Donate

Support, Promote, and Help Fund Interscholastic Athletics in Nashville Schools

Where it All Started

The Foundation for Athletics in Nashville Schools (The FANS) was founded in 2011 by Nashville native and Madison High School graduate Mark North. Upon becoming Athletics Director for high schools in Metro Nashville Public Schools in October 2021, Mark resigned from The FANS.

Our Results

  • Prepare Kids for the Next Level

  • Create More Opportunities

  • Foster a Sense of Belonging

  • Help schools attract students

The Time is Now.

In collaboration with many partners, stakeholders, and community members, we are undertaking a massive project with the best interests of the student-athlete being our primary consideration. The goal is to bring every stadium field (football/soccer) up to today’s standards. It is easily one of the biggest projects involving athletics and public schools in Nashville.

Players and parents always compare facilities in other schools versus what facilities look like in Nashville’s public schools. There is no comparison: facilities at our public schools are not up to today’s standards. This disparity is unacceptable and must be rectified without further delay. Offering the same facilities and equipment as other schools will allow our student-athletes to train and compete on a level playing field as their peers in other secondary institutions. The resulting improvements will prepare all kids for the next level, and not just athletically. The effect of these improvements will create more opportunities, foster a sense of belonging, and help coaches, administrators, and principals retain and attract more students who will want to attend public schools.

Donate

Our Why.

Our main priority is for all kids attending public schools to have equal opportunity in Nashville. Athletic facilities in Nashville public schools are not up to standards, across all sports. This inequity by contrast to other secondary schools in Nashville is stark. We are now focused on accomplishing the following goals:

  • Raising Capital Needed

    Raising the capital needed to bring the facilities and fields for each of Nashville's public high schools up to modern standards, including one multipurpose field. This would allow, among other benefits, Nashville to host state tournaments in soccer. The capital required to meet this goal is $15 million.

  • Create Nashville Sports Streaming Network

    Create a Nashville Sports Streaming Network to leverage content for sponsorship opportunities to assist individual schools in creating sustainable revenue streams through sponsorships and subscriptions.

  • Fund and Establish Sports Information Departments

    Fund and establish Sports Information Departments (SIDs) in each public high school. SIDs will create opportunities for students to learn photography and videography, enrich or enhance writing skills, and learn to produce live content.

  • Establish an Online Sports Hub for Statistics

    Establish a website and sports hub for statistics, players of the week, month, and year for all sports.

We Need Your Help

Accomplishing these goals will be a massive undertaking requiring help from all over the community, large and small. Often, before you make a charitable donation, you are naturally left to wonder whether your donation is going to administrative costs, salaries, or other ancillary costs. All our board members and officers are volunteers. 100% of donations go to accomplishing the mission. We are all dedicated to make positive change for student-athletes and athletic programs within public schools in Nashville. Being a part of the impact is why we are here. We want to equalize opportunity here and now. We can wait no longer.

We welcome you to apply to join our board. Ideally, we’d pair one board member to each of the 15 public high schools in Nashville. We also want two high school male and two high school female student-athletes to join us on the board. Your voice, perspective, and presence are invaluable in this process. If this is interesting to you, and are ready to work, please contact us. Creating sustainable athletic programs with modern facilities will be our legacy. We look forward to hearing from you.

Donate