Backfield in Motion (BIM) is a Nashville, TN based 501(c)3 non-profit
organization that believes academic achievement and exposure to diverse
opportunities for learning can inspire inner-city boys to reach their
maximum potential and to become significant contributors to society.
In recent years, we have seen an alarming increase in
violent crime committed by male juvenile offenders, some young enough to
be in elementary school. The question is, "How do these children become
insensitive to the value of life and, instead, embrace disruption and
danger as a
normal existence?"
The answer? This may be the only life they know.
Typically, inner-city kids are raised in a household
with no strong male role model present, brought up by a single
mother, an aunt, or a grandmother who works long hours just to keep the
family surviving.
Oftentimes, matters at home are also compounded by
patterns of alcohol, drug and mental abuse.
These are the boys Backfield in Motion pulls from the
reach of gangs, crime and drug abuse.
Specifically, Backfield in Motion serves boys ranging in
ages from 10 to 18, with the majority of them coming from economically
disadvantaged households within the Metropolitan Nashville (TN) area.
We coordinate an intensive tutoring program throughout
the
week, plus a Saturday School which is made up of four hours of interactive,
hands-on learning with the primary focus on reading, language arts and
math.
Our goals are specific and far-reaching:
Improved Attendance
Improved Behavior In and Out of the Classroom
Improved Academic Achievement
Improved Graduation Rates
Improved Life Skills/Character Development
Increased Parent Participation
Backfield in Motion students are referred via teachers, principals and guidance counselors at area
schools, and by way of community centers, churches, public/private behavioral
organizations and local government agencies. All are at-risk, and most are struggling academically,
experiencing difficulty in adjusting to classroom procedures and/or needing
desperately to build healthy relationships with caring adults.
Our staff is made up of youth program coordinators who
help the students under their direction deal with the problems and pressures
they are too young to face alone by advising them and guiding them through
the tangled paths of their lives. The ultimate goal of each
coordinator is to keep our kids out of reach of compelling
negative forces by making available to them someone who cares about the
heart and soul of each boy.
Toward that end, we incorporate into our programs elements of life
skills and character development that focus on:
Responsibility:Being personally accountable for one's
actions
Respect:Learning
to respect oneself and others
Goal Setting:Deciding what one wants to achieve
Decision Making:Creating a plan of action to reach
positive goals
Leadership:Developing the ability to guide and
motivate others
Teamwork:Believing that "together, everyone achieves
more"
Perseverance:
Refusing to give up or let down
Self-Control:Remaining calm in all situations
Sportsmanship: Playing by the rules and conducing
oneself as a gentleman
While these skills messages are written into our educational curricula
and coaching manuals, our youth program coordinators also take every opportunity
to weave them into regular discussions with students.
In addition, parent participation is strongly encouraged. Backfield in
Motion offers social events, workshops and general interaction through
personal contact to help parents to gain respect for the value of
learning and to feel equipped to help their children succeed.
While we believe that sports
is the game, we know that education is the
future.
Backfield in Motion includes athletics as a motivational tool in
support of our academic programs.
Working in conjunction with the Metropolitan Nashville Parks and Recreation
Department, we coordinate sports leagues all year-long at area community
centers.
At the beginning of each 'season,' a clinic is held to teach new
players, and to review with the returning players, the rules and regulations
for each scheduled sport. Through weekly practices and games, our
youth coordinators help students develop their physical skills, while
building on their life skills.
At the end of the regularly scheduled games, teams compete in playoffs, championships
and all-star games.
Winning teams, MVPs and, most importantly, academic achievement
awards are recognized at end-of-season award
banquets, attended by parents, players, Backfield in Motion
staff, special guests and program supporters.
We offer services free of
charge so each of our participants
can get the full benefit of our programs.
All of the services we provide, both academic and athletic, are
FREE to participating students.
Not only do our boys pay NO
application fee or sign-up fees, Backfield in Motion also provides all
equipment for each participant FREE OF CHARGE!
Here at Backfield in Motion, we do
everything we can
to introduce our students to a life of value,
to
acceptance of themselves as worthy and capable persons
with goals for
their futures.
Backfield in Motion founder, Joe C. Davis, continues a family
tradition of community generosity as our primary benefactor.
