Youth Programs
Aquafina MLB Pitch, Hit & Run
Aquafina Major League Baseball Pitch, Hit and Run Competition is held each year in either April or May at the J.C. Love Softball Complex. This event is a free skills competition that provides boys and girls, ages 7 to 14, the opportunity to showcase their pitching, hitting and running abilities. The PITCH portion of the program will test how accurately a competitor can throw strikes from 45 feet to a designated “Strike Zone” target. The HIT portion will test a competitor’s ability to hit a baseball from a stationary tee, along a tape measure from home plate, toward straight-away centerfield. Finally, the RUN portion will measure a competitor’s speed in a sprint from second base, touch third, and across home plate. Winners can advance through four levels of competition, including Team Championship events at the 30 Major League ballparks and the National Finals at the MLB All-Star Game.
Interested boys and girls must pre-register by calling the RPAR office at 255-5800.
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Flag Football
RPAR's Youth Flag Football League ensures a fun experience by providing physical activity and encourages full participation for each young athlete. Each fall, we offer the following divisions: 5 - 6 year olds and 7 - 9 year olds. We will use the same age matrix as we do with soccer. Games are played on Tuesday and Thursday nights at the Regional Sports Complex at 1501 Farmerville Street beginning in September. Players must purchase an RPAR reversible jersey from local outlets.
Players registering late may be placed on a waiting list and cannot be assured a spot on a team.
Like our soccer league, volunteer coaches will teach the fundamental skills of the sport while incorporating teamwork and sportsmanship. We will be recruiting coaches, so if you are interested, please contact Ashlynn J. Shell or Korick Wilkerson at 255-5800 or
RPAR@ruston.org. The fee to play is $45/child (City residents) and $55/child (non-City resident). Registration forms can be downloaded from
Quickscores. You can register online at
www.ruston.org/registration or in person at the RPAR office.
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iHoops Basketball Skills Competition
RPAR usually hosts the iHoops Basketball Skills Challenge during the Summer Youth Basketball season in the Bobby James Gym. This year's competition will be held on Saturday, November 12 at 10:00 A.M. The challenge is an opportunity for boys and girls ages 8 - 14 to showcase their dribbling, passing and shooting skills in a time-based, half-court obstacle course. There are three seperate age groups: ages 8 - 10, and 11 - 14. The challenge is free to compete.
We were one of more than 800 organizations and 100,000 players that participated in local competitions in the 2010 season.
This event is always free but you must pre-register by calling 255-5800 to participate.
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Karate Program
Korean Karate is one of our youth year around programs that emphasize the development of lifetime skills, self control, good sportsmanship, respect, courage and loyalty. All classes are held at the McLane Recreation Center, 605 James Street.
Beginning classes are held on Monday & Wednesday from 5:30-6:30 pm. Intermediate and Advance classes are available on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 6:30-7:30 pm. For a three month program, the fee is $177.
Karate skills are taught for self defense, sport karate and nationally recognized belt rank certification with testing given every three months. Gold stars will be awarded for academic excellence to A and B honor roll students. The class is taught by Dr. David Jordan, a 9th degree black belt and three other black belt instructors.
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NFL Punt, Pass and Kick
Young pro-football fans are invited to compete in the NFL Punt, Pass and Kick competition on Saturday, September 10 at 9:30am at the Ruston High School Football Stadium. This program is a national skills competition for boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 15 to compete separately against their peers. Established in 1961, the PPK program is the odles NFL Youth Football program.
Girls and boys in four seperate age divisions (6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 and 14-15) compete against each other in punting, passing and place kicking in a fun and engaging competition. Age classification is as of December 31 of the current year.
No football shoes, cleats or turf shoes are allowed. Only gym shoes (soft sole) will be permittted. No bare feet are allowed.
With more than three million boys and girls from around the country taking part in PPK competitions every year from July through January, it is one of the world's largest youth sports participation programs.
The event is free but you must pre-register by calling the RPAR office at #255-5800.
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Santa's Hotline
Parents and Grandparents, Uncles and Aunts: Are your children curious as to what Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and the elves are up to at the North Pole? Each holiday season, RPAR secures a telephone line directly from Santa, himself. Santa leaves messages telling all of the children of Ruston what is going on at the North Pole.
This year, the phone line will be open beginning Monday, December 12 through Christmas Day. The telephone number to hear Santa and his elves is 255.5414.
Don't miss out this holiday season!
