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T20:50:11","slug":"harlems-riverside-hawks-expand-opportunities-for-girls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/149178\/","title":{"rendered":"Harlem\u2019s Riverside Hawks Expand Opportunities For Girls"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"900\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/pexels-markusspiske-1752757.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-289496 lazy\"  data-\/><\/p>\n<p>By HWM<\/p>\n<p>Harlem\u2019s basketball organization, the Riverside Hawks, has long used the game of basketball as a gateway to academic and personal growth for young people. What starts on the court evolves in the classroom, where discipline, accountability, and confidence take root. From elementary school through middle school, the organization intentionally pairs skill development with mentorship, academic monitoring, and guidance toward high school and college readiness.<\/p>\n<p>Now, the Riverside Hawks are taking this approach a step further with Lady Hawks In Training (LHIT), a program designed specifically to expand access and opportunity for girls across Harlem, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harlemworldmagazine.com\/tag\/harlem-washington-heights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Washington Heights<\/a>, and the Bronx.<\/p>\n<p>Never miss new stories in Harlem<\/p>\n<p>Through LHIT, basketball becomes more than a sport \u2014 it\u2019s a structured pathway for young women to build confidence, leadership, discipline, and academic responsibility. In partnership with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harlemworldmagazine.com\/nyc-schools-and-youth-development-launch-free-summer-program-for-k-8-students\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">New York City Department of Youth and Community Development<\/a> (DYCD), Riverside Hawks provides programming that removes barriers and increases access to high-quality athletic and enrichment opportunities in under-resourced communities.<\/p>\n<p>The program goes beyond basic skill development. Girls participating in LHIT receive fundamental basketball instruction, engage in controlled scrimmages, and are exposed to real-game concepts such as spacing, movement, and defensive discipline. The structure of the program encourages competition, communication, and leadership, while emphasizing that academic achievement is integral to success on and off the court.<\/p>\n<p>Mentorship and character development are central to LHIT, providing participants with the support and guidance needed to navigate challenges and make informed decisions. The program fosters a safe and empowering environment, helping girls to understand that high expectations, paired with strong support systems, can fuel their growth and achievement.<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.proofpoint.com\/v2\/url?u=http-3A__www.aarp.org_nycaregivers&amp;d=DwMFAg&amp;c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&amp;r=bGsAqilxaE8fkJLhWUS0ke5nVialK73LUx1lYakdPXbpd0R995ckBkGYiOn1m1ZK&amp;m=KTd6clQZF8HMAY4nAlMfX8KVkcxfAYeuaAwocnnCxYsRtypccdOLaZ4AaLOVReDV&amp;s=q60mHLLZR5GRD7l1tupic6r4akk_NroxIhAsmZz4u6Y&amp;e=\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><br \/>\n  <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mobile-none lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Care-NY-Family-Caregiving-Digital-Ad-728x90-1.jpg\" alt=\"Care NY Family Caregiving\" width=\"728\" height=\"auto\" border=\"0\"\/><br \/>\n  <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mobile-only lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Care-NY-Family-Caregiving-Digital-Ad-468x60-copy.jpg\" alt=\" NY Family Caregiving\" width=\"468\" height=\"auto\" border=\"0\"\/><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe goal is to give girls the tools and confidence to rise,\u201d said a<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harlemworldmagazine.com\/finance-and-banking-trailblazers-honored-at-2025-riverside-hawks-gala\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"> Riverside Hawks<\/a> representative. \u201cThrough basketball, mentorship, and academic support, we\u2019re helping young women see what they\u2019re capable of \u2014 on the court, in school, and in life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Photo by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/basketball-hoop-in-basketball-court-1752757\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Markus Spiske<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Latest Posts:<\/p>\n<p>Become a Harlem Insider!<\/p>\n<p>From history to today\u2019s headlines\u2014everything Harlem, in your inbox.<\/p>\n<p>By signing up, you&#8217;re agreeing to receive communications from Harlem World Magazine and our Privay Policy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By HWM Harlem\u2019s basketball organization, the Riverside Hawks, has long used the game of basketball as a gateway&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":149179,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[4567,128,62518,9,24,63,62519,129,131,130],"class_list":{"0":"post-149178","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-the-bronx","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-bronx","10":"tag-lady-hawks-in-training","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-city","13":"tag-nyc","14":"tag-riverside-hawks","15":"tag-the-bronx","16":"tag-the-bronx-headlines","17":"tag-the-bronx-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149178\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/149179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}