An exploratory evaluation of a shared learning community of practice approach to improving gender equity in sports and physical activity programming.

Background: This study explores the efficacy of a nine-month intervention that engaged twelve sport and physical activity organizations in a single U.S. county in shared learning, reflection, and problem-solving around gender equity. The Gender Equity Shared Learning Action Team (SLAT) was designed to address barriers to girls' participation in structured sport and physical activity programs through a community of practice (CoP) approach. Participating organizations completed a Gender Equity Assessment, created Gender Action Plans (GAPs), and participated in shared learning and group discussion over the course of nine months. Methods: An evaluatory mixed-methods framework and collaborative grounded theory approach was used to evaluate this intervention, combining quantitative data from pre- and post-intervention assessments with qualitative data from semi-structured interviews. Results: Eight out of twelve organizations successfully completed the intervention. Descriptive pre- and post-assessment results showed observable increases in cohort mean scores for most gender equity practices, with the biggest increases coming in Conclusion: The SLAT demonstrated that a community of practice model can effectively support gender equity in youth sports and physical programming, though there are significant barriers in under-resourced organizations. Future interventions should focus on long-term investments in capacity-building to ensure sustainable organizational change related to gender equity.