About Us – FLW Foundation

The FLW Foundation Connects America’s Youth to Their Natural Resources and Promotes Education, Conservation and an Active Lifestyle

This mission is accomplished through diverse public and private partnerships that:

– Teach science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) as they relate to outdoor activities

– Encourage an active lifestyle with time outside enjoying our nation’s rich natural resources

– Promote and provide funding and support for high school and college initiatives relevant to conservation, fishing and outdoor activities

– Advance sound conservation practices, environmental stewardship and boating safety

Building Passion Through Participation

The FLW Foundation functions nationwide with hundreds of volunteers at more than a thousand fishing tournaments and outdoor expos to achieve measureable on-the-ground success in youth angler recruitment and retention. The Foundation maximizes the impact of existing partnerships and expertise through experiential learning opportunities that meet the shared goals of partner schools and natural resource agencies. This hands-on approach allows the Foundation and its partners to connect outdoor leisure activities with sound educational principles and inspire an active lifestyle.

FLW Foundation funding helps support youth fishing recruitment, retention and reactivation programs through Unified Fishing Derbies, Get Outdoors. Go Fish! school visits by professional anglers and High School Fishing grants among other initiatives. Foundation funding also supports boater safety and conservation programs to enhance aquatic habitat and sustain quality fisheries.

To donate, please visit Shop.FLWFishing.com. 

Partners

In addition to its association with leading endemic and nonendemic companies through FLW, the FLW Foundation also has memorandums of understanding in place with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These relationships, plus FLW’s national membership, including students at more than 700 colleges and universities, give the FLW Foundation a unique capability to engage families in an innovative and sustainable manner.  The FLW Foundation also enjoys close working ties with Keep America Fishing, the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation (RBFF) and numerous elementary, middle and high schools across the country.

High School Fishing

Based on the highly successful 2009 launch of FLW College Fishing, FLW and The Bass Federation (TBF) joined forces in 2011 to launch the first national High School Fishing program. By offering a high school bass-fishing state championship in every state in the continental United States plus the province of Ontario, FLW and TBF are recruiting a record number of youth to the sport. Each year FLW and TBF provide more than 65 High School Fishing tournaments under the Student Angler Federation (SAF) umbrella, including opens, conference championships and a national championship that awards $10,000 in scholarships ($5,000 per student) to the winning two-angler team. The FLW/TBF SAF initiative remains the only national High School Fishing program.

SAF High School Fishing is a turnkey program that provides the following for just $25 per student:

– Tournaments professionally organized and operated by FLW and TBF using uniform rules and procedures

– $1 million in insurance coverage for students, coaches, schools and volunteers

– $1 million in child abuse coverage

– $25,000 in excess medical coverage

– $25,000 in Amber Alert coverage

– Access to the largest volunteer angler network in the nation

– A proven fundraising program selling sunglasses to make participation virtually cost free for students and schools

– Advancement from local and state events to national events offering scholarship opportunities

– A digital subscription to FLW Bass Fishing magazine

– Access to free online fishing education courses

– For students 16 and older, eligibility to win great prizes in monthly FLW giveaways

Studies conducted by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) show that 60 percent of High School Fishing participants do not participate in other school-sponsored sports. This means that participating schools are reaching a whole new segment of the student body, giving them an incentive to make good grades and a sense of school pride that they did not previously have.

According to an RBFF study, the quality of a young angler’s experience before, during and after they participate will determine how involved they remain. That’s where the FLW Foundation and High School Fishing come in, providing ongoing, positive experiences for young anglers to keep their interest in the sport alive during one of the most critical periods of development.

FLW has assisted with the IHSA Bass Fishing Finals since its introduction in 2009 and has developed a turnkey model in partnership with TBF that allows state high school athletic associations to implement fishing as an official school sport with little to no risk. As a result, Kentucky joined Illinois in sanctioning fishing as an official high school sport in 2013. Now more than 1,400 Kentucky students participate in High School Fishing annually.

Florida High School Fishing Grants

Beginning this fall the FLW Foundation will begin offering grants of up to $500 per school to help establish new, or grow existing, High School Fishing teams in Florida. These grants are made possible in partnership with RBFF and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).

Click here for the Florida High School Fishing Grant Application

Visit highschoolfishing.org to learn more about starting a team in your school and to find a High School Fishing tournament near you.

Get Outdoors. Go Fish! School Visits

FLW pros visit local elementary and middle schools at each FLW Tour stop and other select events to teach students about fishing and reinforce how science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) relate to the sport. Very few sports have as many educational ties as fishing, so the message hits home and underscores how doing well in school can help on the water, too. At the end of each visit, students are treated to a hands-on tour of each angler’s competition-ready Ranger bass boat.

Click here to request a Get Outdoors. Go Fish! school visit.

Unified Fishing Derbies

FLW Foundation angler Cody Kelley hosts a Unified Fishing Derby where Special Olympic anglers fish alongside Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and other area youth in a friendly competition at each FLW Tour stop. Thanks to generous donations from sponsoring companies, participants are provided everything they need for a fun afternoon of fishing. FLW Tour anglers join in the fun, too, as mentors during each outing. After the final Unified Fishing Derby weigh-in, all participants are invited to the FLW Expo to be recognized on stage, and the winning anglers are presented a commemorative FLW Foundation trophy. It’s the thrill of a lifetime for the young anglers, many of whom have never been fishing before.

Click here to if you’d like to donate to the FLW Foundation Unified Fishing Derbies.

#ReelFun Fishing Events

Each year FLW celebrates National Fishing and Boating Week alongside takemefishing.org, vamosapescar.org and South Bend by hosting #ReelFun Fishing Events at more than 1,000 participating Walmart stores across the country. During each 2-hour event, people of all ages and skill levels learn tackle and technique tips for success on their local waterways from expert FLW anglers. Everyone attending has the opportunity to test their casting skills, purchase a fishing license and win great prizes. Each visitor also receives a free digital subscription to FLW Bass Fishing magazine and a free protective fishing license holder just for stopping by.

Visit takemefishing.org and vamosapescar.org for details.

Become an FLW Foundation Partner

To become an FLW Foundation partner, please click here.

To make a donation, please visit Shop.FLWFishing.com.