The Southern California Junior Cricket Academy (SCJCA) is a recognized non-profit 501(c)(3) based in the City of Compton and is the only inner-city cricket program in Southern California. The SCJCA program was created by Compton native and SCJCA President/CEO Mustafa Khan.
On Sunday, January 29, the Compton Sharks youth cricket team gathered on picture day, where Khan, coaches, and parents gathered for photos but to also get tested for COVID by the Inner-city Child Development & Youth Foundation. Compton Mayor Emma Shariff was in attendance to support the program and event.
The Sentinel asked Khan to explain the program, the purpose, and its needs. He gave the following response:
“The purpose of The SCJCA program is to provide an opportunity for inner-city children to interact with children from other countries, exchange dialog, become familiar with and respect one another’s culture; to develop self-confidence, leadership skills and encourage higher education; and to each children the importance of giving back through volunteer community service.
“The goals of SCJCA are go train, prepare and develop children to attend a college or university of their choice and be able to play high school and college level cricket; to train and prepare children to qualify to be selected for a USA National Cricket Team.”
The Compton Sharks head coach, Chris Olivares, is a certified SCJCA cricket & AYSO soccer coach. The assistant coaches are P. David Sentence – a nationally certified cricket coach (Level 3), Montae Moore -SCJCA certified cricket coach (Level 1), and Vedant Jain, a member of the Trojan Cricket Club at USC and a nationally certified cricket coach (Level 2).
For the first time in history, the sport of cricket will be an event in the 2028 Olympic Games, which are scheduled to take place in Los Angeles. The goal of SCJCA is to hopefully train, prepare and develop children to participate in those upcoming 2028 Olympic Trials.
“The Compton Sharks are in need of uniforms, safety gear, and tournament fees in order to participate in upcoming games and tournaments. We also welcome in-kind donations. If you would like to learn more or support youth cricket in the inner-city, please visit, www.scjcacademy.org,” added Khan.
