Cricket coming to CMS schools this year

A new sport is coming to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools this year: Cricket.

The U.S. Youth Cricket Association and CMS have announced a partnership, with a goal of becoming a model for the rest of the nation in their implementation of the USYCA Schools Program during the 2011-2012 school year.

Here's how it works: USYCA, in cooperation with its associate member Charlotte International Cricket Club, will partner with CMS to supply their 136 elementary and middle schools with free cricket sets, instruction and ongoing support. CMS will incorporate cricket into the Physical Education curriculum, while also providing other opportunities for students to play the game, such as in recess or after-school programs.

USYCA will also explore the possibilities for sponsored cricket activities between individual Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools, as well as other extra-curricular opportunities for CMS students.

In addition, USYCA will approach local community leaders to establish cricket programs in neighborhoods, especially in locations where the need for youth athletics is great. It is hoped that under-utilized playing fields might become sites for low-cost, introductory cricket leagues that can attract children who might otherwise have limited team sports alternatives.

Franklin Lowery is new girls basketball coach at Lincoln Charter

Lincoln Charter is pleased to announce the hiring of Franklin Lowery as the Varsity ladies basketball coach.

Coach Lowery is a 1975 graduate of East Lincoln High School and a 1980 graduate of Belmont Abbey College where he majored in Recreation and minored in Sociology.

After college, he was a member of the Belmont Abbey basketball coaching staff for over 20 years. In addition to his coaching experience at Belmont Abbey, Coach Lowery coached at East Lincoln Middle, East Lincoln High School (most recently as the Varsity ladies coach) and Lincolnton High School.

While at East Lincoln HS (2009-2011), Coach Lowery’s varsity ladies team was 37-17. Coach Lowery is also the founder of the Don’t Foul Out Program which helps students achieve social, academic and athletic success.

-- Lincoln Charter School Media Release