Nonprofit Unitedly spearheads basketball, leadership program

Through mentorship, leadership training and public service, Game Changers brings in community and basketball partners to show its high school student participants that they belong, both on and off the court. 

“For many of our kids, basketball is more than a game, it’s a pathway to discovering who they are,” Suzuki said. “The Game Changers program shows them that they are powerful, talented and worthy of leading their communities.” 

Students will design and lead community service projects, engage with local officials and connect with role models, Suzuki said. Every month, the group of students will get together for basketball training, mental health support and leadership workshops. 

The new program is set to announce its inaugural cohort of “Game Changers” this week on the Unitedly social media pages. Ten selected students were chosen out of a pool of applicants, and represent freshmen to seniors at six schools throughout the county. 

“All the kids represent different high schools, so imagine each of the clubs they may be a part of,” Suzuki said. “This is a bigger impact, on themselves, their schools, their cities, the county. That’s what I hope for.” 

A key goal of the program and Unitedly’s work is to confront harmful stereotypes of Asian Americans, Suzuki said. 

The model minority myth — a stereotype that people are inherently smart, academic and polite — often places Asian-identifying people in a restrictive box harmful to identifying the needs of the community. 

Acknowledging the efforts by the county and various organizations to combat racial and ethnic stereotypes, there is still a need to be met, and a community too often overlooked, Suzuki said. 

In one application Suzuki received, a high school applicant described an experience while playing basketball when others were surprised to see he was athletic and aggressive on the court. 

The Game Changers program is primarily funded by the KT Foundation, and has strong partnerships with the Peninsula Jewish Community Center and Elite Sports Center. 

Suzuki founded Unitedly in 2023 when she noticed the gaps in programs aimed at helping the Asian American community in San Mateo County. Her work was inspired by her parents’ experiences living in the county without knowing English, and her adolescent sons’ experience playing basketball. 

“We’re a new nonprofit, a new program, we’re flexible and we’re going with the need,” Suzuki said. “We’re not stuck in our ways, we want to be responsive.” 

Looking forward, Suzuki hopes to garner even more community support and develop long-lasting partnerships through San Mateo County that will serve the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population. 

“We’re putting a lot of time into this because we want it to be done right,” Suzuki said. “Yes, it’s for Asians because we’re filling a gap. But by doing that we’re strengthening the entire community.”