By Mariana Smithfield

May 27, 2025

Black & Gold celebrate student attendance as part of Stay in the Game! Attendance Network initiative

COLUMBUS – During the Columbus Crew-Nashville SC match on Wednesday at Lower.com Field [8 p.m. ET / MLS Season Pass on Apple TV / Alt 105.7 FM / iHeartRadio app (English); La Mega 103.1 FM, 107.1 FM / La Mega app (Spanish)], which is presented by Zenni, the Black & Gold will honor more than 550 students and educators from Central Ohio school districts as part of a special Stay in the Game! Attendance Network initiative, supported by Bread Financial, AEP and Cardinal Health.

Students from Dayton Leadership Academies, London City Schools, Trotwood Madison City Schools, Whitehall City Schools, Marion City Schools, Springfield City School District, Centerville City School District and Columbus City Schools are receiving free tickets to the match and will be celebrated throughout the night for their dedication to strong attendance throughout the 2024-25 school year.

As part of the festivities, students and educators who embodied Stay in the Game!’s mission will enter Lower.com Field through a dedicated entry lane on the Chase Plaza. The honorees, who will also receive a custom match day t-shirt, meal voucher and Crew merchandise, will be recognized through a variety of exciting activations leading into and throughout the match:

• Earlier this season, four students shadowed different Crew staff members to gain insights about working in sports. A video recap of the students’ experience will be shown during the match.

• An educator at West High School, who is a part of their attendance team, will be honored as the AEP Hometown Hero. Following the return to school after COVID-19, West High School saw attendance rise from 59 percent to 82 percent due to their attendance team’s efforts.

• Three seniors graduating from Centerville High School will serve as the match ignitor while wearing Black & Gold caps and gowns to celebrate their accomplishments.

• Markus Dixon, a student from West High School, will perform the National Anthem on the saxophone.

• Students from the Fort Hayes ROTC program will conduct the pre-match Honor Guard duties.

• One hundred students from Dayton Leadership Academies, Trotwood Madison City Schools, Whitehall City Schools and Marion City schools will line the gold carpet and welcome Crew players and coaches upon their arrival to Lower.com Field.

• Eight students from Columbus Global Academy will serve as the ball kids on the sidelines during the match.

“The Crew are committed to delivering meaningful experiences for our supporters, especially the next generation of Crew fans,” said Stephanie Cedeño, Crew Director of Community Relations. “Wednesday’s match is more than a game; it’s a celebration of the incredible achievements of these students and educators and a powerful reminder of what’s possible through consistent school attendance. Every element of the evening is designed to recognize their dedication to Stay in the Game! and highlight how showing up in the classroom and in life lays the foundation for future success.”

Earlier this month, the Columbus Crew announced the launch of their Soccer in Schools Program, in partnership with Nationwide and Lower.com. The Crew’s Soccer in Schools Program provides a free, turnkey youth soccer model for physical education teachers that aims to prioritize soccer as an in-school physical activity.

The month of May also saw the Columbus Crew open two new mini-pitches in partnership with Nationwide and Lower.com. At North Linden Elementary School, the Crew celebrated their eighth mini-pitch installation in the past seven years, with a dedication ceremony and year-end youth soccer tournament. Columbus Crew professional and Academy players participated in the festivities. In addition to the North Linden Elementary mini-pitch, the Black & Gold opened their ninth mini-pitch at Minford Local School District, the Club’s first mini-pitch established outside of Central Ohio. The projects are part of the Club’s ongoing efforts to advance education and youth soccer throughout Central Ohio.

Launched in 2019, the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network, managed by Battelle, works together to campaign, connect and convene with experts and supporters to increase student attendance in Ohio. The Stay in The Game! Attendance Network supported over one hundred districts and approximately 400,000 students during the 2024-2025 school year through localized, data-informed attendance campaigns aimed at raising awareness of the importance of school attendance as a foundation for student success and identifying barriers to attendance.

Through the Stay in the Game! initiative, the Columbus Crew reached over 158,000 students during the 2024-2025 school year across 36 school districts in Central Ohio. Chronic absenteeism decreased by 7 percent from the 2022-23 school year to the 2023-24 school year across Crew school districts, outperforming the state average of 3.4 percent. Notably, districts in the network have seen a year-over-year decrease in chronic absenteeism of up to 10.3 percent, highlighting the program’s significant positive impact. To learn more, visit StayinTheGame.org.

ABOUT COLUMBUS CREW

Columbus Crew is the first club in Major League Soccer. The Crew is operated by Haslam Sports Group and the Edwards Family. The Club has won three MLS Cup championships in 2008, 2020 and 2023, one Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in 2002, MLS Supporters’ Shield titles in 2004, 2008 and 2009, the Campeones Cup in 2021, and Leagues Cup in 2024. The 2025 campaign is the Crew’s 30th season in MLS as well as the Club’s fourth full season at Lower.com Field.

COURTESY COLUMBUS CREW COMMUNICATIONS