Midway Usa Foundation Inc

THE 2022 NATIONAL SURVEY OF FISHING, HUNTING, AND WILDLIFE-ASSOCIATED RECREATION RELEASED BY THE U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE ESTIMATED THAT THE NUMBER OF YOUTH AGES 6 TO 17 THAT PARTICIPATED IN FIREARMS TARGET SHOOTING WAS JUST UNDER SIX MILLION. RECENT REPORTS SUGGEST SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN SHOOTING SPORTS PARTICIPATION ACROSS ALL AGES, AND NUMEROUS ORGANIZED YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS PROGRAMS HAVE ALSO REPORTED ENROLLMENT SURGES. HOWEVER, TO DATE NO CONCERTED EFFORT HAS BEEN MADE TO ESTIMATE THE TOTAL YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN ORGANIZED SHOOTING SPORTS NOR THE CORRESPONDING ECONOMIC IMPACT. FURTHER, OUTSIDE OF THIS POTENTIALLY LARGE ECONOMIC IMPACT, ANECDOTAL REPORTS ALSO SUGGEST THAT YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS ARE AFFECTING THE INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPANTS, INCLUDING INCREASING CONFIDENCE, DISCIPLINE, ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE, LEADERSHIP SKILLS, AND MOTIVATION. WHILE THESE IMPACTS TO THE INDIVIDUAL ARE OFTEN REPORTED AT CONFERENCES AND USED IN PROGRAM RECRUITING MATERIALS, NO SERIOUS INVESTIGATION ACROSS PROGRAMS HAS BEEN UNDERTAKEN TO SEE IF THESE CLAIMS HAVE MERIT. QUANTIFYING AND SHARING THESE IMPACTS COULD POTENTIALLY HELP YOUTH SHOOTING PROGRAMS SECURE GREATER SUPPORT FOR INCREASED CAPACITY AND LONGEVITY. THIS PROJECT WILL REACH YOUTH (THROUGH THEIR PARENTS) AND PROGRAM ADMINISTRATORS USING SURVEYS AND INTERVIEWS TO: 1) INVESTIGATE THE PERSONAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, AND SOCIAL IMPACTS OF PARTICIPATING IN ORGANIZED SHOOTING SPORTS ON YOUTH. 2) ESTIMATE PARTICIPATION IN AND ECONOMIC IMPACT OF ORGANIZED YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS. AS A 501(C)(3) NONPROFIT THAT FUNDS AND SUPPORTS APPROXIMATELY 2,800 SCHOOL, CLUB, AND PRIVATE YOUTH SHOOTING PROGRAMS NATIONALLY, AND MORE THAN 80 STATE AND NATIONAL YOUTH SHOOTING ORGANIZATIONS, THE MIDWAY USA FOUNDATION (FOUNDATION) IS TEAMING WITH THE COUNCIL TO ADVANCE HUNTING AND THE SHOOTING SPORTS (COUNCIL) TO PRODUCE AND SHARE RESULTS WITH POTENTIAL SPONSORS, LOCAL COMMUNITIES, LEGISLATURES, INDUSTRY, MEDIA, AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC. THE GOAL IS TO INCREASE SUPPORT AND CAPACITY FOR YOUTH SHOOTING PROGRAMS, ESPECIALLY THOSE REACHING KIDS FROM NON-TARGET SHOOTING FAMILIES.

