About Us
The Downtown Boxing Gym Youth Program encourages the youth of Detroit to engage in a demanding physical, academic and social program in which trainers, tutors, counselors and social workers provide daily services directly at the Downtown Boxing Gym. The kids are attracted by the desire to learn to box – with the help of the Youth Program, they will stay active at the gym, in their schools and in their community.
Board of Directors
Carlo Sweeney
Founder, Chief Executive Officer, Athletic Director
CSweeney@DowntownYouthBoxing.org
Mr. Sweeney lives and breathes boxing. The sport has been an integral part of his life from childhood. He realized that the sport teaches dedication, self-responsibility, and a mentality of never giving up that he would not have otherwise learned growing up in a Detroit, where the only way of life he saw was that of criminal activity. He decided at a young age that his dream was to open a boxing gym where he could transfer the teachings of his Uncle and others in his life to the youth of inner-city Detroit. He worked his whole life saving money to be able to accomplish this goal. In 2005 his was finally able to open Downtown Boxing Gym. The draw to his gym has been so successful that in the past six months Carlo determined the most effective way to provide the best opportunities for the youth would be to have a formalized not-for-profit program with the support of the community behind it lifting the kids up to allow them to be as successful as they can possibly be. He feels it is critical that the program focuses equally on education (through tutoring), physical fitness (boxing), and community outreach (monthly community service projects) in order to allow the kids to be well rounded when they move forward in their lives. The long term goals are to have enough community support to offer donations to the families of the program to provide emergency funding if needed, and to also have a College Fund set up to provide money to our members for schooling. Carlo is very excited for his dream to grow and be able to help as many kids as possible!!
Jessica Hauser
Chief Administrative Officer, Community Service Director
JHauser@DowntownYouthBoxing.org
Ms. Hauser has a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science with a specialization in International Politics and Children's Rights. She worked in the Birmingham Public School System for eight years with elementary school children helping to organize an after school program. The program included daily tutoring, physical activities, and creativity. She also spent three summers as co-director of a summer program that worked with foster children ranging in age from six to sixteen years old. In addition to working in the Public School system she ran an after school creativity group for elementary and middle school age children at a private establishment. Currently, Jessica is teaching knitting classes to people of all ages at a local knit shop. She is also developing an online business combining the art of both sewing and knitting. After her years of working with the youth she realized that they need creative outlets in life (whether it is academic, artistic or athletic) to help them find their path in life. Her passion and dedication to giving every child a chance to succeed along with her years of administrative experience with various programs makes her a strong member of the Downtown Boxing Gym Youth Program team!
Matthew Mosher
Matt Mosher is Co-Founder and CEO of hiredMYway.com, Owner of Mosher & Associates Landscaping and owner of Integrated Outdoor Services. Matt has been recognized for both his business accomplishments and philanthropic efforts. He is a founding member of Mitch Albom's Haiti mission, where he is currently rebuilding an orphanage, and he frequently volunteers for Habitat for Humanity and the Detroit Rescue Mission. In 2007, Crain's Detroit Business identified him as one of the "20 in their 20's," in 2008, Corp! Magazine named him as an "Entrepreneur of Distinction," and in 2011, Mitch Albom named him as one of the "Hearts of Detroit." Matt holds a Bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Dayton.
Meghan Milford
Academic Coordinator
Meghan Milford is a certified Michigan teacher with a masters from the University of Michigan in secondary education. She has been a private tutor for over a decade. Her teaching philosophy is student centered-- the greatest challenge and joy is helping each student discover how he or she learns most effectively. Besides learning, she is also an avid athlete having been an All-American sports player during college. So, she understands how athletics and academics truly complement each other to help youth reach their full potential.
Downtown Boxing Gym and Youth Program Office
Our Location:
4760 Saint Aubin St.
Detroit, MI 48207
(313) 638-2258
Mail All Correspondence to:
Downtown Boxing Gym Youth Program
P.O. Box 672
Birmingham, MI 48012
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"Detroit Public Schools reported a 58 percent graduation rate in 2008-09, compared with a statewide rate of 89 percent. An Education Week report in 2007 put Detroit's graduation rate at 24.9 percent, lowest among the nation's 50 largest districts."
— The Oakland Press, April 26, 2010 -
"Dropouts are 3.5 times more likely to be arrested than high school graduates and more than eight times as likely to be incarcerated."
— "School or the Streets: Crime and America's Dropout Crisis," 2008 -
"Last year, Michigan allotted on average $7,600 per pupil, but spends about $35,000 a year to house, feed and provide medical care for each of its prisoners"
— Ken Winter, Detroit Free Press, July 2011 -
"In some neighborhoods on the east side, as many as one in four births in a three-year period ending in 2007 was to a mother who hadn't celebrated her 20th birthday."
— Detroit Free Press, 2010 -
"The percentage of teens agreeing that "being high feels good" increased from 45 percent in 2008 to 51 percent in 2009, and those who said "friends usually get high at parties" increased from 69 percent to 75 percent. Thirty percent of students surveyed strongly agreed that they "don't want to hang around drug users," down from 35 percent in 2008."
— Partnership for a Drug-Free America, 2009 -
"The use of pot and prescription drugs rose. Of the study's 47,097 students, 20.6 percent of 12th graders said they used pot within the past 30 days. In 2008 the figure was 19.4 percent, and in 2006, 18.3 percent. Tenth graders who used pot came in at 15.9 percent in 2009, up from 13.8 percent in 2008"
— University of Michigan, 2009 -
"We have a critical issue with obesity. The obesity concern is not just physical activity, it's nutrition, it's access to areas where kids can engage in physical activity or physical education or sports or just play."
— Eunice Moore, Detroit Public Schools -
"Ninety-six percent of dropouts in 14 school districts in seven regions of the nation were NOT participating in activities programs"
— National Federation of State High School Associations -
"Athletes do better in the classroom, are more involved in school activity programs, and stay involved in the community after graduation. Based on an analysis of data collected from the U.S. Department of Education' s High School and Beyond Study, girls receive as many benefits from sports as boys, the "dumb jock" stereotype is a myth, sports involvement was significantly related to lower dropout rates in some school settings, and minority athletes are more socially involved than non-athletes."
— Women's Sport Foundation -
"The best economic stimulus is a high school diploma," said Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia. "From the individual student to the bank branch manager, new car salesman, or realtor, everyone wins when more students graduate from high school."
— Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education -
"The sad part is, no one is seriously looking at the (high school dropout) issue, and the sadder part is they're not putting the resources needed to improve the graduation rate."
— Jay Smink, Director of the National Dropout Prevention Center at Clemson University -
"One half of welfare recipients are dropouts. Nearly half the prison population is dropouts."
— "Dropout Rate Shows Slight Improvement" 1998
