{
  "id": 5295744,
  "title": "To change football culture, Philly’s high school coaches tackle emotions",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/03/to-change-football-culture-phillys-high-school-coaches-tackle-emotions",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-03T09:30:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Chalkbeat",
    "slug": "chalkbeat",
    "url": "https://www.chalkbeat.org/philadelphia/2026/09/03/to-change-football-culture-philly-high-school-coaches-tackle-emotions/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Jordan Alexander, head football coach at Martin Luther King High School in Philadelphia, faces two main challenges as the team begins its fall season: helping his players improve their game and addressing the emotional struggles they face. Many of Alexander's 60-man team have experienced personal losses, such as losing a parent or witnessing a friend's shooting. To tackle these issues, Alexander has undergone training in trauma-informed coaching methods, which teach players to manage their emotions before they lead to disorder or violence. This training is part of a program led by Valencia Peterson, known as Coach V, who has trained 30 coaches so far and has 15 more signed up for the upcoming season. Peterson, a longtime Philadelphian and football enthusiast, formed Open Door Abuse Awareness Prevention after her father killed her mother as a child. The program aims to change football culture by acknowledging emotions and teaching players how to control their reactions. Similar programs, such as the Becoming a Man program in Chicago, have shown positive results, reducing violent crime arrests among participants by about 50% and increasing graduation rates by nearly 20%. The goal is to use sports as a setting to teach young people how to navigate difficult situations and make better decisions, both on and off the field.",
  "summary": "As head football coach at Martin Luther King High School in Philadelphia, Jordan Alexander faces dual challenges as the team begins its fall season. His players are looking for a turnaround, after losing nine of their 10 games in 2025. But Coach Alexander says most of the 60-man team has…",
  "key_points": [
    "Martin Luther King High School coach tackles emotional struggles of players.",
    "Coach V trains 30 coaches in trauma-informed methods to manage emotions.",
    "Similar programs reduce violent crime arrests by 50% and increase graduation rates by 20%."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}