THIS PROJECT, LED BY THE MIDWAYUSA FOUNDATION WITH DJ CASE AND ASSOCIATES AS A SUBRECIPIENT, IS DESIGNED TO INCREASE PARTICIPATION IN RIFLE, PISTOL, AND SHOTGUN YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS IN ALL 50 STATES BY CREATING AND IMPLEMENTING A NATIONWIDE PROMOTIONAL CAMPAIGN THAT RAISES AWARENESS AMONG STUDENTS AND FAMILIES WHO MAY NOT CURRENTLY BE ENGAGED. THE CAMPAIGN WILL ADDRESS A CRITICAL GAP IN OUTREACH CAPACITY: WHILE THOUSANDS OF YOUTH SHOOTING TEAMS EXIST ACROSS MULTIPLE DISCIPLINES AND LEAGUES, MOST COACHES LACK THE TIME, TRAINING, AND RESOURCES TO EFFECTIVELY PROMOTE THEIR PROGRAMS. THIS INITIATIVE WILL PROVIDE CENTRALIZED, PROFESSIONALLY DEVELOPED MESSAGING AND MEDIA OUTREACH TO SUPPORT RECRUITMENT EFFORTS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL. THE PROJECT WILL BEGIN WITH A COMPREHENSIVE LITERATURE REVIEW OF EXISTING RESEARCH ON YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS PARTICIPATION, MOTIVATIONS, AND BARRIERS. DRAWING ON INSIGHTS FROM RECENT STUDIES AND PRACTITIONER EXPERIENCE, THE TEAM WILL DEVELOP FIVE PARENT-TARGETED MESSAGES DESIGNED TO COMPLEMENT EXISTING YOUTH-ORIENTED MATERIALS. THESE MESSAGES WILL BE TAILORED TO ADDRESS PARENTAL CONCERNS AND HIGHLIGHT THE BENEFITS OF PARTICIPATION, INCLUDING CONFIDENCE-BUILDING, LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, SELF-DISCIPLINE, AND TEAMWORK. THE CAMPAIGN WILL THEN LAUNCH ACROSS SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS AND PAID MEDIA OUTLETS TO REACH NEW AUDIENCES OF HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS AND THEIR PARENTS NOT CURRENTLY CONNECTED WITH SHOOTING SPORTS. MESSAGING WILL BE STRATEGICALLY PLACED TO ENGAGE TEENS AND PARENTS, DRIVING TRAFFIC TO A NEW GIVE IT A SHOT PAGE ON THE MIDWAYUSA FOUNDATIONS WEBSITE WHICH EDUCATES VISITORS ABOUT SHOOTING SPORTS, SHARES LINKS TO INFORMATION AND OPPORTUNITIES AS WELL AS MATCHING PROSPECTIVE PARTICIPANTS WITH LOCAL TEAMS BASED ON LOCATION AND INTEREST. THROUGHOUT THE CAMPAIGN, METRICS SUCH AS EXPOSURES, CLICK-THROUGH RATES, LANDING PAGE TRAFFIC, AND USER ENGAGEMENT WILL BE MONITORED AND USED TO OPTIMIZE MEDIA PLACEMENT. IN MONTH SEVEN, THE RESEARCH TEAM WILL EVALUATE THE CAMPAIGNS EFFECTIVENESS, ANALYZING PERFORMANCE ACROSS GEOGRAPHIES, MEDIA TYPES, AND TARGET AUDIENCES. BY THE END OF THE GRANT PERIOD, PROJECT RESULTS WILL BE COMPILED INTO A FINAL REPORT SUMMARIZING STRATEGIES, OUTCOMES, AND LESSONS LEARNED. THESE FINDINGS WILL BE SHARED WITH THE R3 (RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, REACTIVATION) AND CONSERVATION COMMUNITY THROUGH PRESENTATIONS AT MAJOR CONFERENCES, INCLUDING THE ASSOCIATION OF FISH AND WILDLIFE AGENCIES ANNUAL MEETING, THE NATIONAL R3 SYMPOSIUM, AND THE YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS CONFERENCE. ADDITIONALLY, NEWLY DEVELOPED PARENT MESSAGES WILL BE ADDED TO THE EXISTING YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS TOOLKIT AND DISSEMINATED THROUGH ONLINE PLATFORMS SUCH AS THE COUNCIL TO ADVANCE HUNTING AND THE SHOOTING SPORTS R3 CLEARINGHOUSE. SUBRECIPIENT, DJ CASE AND ASSOCIATES, WILL MANAGE CAMPAIGN DEVELOPMENT, MEDIA STRATEGY, MESSAGE CREATION, AND EVALUATION. THEIR TEAM OF ENGAGEMENT STRATEGISTS, MARKETERS, AND DESIGNERS WILL ENSURE THAT ALL DELIVERABLES ARE GROUNDED IN RESEARCH, CREATIVELY EXECUTED, AND EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATED. THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES OF THIS PROJECT INCLUDE INCREASED AWARENESS AND PARTICIPATION IN YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS, A PROVEN MODEL FOR COORDINATED NATIONAL OUTREACH, AND A SET OF TESTED MESSAGES AND STRATEGIES THAT CAN BE REPLICATED BY TEAMS, LEAGUES, AND AGENCIES IN FUTURE EFFORTS.