The America East Conference and the You Can Play Project are excited to announce the continued expansion of the partnership, now entering its fourth year. You Can Play Nights, an initiative which began last year, will expand to four nights of each campus. Every institution will host a You Can Play Event in the fall and the spring, in addition to two in the winter around men's and women's basketball games.

You Can Play Nights came into existence last year with the purpose of furthering awareness and education to help ensure equality, respect and safety for all athletes without regard to sexual orientation or gender identity. 

The America East will provide each of the member institutions with a You Can Play Toolkit that will include a co-branded America East/institutional stand-up banner, two You Can Play foam boards along with You Can Play patches. Additionally, the SAAC representatives on each campus will receive shirts to promote the You Can Play Nights on campus. Men's and women's basketball teams will also receive You Can Play shooting shirts.

The nights will include fan outreach, public address announcements and You Can Play videos produced by the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee playing in arenas with video boards.

America East became the first NCAA Division I conference to partner with You Can Play in December of 2012. Since then, the conference has helped further You Can Play’s mission by sponsoring a speaker series and locker-room campaigns on its member’s campuses in addition to You Can Play nights and creating videos to educate the general public.

America East You Can Play Fall Events

America East SAAC Quotes

"The You Can Play initiative means so much to the America East Conference and to the University of Maine. It is important to our athletes to be a part of a university, a community and a conference of equality and inclusiveness.  Our partnership with You Can Play has brought our athletes together and our UMaine SAAC You Can Play games are always a fun and special night for us! We support equality, because we all have our differences and we each bring something unique and special to the UMaine and America East student-athlete experience.  At the end of the day, I don't care what your sexual orientation or gender identity is;  if you're going to help me win, I want you on my team."  - Liz Wood, Maine, America East National SAAC Representative

“The You Can Play Project partnership is an awesome initiative that promotes equality throughout all athletes. It brings new meaning to "treating others the way you want to be treated"  regardless of sexual orientation, race, etc. because we all share a common goal as athletes:  be competitive and win.” - Emily Russo, UMBC

"Sports have the ability to bring together diverse groups of people fighting for a common goal and that's what our You Can Play games are about. Bringing people together to celebrate and promote equality." Kristin Ross, Binghamton

"For me, the You Can Play partnership has helped me to understand that as student-athletes, our words and actions shape and mold the culture of our athletic department and our university. We're determined to make sure that culture is one of acceptance and respect for all of our fellow athletes, coaches, and opponents." - Justin Berger, Albany

"The You Can Play partnership has truly helped create a culture of understanding and respect for others at UNH and in the America East as a whole. It is an honor and privilege to represent a an institution and conference that care so deeply about all student-athletes regardless of sexual orientation." - Mimi Borkan, New Hampshire

About You Can Play
You Can Play is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation or gender identity. You Can Play works to guarantee that athletes are given a fair opportunity to compete, judged by other athletes and fans alike, only by what they contribute to the sport or their team's success. You Can Play seeks to challenge the culture of locker rooms and spectator areas by focusing only on an athlete's skills, work ethic and competitive spirit.

About the America East
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference sponsors championships in 18 sports and provides its nine member institutions and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.