Who are WE?
Recreational Inner-City Sports and Education, Inc. (R.I.S.E.) is a community-focused nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth and strengthening neighborhoods through sports, education, mentorship, and community engagement.
R.I.S.E. works to create safe, inclusive opportunities that help young people develop leadership skills, academic success, healthy lifestyles, and positive character.
Empowering Our Youth
Join us in building stronger communities.
RISE is committed to fostering youth empowerment through sports, education, and mentorship. We aim to create safe spaces where young individuals can thrive, develop leadership skills, and achieve academic success while promoting healthy lifestyles and positive character building. Together, we strengthen neighborhoods and encourage community engagement.
RISE is committed to fostering youth empowerment through sports, education, and mentorship. We aim to create safe spaces where young individuals can thrive, develop leadership skills, and achieve academic success while promoting healthy lifestyles and positive character building. Together, we strengthen neighborhoods and encourage community engagement.
Empowering Youth, Strengthening Communities
RISE is a community-focused nonprofit dedicated to empowering youth through sports, education, mentorship, and community engagement. Our mission is to create safe and inclusive opportunities that promote leadership, academic achievement, healthy lifestyles, and positive character development within neighborhoods.
Mission Statement
R.I.S.E. (Recreational Inner-City Sports and Education) is dedicated to empowering young people and strengthening communities through sports, education, mentorship, recreation, and positive community engagement.
Founded in 1982, R.I.S.E. creates safe and meaningful opportunities for youth to develop character, confidence, leadership, teamwork, and a lifelong commitment to learning.
We believe every young person deserves the opportunity to discover their potential, regardless of their circumstances.
By bringing together dedicated mentors, community leaders, educators, families, and partners, R.I.S.E. works to provide the guidance, resources, and experiences that help young people succeed both on and off the playing field.
Our mission is not simply to develop better athletes. It is to develop better people, future leaders, and stronger communities.
Vision Statement
Our vision is to build communities where every young person has the opportunity, support, and confidence to rise above obstacles, discover their potential, and become a leader. R.I.S.E. envisions neighborhoods where sports open doors, education creates possibilities, mentorship builds character, and community partnerships create lasting opportunity. We see a future where young people are not only participants in their communities, but become the mentors, leaders, educators, entrepreneurs, coaches, and community advocates of tomorrow.
Our vision is to create a lasting cycle of opportunity:
Invest in our youth. Strengthen our families. Build our communities. Develop our leaders. R.I.S.E. together.
Empowering Youth for a Brighter Future
Join us in transforming communities through youth empowerment.
RISE is dedicated to fostering leadership and academic success among youth. Through sports, education, mentorship, and community involvement, we create safe and inclusive environments that nurture positive character and healthy lifestyles. Our programs are designed to uplift neighborhoods and inspire the next generation of leaders.
RISE is dedicated to fostering leadership and academic success among youth. Through sports, education, mentorship, and community involvement, we create safe and inclusive environments that nurture positive character and healthy lifestyles. Our programs are designed to uplift neighborhoods and inspire the next generation of leaders.
Youth Sports Development – Organized leagues, clinics, camps, and fitness programs.
Educational Achievement – Tutoring, STEM initiatives, literacy programs, and
college/career readiness.
Health & Wellness – Physical fitness, nutrition education, and health awareness events.us in building a future where every young person can thrive.
Core Pillars
Rise Together. Learn Together. Succeed Together.
R.I.S.E. can also serve as a platform for community initiatives such as youth enrichment scholarship programs, health awareness campaigns (including prostate cancer awareness), workforce development, and neighborhood revitalization. These efforts align with the organizations mission of creating lasting opportunities and positive change for underserved communities.
Our Commitment
We R.I.S.E. by:
- Reaching young people where they are.
- Inspiring them to believe in their potential.
- Supporting their educational, personal, and athletic development.
- Empowering them to become leaders and positive contributors to their communities. R.I.S.E. — Building Opportunity. Developing Potential. Strengthening Communities.
R.I.S.E. — Evidence of Impact
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More Than Four Decades of Community Impact
Since its founding in 1982, R.I.S.E. has used sports, recreation, education, mentoring, and community engagement to create opportunities for young people and families.By the Numbers40+ Years
R.I.S.E. has been serving communities since 1982, representing more than four decades of continuous commitment to youth and community development.Thousands of Youth Served
R.I.S.E.'s mentoring program has served thousands of young people in the New York City area over the years.
4+ States Reached Through Mentorship
Mentors trained through R.I.S.E. have gone on to organize independent youth programs in Alabama, Maryland, Florida, and Georgia, extending the organization's influence beyond New York City.Multiple Generations of Leadership
R.I.S.E. has helped create a leadership pipeline in which young people who participated in the organization have returned as adults, mentors, administrators, and community leaders—including members of the R.I.S.E. family such as Larry Cave and the late Jermaine Miller.
Multiple Program Areas
Public records describe R.I.S.E.'s programming as including recreational activities, mentoring, violence reduction, drug-awareness education, fatherhood guidance, educational enhancement, street mediation, and preparation for real-life challenges.
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Public Recognition and Support
R.I.S.E.'s community work has also received public recognition and support.
In 2019, the New York State Senate recognized Gary B. Clifton as an Outstanding Community Leader associated with the Recreational Inner-City Sports and Education program.
An NYC funding document also described R.I.S.E. programs as providing young people and adults with alternatives to gang activity, violence, teenage pregnancy, drug addiction, and incarceration, while supporting violence reduction, drug awareness, fatherhood training, adult workshops, and recreation.
The Impact Beyond the Numbers
The impact of R.I.S.E. cannot be measured solely by the number of participants.
Its deeper impact can be seen in the relationships, mentors, leaders, and community advocates developed over more than four decades.
R.I.S.E. has created a cycle in which:
The stories of Larry Cave and the late Jermaine Miller are powerful examples of this cycle. Both experienced R.I.S.E. as young people and later returned as adults to help create opportunities for others.
R.I.S.E. has created a cycle in which:
The stories of Larry Cave and the late Jermaine Miller are powerful examples of this cycle. Both experienced R.I.S.E. as young people and later returned as adults to help create opportunities for others.
R.I.S.E. by the Numbers
Founded: 1982
Years of service: 40+
Youth served: Thousands
States reached through trained mentors: 4+
Generations of R.I.S.E. leadership: Multiple
Core areas: Sports • Education • Mentoring • Recreation • Community Development
Young people become participants →
Participants become leaders →
Leaders become mentors →
Mentors develop the next generation.
R.I.S.E. — Building Opportunity. Developing Potential. Strengthening Communities.
R.I.S.E. — Building Opportunity. Developing Potential. Strengthening Communities.
Gary Clifton and Laron Mapp during a Turkey Giveaway in the community.