Davis grew up participating in many youth sports leagues before
playing football for both Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) in Nashville and
Eastern Kentucky University (EKU). Upon his graduation from EKU, he returned to coach football at his alma mater,
MBA.
In 1999, Davis volunteered his coaching talents at East Nashville's
McFerrin Community Center, and it was here that he noted how vast
differences in resources and the lack of support from parents and the
community impacted the children. Davis remembers, "Their equipment
was in a sad state, with pads barely hanging on, jerseys tattered, pants
torn. Parents didn't come to see their kids play sports. Most of the boys
had no positive male role model at home."
Because Davis, at just ten years of age, had lost his own father to an automobile accident, he knew first-hand the impact that coaches
could have on their players as important male role models. He remembered that he had discovered his
greatest inspiration in playing for the legendary Montgomery Bell
Academy football coach, Tommy Owen, and he wanted to replicate that
experience for other kids.
Davis set about developing a program that would provide a means for
inner-city youth to gain access to the same kinds of opportunities,
including mentorship by strong principled men, both
on and off the playing field, and by 2000, he had Backfield in Motion up
and running.
Says Davis, "I believe that academics and personal development
deserve better than equal billing in programs designed to help youth
succeed, and that sums up what Backfield in Motion is all about in just
a few words."
Coach Boots Donnelly's vast experience and
credentials make him a perfect fit for Backfield in Motion.
Before his graduation in 1961, Donnelly played football for Father Ryan High School.
He went on to attend Middle Tennessee State
University (MTSU), and he returned to
Father Ryan, Bachelor's degree in hand, to coach football (from 1967 to 1974, and as
head coach from 1974 to 1975.)
Following a stint as an assistant coach for Vanderbilt during the 1976
season, Donnelly moved to Austin Peay State University to guide the
football program to an OVC championship (he coached at Austin Peay
from 1977 to 1978).
In 1979, Donnelly began a 28-year career as the
football coach for MTSU, and it is here that he guided his team to
win four OVC championships.
In 1997, Coach Boots Donnelly was inducted into the
Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, and from 2001 to 2005, his MTSU role
shifted to Athletic Director.
In 2005, Donnelly accepted the call to become the
CEO of Backfield in Motion, saying "I have always had an interest in
helping kids. That's what I have done all my life. Now,
I have an opportunity to get involved with younger boys early
in their lives, and to hopefully make a
positive change in their futures."
Micah Kimble's experience in
youth and community involvement enhances his role as Vice-President
and Director of Backfield in Motion.
Micah is originally from Memphis, TN, where he learned the value of
volunteerism and community participation. As a youth, Micah
volunteered in his church, coached basketball at the local YMCA,
served as a lifeguard for area youth and participated in numerous
community service projects. Before he was of voting age, Micah
mobilized voter registration drives in his hometown as well as in
the Middle Tennessee area.
He developed excellent
leadership skills as a member of the football team and marching band
and as a participant in the Army Reserve Officer's Training Corp
(ROTC) at Whitehaven High School in Memphis. Micah moved to
Nashville to attend Tennessee State University to pursue his degree
in Psychology and to continue his love for music as an accomplished
baritone and trombone musician in the Tennessee State University
band, The Aristocrat of Bands.
In Nashville Micah volunteered
as a Basketball Coach at the YMCA. In 2005, he joined BIM as a
parent volunteer. When he was later offered a part-time position,
Micah eventually joined the organization as a full-time coordinator
and enjoyed several years in the Rose Park community.
In 2010, he was offered the position as Vice-President and Director
of BIM.
Micah says that the various
opportunities he has received are the result of the excellent
commitment on behalf of his family, mentors, educators and
communities who believed in the unlimited potential of local inner
city youth. He is delighted, as well as honored, to have the
opportunity to extend that commitment to the participants of BIM.
Raised along
with his young brother in a single-parent home by his deeply
spiritual mother, Bond entered into a relationship with "The Streetz" through gang life, which resulted in his spending time in
jail.
Although his
mother later married, and Bond was adopted by Pastor Scott "Pop" Bond (at
birth, Bond's surname was Lee), giving his brother and him a strong
male role model, he still led a troubled life.