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Soccer
Tie on the cleats and strap on the shin guards, it's time again for spring soccer for ages 4 - 12. Line up at the center circle as we kickoff another season of youth league soccer for both boys and girls. This year's division will include Under 5, Under 6, Under 8, Under 10 and Under 12. Each year, we offer two seasons: spring and fall. Players must purchase a reversible RPAR jersey from a local outlet.
The first game of the fall season is slated for Saturday, September 17th. You can register online at www.ruston.org/registration or in person at least three months in advance.
The last day to register will beWednesday, August 31. Players registering late will be placed on a waiting list and cannot be assured a spot on a team.
Also, remember that coaches are an integral part of any program, and we are always interested in signing up volunteer coaches for our soccer program. Give a little time, and get the satisfaction of shaping a child and much more. Volunteer coaching information can be obtained by calling the office.
Games are held at the Regional Sports Complex at 1501 South Farmerville Street. Scores and schedules can be found at www.quickscores.com/ruston. For more information, Ashlynn J. Shell or Korick Wilkerson at the RPAR office at #255-5800 or email at RPAR@ruston.org.
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Spanish Classes
Fun and easy Spanish I and Spanish II courses are now being offered through the Ruston Parks and Recreation Department.
Spanish I introduces students to volcabulary, simple sentences, and basic conversational needs while Spanish II moves past the basics and prepares students to have fluent conversations. The classes will be taught by Michelle Guzman and Laura Chicola.
Michelle, a graduate of ULM, spent summers in Mexico and has previous teaching experience in local schools. She has hosted many Spanish summer camps for elementary and high school students, and it looking forward to helping students learn Spanish. Laura works for the local school board as a translator and English tutoring for parish schools for Hispanics.
Spanish I and II will be offered September 7 - January 15 and January 15 - May 26. Classes will be limited so call today to sign up. Also, classes will be divided up into age groups.
For more information, contact the RPAR office at 255-5800 or email Michelle at spanlessons@yahoo.com. Priciing is $10 per class with (3) sessions per week for a 16-week course. Private tutoring is also available for $15 per session. All sessions will be held in the McLane Recreation Center, 605 James Street.
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Tennis Lessons
RPAR offers tennis lessons on our Municipal Tennis Courts. Phoebe Thomas, a native of Lake Charles, is available to teach private and group tennis lessons. She is a junior Modern Languages major at Louisiana Tech and has been playing tennis for 10 years.
Thomas played competitively on her high school team as well as with the junior circuit. Tennis is one of her favorite activities and loves the competiveness and the drama of the sport. It is something that she has loved and enjoyed for many years now and enjoys getting to share her passion with others.
To contact Phoebe with quesitons or to schedule tennis lessons, please contact her at 337.540.3734 or via email at phoebe.thomas@gmail.com.
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Voice and Guitar Lessons
Michael Reid, a recent graduate of Louisiana Tech, has a degree in classical guitar lessons for all skill sets. Michael is able to teach styles from rock, country, classical and more. Call 318.243.4007 or email him at michaelareid@me.com for more information.
Andrew Coker is available to teach voice and guitar lessons at the Ruston Parks and Recreation complex by appointment. He is a graduate of Louisiana Tech's School of Performing Arts.
Coker's focus during his bachelor's studies was Vocal Music, which he studied under Dr. Lisa Maxedon, and intends to continue his musical education. While at Tech, Andrew received lead roles in Opera Workshop productions as well as numerous featured solos with the Louisiana Tech Choirs.
He has also performed in many churches and other private venues. Studying guitar from the age of 13, Coker was most recently the student of Dr. Cain Budds. He currently holds a position as the Music Director of Clark Springs Baptist Church in Eros, LA
To contact hi for questions or to schedule voice or guitar lessons, call him at 318.557.5768 or via email at dcoker06@gmail.com.
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Youth Basketball
The summer league tips off each year in June and we offer four coed age divisions: 5 - 6 year olds, 7 - 9 year olds, and 10 - 13 year olds. The games are played on Fridays and Saturdays for approximately six weeks culminating in a playoff tournament for the older divisions. All players are randomly placed on teams based on age only. All participants will play an equal amount of time and have an equal opportunity to develop his or her skills. Players registering late may be placed on a waiting list and cannot be assured a spot on a team.
Also, remember that coaches are an integral part of any program, and we are always intrested in signing up volunteer coaches for our basketball programs. Give a little time, and get the satisfaction of shaping a child and much more. Volunteer coaching information may be obtained by calling the office at 255-5800 or emailing the office at RPAR@Ruston.org.
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