Nonprofit DC Scores pauses play at 9 DC schools due to fundraising struggles – WTOP News
This story is part of WTOP’s 2026 Back to School coverage.
As students returned to class across the D.C. region, some of the District’s youngest students will be without their favorite after-school program this school year.
D.C. Scores, a nonprofit that runs after-school programs using soccer, poetry and service learning for elementary and middle school-aged students, is pausing its programming at nine D.C. schools.
In a letter released on Thursday, Executive Director Katrina Owens said the decision comes after the organization experienced its “most challenging fundraising year.”
In an interview with WTOP, Owens said high inflation costs and fundraising struggles led to the decision as it looks to fundraise for the other 60 schools in its programs.
“That letter was one of the most difficult moments in my 20 years here at D.C. Scores to write, and making those decisions were incredibly challenging for our organization,” she said. “But we had to make them, due to the combination of economic challenges that we face right now that are unlike anything else.”
The schools losing their programs entirely are Boone Elementary School, Bunker Hill Elementary School, Cardozo Education Campus, John Lewis Education Campus, KIPP DC: AIM Academy, KIPP DC: Key Academy, Langley Elementary School, McKinley Tech Middle School and Meridian Public Charter School.
Owens said the nonprofit used “a pretty extensive rubric” based on attendance, alternative programming and “feeder patterns,” or how often a child stays with the program through their schooling. Along with the paused programs, 20 other schools will also lose their Junior Scores programs, an abridged program offered to first- and second-grade students.
“It was excruciating for us to determine what schools we paused,” Owens said, later adding, “We tried to be as diplomatic in how we did that, but it was really hard.”
On average, the organization spends $1,400 per “poet-athlete” a year, a 50% increase since before the pandemic, Owens said. The child receives a journal for creative writing assignments, free transportation and a full soccer uniform at no extra cost. Poet-athletes participate in weekly soccer matches, poetry reading events and seasonal tournaments.
The organization pays for permits, painting fields, transportation and provides a stipend for soccer and poetry coaches, all of which have increased significantly since the pandemic, Owens said.
As costs continue to rise, funding has not increased. In its 2024 tax filings, D.C. Scores raised $5.6 million in grants and contributions, but its total expenses exceeded $5 million. Owens said the drop in local and federal grants in recent years means many nonprofits are fighting for a smaller pool of money to stay afloat.
“What’s happened over the last five years is (that) government grant funding has kinda stayed flat; inflation has meant that our costs have gone up,” she said. “We’re able to do less with the same amount of money, and we just haven’t been able to keep up finding new revenue sources in order to bridge that gap.”
The nonprofit’s cuts also come months after the United States hosted matches during the FIFA men’s World Cup. While the sport saw increased attention and parts of the U.S. economy boomed from the tournament, Owens said its effects “largely bypassed” direct-service organizations like D.C. Scores.
To ensure it can serve its remaining 60 schools, D.C. Scores is looking to fundraise $3.5 million through its new Poet-Athlete Impact Fund. The public can donate directly to the fund online. Once it has the funds for its budget, Owens says it can focus on bringing back programming at its paused schools.
The nonprofit is also hoping to raise more money at its annual “One Night One Goal” fundraiser at Audi Field on Oct. 6. The event features live poetry readings from some of its poet-athletes, a live auction, and a chance to meet Washington Spirit and D.C. United players.
Whether it’s donating directly to D.C. Scores or participating in its fundraiser, Owens said she hopes the region can come together to help the nonprofit operate at its highest level for its remaining 2,500 students.
“If we come together, I know we can restore the joys of our program,” she said. “Sports, arts, and being part of a community, but we need everybody to help us.”
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