Nothing brings people together in Indiana more than a good game of basketball. When two teams tipped off the 2023 YES Indy Pivot League championship game at Mount Carmel Church in Indianapolis, the gym was filled with excitement as spectators were treated to a high-energy game. During halftime, EmployIndy's Executive Vice President of Workforce Solutions, Rev. Rodney Francis, and District 14 Councillor, La Keisha Jackson, recognized this year’s sponsors for their support in elevating the Pivot League and local community efforts. The evening concluded with an awards ceremony where the winning team, representing the Community Alliance of the Far Eastside (CAFE), was awarded a check for $3,000.

The YES Indy PIVOT League is an 8-week basketball league, first launched in 2021, designed to bring young adults into a safe place where they can build relationships and connect to services that help them move forward in their education and career. In Central Indiana, there are roughly 30,000 Opportunity Youth, or young people, ages 16-24, who are not currently engaged in education or the workforce. The mission of EmployIndy’s “Youth Employment System” (YES), and the Pivot League, is to create a positive trajectory for these young adults by getting them re-engaged and providing opportunities and pathways to prepare them for future success. 

“The PIVOT League grew out of our Re-Engagement Centers (RECs), which offer open gym basketball as a workforce recruitment strategy to re-engage disconnected young adults,” said Rev. Francis. “It’s the only league primarily focused on improving players' stats off the court.” To participate in the League, young adults must “pivot” towards engagement in education by enrolling in a GED/HSE program, college, industry training, or YES Indy, or by being connected to gainful employment.

“I signed up for the basketball league because I think my team can win it,” said Duran Lewis, Pivot League participant. “ I also recently completed a Power Huddle with YES Indy and I got some good life lessons out of it. It taught me to be myself, keep pushing, and most of all to be grateful. Right now I am in the YouthBuild program and I enrolled to get my GED through Edna Martin Christian Center at Martin University.”

One way that YES Indy helps to break down mindset barriers for young people, regardless of their history, is through the YES Indy Power Huddle program, a two-week job readiness experience where individuals learn how they can change their future trajectory as well as develop a variety of employability skills that will help them map out and work towards reaching their academic, career, and life goals. For young people like Duran, getting involved on the court through open gyms at a YES Indy REC or through participating in the Pivot League often leads to getting connected to helpful programs and services off the court, like the Power Huddle.

“The City League understands the power that basketball holds in our culture. We are excited to work with EmployIndy to bring high-level basketball to the young men of Indianapolis, while also helping participants get connected to people and training, giving them the necessary opportunities to move forward in life.” said Austin Taylor, Executive Director of The City League. As a key partner and organizer for the Pivot League, The City League’s reputation as a leader in organizing high-level basketball in our city has been an important asset as the Pivot League seeks to attract players and fans.

EmployIndy’s partnership with Mt. Carmel Church has also been a key component of the league as it seeks to create a safe space for players to grow off the court as well as on it. “Mt. Carmel Church is a church of the community, finding ways to demonstrate our love for God and our neighbor through education and socially, and financially empowering our community,” said Rev. Lola Bartlett, a Mt. Carmel Church staff member. “Working with YES Indy and The City League helps us in fulfilling our mission by educating our young men and providing them with a constructive place to practice being a team in the game and in life.“

The Pivot League would like to extend a big thank you to this year’s volunteers and organizations that make this collaborative league possible. This year’s sponsors include Finish Line Foundation, Training for Success LLC, Turner Housing, Mt. Carmel Church, EmployIndy, CAFE, FASTENAL, and Heritage Group.

The Pivot League will return in the Spring of 2024, but YES Indy RECs and The City League will continue to offer ongoing opportunities for young people in our city, through open gym sessions at the YES Indy RECs and other basketball tournaments throughout the year via The City League. If you’re a young person looking to get connected to employment services, visit the YES Indy website.

For Indianapolis employers or community partners who are interested in participating and sponsoring the 2024 Pivot League, please fill out the league sponsor form.