Who We Are

The Riverside Hawks Academic/Athletic Program is a year round Organization serving more than 300 boys and girls who live primarily in the New York Metropolitan area. Founded in 1961, it is in its 42nd year and has long been nationally recognized for its success and leadership in the field of youth development.

The purpose of the program is to encourage excellence in sports as a way of encouraging and advancing excellence in academics, developing constructive personal goals, achieving sound moral standards and providing an extended family to assist young people in becoming valuable contributors of their community.

The success of our program is evident in the number of alumni who have gone on to academic success in college and athletic success in college and in the NBA. Several hundred former Riverside Hawks have gone on to play professional basketball, including in the NBA. These include Tiny Archibald, Kenny Smith, Kenny Anderson, Malik Sealy, Chris Mullin, Rod Strickland, Elton Brand and many others.

See a list of NBA players who played for the Riverside Hawks...

The Riverside Hawks are unashamedly seekers of excellence in every facet of our program. We are committed to promoting general health, educational advancement, character development and spiritual development through our program. Our program has a tremendous reputation for supporting academic excellence. More than 90% of our players attend college.

The Riverside Hawks Program is under the auspices of the Riverside Hawks Hope Health and Hoops, Inc., a 501© 3 not-for-profit corporation. The Board of Directors is comprised of a highly committed, diverse group of professionals, who are dedicated to building upon the outstanding Hawks tradition of developing children and teenagers through a holistic process.

How To Help The Hawks

The Riverside Hawks program is now faced with financial challenges to sustain the spirit, hopes and accomplishments of our youth. Our goal is to build an endowment to continue to provide our young people with opportunities to succeed.

Examples of contributions are monetary, travel miles, reward points and administrative/academic/athletic service volunteers. Financial contributions should be made payable to the Riverside Hawks Hope Health and Hoops, Inc. All contributions are tax deductible.

For further information please contact:
Mark Jerome
212-870-6811
mjerome@theriversidechurchny.org