During the
summer of 1996, Bond was once again imprisoned after having been
released from prison just five months previously, and with this
incarceration, he faced 17 years to life. Finally coming to
terms with his wayward life, Bond vowed to live for Jesus from that
day forward if only God would help him out of his situation.
God did; Bond was given only three years in jail as his sentence.
Shortly
thereafter, Bond was reborn, and he changed his name to "UnCommon"
(Acts 10:15, "Call thou not common what I have cleansed.").
Bond began ministering through his music behind bars, and today he
performs everything from Hip-Hop, Jazz, Blues, Traditional Gospel,
Contemporary to R & B Christian, many times sharing the stage with
such great musical artists as Da Truth, Lisa McClendon, 21:03,
Andre' Crouch, Bobby Jones, Jon Tiven, Syl Johnson, Wilson Pickett
and Little Milton.
Bond brings
this wealth of life experiences to his position as Youth Coordinator
for Backfield in Motion, as he puts a personal spin on
character-building and striving for excellence in life.
A native of Atlanta, GA, Lewis
began playing football at age eight. As a linebacker at
Creekside High School in Fairburn, GA, he earned honors including
1st Team All-State, All-Region, All-Area and Metro Atlanta All-Star.
In addition to athletic honors, Lewis received the Wendy's High
School Heisman Trophy, Fulton County Scholar Athlete Award and Ray
Kroc Award for Excellence in Academics and Athletics while at
Creekside.
Lewis accepted a scholarship
to play football at Georgia Southern University when he played the
position of Middle Linebacker from 2005 to 2009.
He graduated in May 2009 with a BS in Psychology and a minor in
Child and Family Development. Lewis enjoys working with youth
and is also heavily involved in churc-affiliated activities.
A native of Chicago, IL,
Bernard Pointer played high school basketball at Evanston Township
High School. His exceptional efforts as a student athlete were
recognized when he received the Student Achievement Award and
Humanitarian Award.
A standout basketball player at Oakton Community college, Bernard
moved to Tennessee to pursue his education through a basketball
scholarship.
At Cumberland University, he was a member of the basketball team,
African American Student Association (AASA) and a recipient of the
Collegiate All-American Academic Scholar Award. He graduated
with a B.S. in Recreation Administration.
Bernard has a passion for youth development and has worked in the
field of youth development for over 13 years.
Bernard is presently pursing his Masters in Public Service
Management.
Hunt was born in West TN.
Following her graduation from high school, she moved to Atlanta, GA
to attend Morris Brown College. She later returned to TN
following a move to Rochester Hills, MI, due to a relocation for her
husband's job.
A return to school at
Tennessee State University resulted in Hunt receiving her Master's
in Curriculum and Instruction in 2005. In 2007, she completed
her Master's plus 30 in Reading.
Hunt has a rich academic background, having served as both an elementary
school teacher, then as a principal at St.
Clement Academy.
Hunt is a member of the
National Alliance of Black School Educators and Alpha Kappa Alpha
Sorority, Incorporated. She is also married and the mother of two
children, a son who is currently a senior in high school and a
daughter who is in her freshman year at Middle Tennessee State
University.
In her spare time, Hunt enjoys
family, friends, shopping and traveling.
"I believe in giving
children the materials, resources and opportunities they need so
they can reach their fullest potential. My mission at
Backfield in Motion is individualized instruction for all students.
I believe we can accomplish this through a partnership with schools,
counselors, parents and students and by giving our youth the tools
they need to be successful and on grade level."
Specifically, Backfield in Motion serves boys ranging in
ages from 10 to 18, with the majority of them coming from economically
disadvantaged households within the Metropolitan Nashville (TN) area. 
Our staff is made up of youth program coordinators who
help the students under their direction deal with the problems and pressures
they are too young to face alone by advising them and guiding them through
the tangled paths of their lives. The ultimate goal of each
coordinator is to keep our kids out of reach of compelling
negative forces by making available to them someone who cares about the
heart and soul of each boy.
While these skills messages are written into our educational curricula
and coaching manuals, our youth program coordinators also take every opportunity
to weave them into regular discussions with students.
Backfield in Motion founder, Joe C. Davis, continues a family
tradition of community generosity as our primary benefactor.
Joe Davis
James "Boots"
Donnelly
Micah Kimble
Donte' Bond
Theda Hunt
