Dr. Shirley Chau
School of Social Work at the Faculty of Health
and Social Development
University of British Columbia Okanagan campus
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
Who or what inspired you to pursue coaching/develop this program?
My soccer program is called the United Against Discrimination Inclusive Soccer Program (UAD ISP). The program was inspired by the need to find ways to promote the United Against Discrimination online portal, which was designed for community members to report incidents of discrimination and hate in the region. These reports can be made anonymously and when requested, we provide social and emotional support, referrals, and advocacy support. The UAD reporting portal (https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3QtMdLHZ49EokeO) was not used by young people in elementary and high schools despite word on the street that young people in high schools were experiencing race-based discrimination at school. Since FIFA has been promoting human rights and anti-racism for the 2026 World Cup, I wondered if soccer could be a medium to promote the UAD online reporting portal to young people, particularly those recently resettled here as refugees from other countries. I had this conversation with my agency partner, Kelowna Community Resources (KCR), in June 2024 and they embraced the idea with great enthusiasm for the rollout in July 2024. The young people who joined us from July to August 2024 resettled in Kelowna from Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Mexico, Argentina, Nigeria, Sudan, and other places. After the success of the summer program, I was asked to continue the program for the fall and winter. I followed through with this request with the collaboration and support of the agency partner and Dante Zanatta, the head coach of the University of British Columbia Okanagan’s Heat Men’s Soccer Team, and the players from the soccer team who participated in the ISP as volunteer coaches every week for 16 weeks.
How has being a United Soccer Coaches member benefited you?
I’m an associate professor of social work with a focus on building and strengthening communities by strengthening individuals. Being a member of the United Soccer Coaches has been eye-opening for me as I was unaware of soccer as a sport and the culture of soccer. In January 2025, I attended my first United Soccer Coaches Convention in Chicago, and was introduced to a new world and diverse community of coaches. With the kindness of Mr. Michael Kodama at United Soccer Coaches, I was introduced to many coaches from the API community and other communities. I shared information about my soccer program at a Coaches Communities Chalk Talk and attended sessions designed to help coaches develop skills for coaching tactical skills and addressing diversity and belonging on the field to enhance young players’ participation in soccer. In addition to the great networking opportunities, I gained knowledge about the culture of soccer not only as a sport and game, but also as a space for community wellbeing. I am becoming a fan of soccer and developing respect for the game and everyone involved in making it happen. From a social work perspective, I am also seeing soccer as a meaningful space for social development to support inclusion and belonging of young people and their families.
What do you feel has been the hardest part of coaching/implementing your program?
Luckily for me and the program, the Government of Canada was the generous funder through its Canadian Heritage program. The funding ended in March 2025. Moving forward, the hardest part of implementing my program is funding to sustain it, especially for the fall/winter sessions which were held in an indoor soccer dome. The indoor soccer dome is the most costly expense and necessary because of the harsh winter elements that would have been prohibitive for young people to participate if the sessions took place on the outdoor soccer field. As the program was set up to be a low barrier for youth from refugee situations, we provided some basics to support the youth participants at the field such as having refreshments available and to have a coordinator who helped with running the program in the community.
How do you measure success?
I measure success in various ways. First, the number of participants attending each week is a good measure of success and need in the community. We had on average 25-30 participants with the highest number at 40. During the heavy snow days, we still had young participants attend the session resulting in 17 to 20! Second, the other measure of success was the smiles and fun that was visible among the young participants and the student coaches. The third measure of success is the requests from parents, youth participants, and the broader community asking for the continuation of the soccer program. The final measure of success were the young people’s noticeable soccer playing skills along with their increased social confidence and friendships, as shared with me by the parents.
If applicable, what has been your favorite United Soccer Coaches activity and why?
The Chalk Talk sessions and networking opportunities. I enjoyed the other events at the Convention including lectures, social events and the meetings of the Coaches Communities.