SHAPING FUTURES
Welcome To Academy of Lacrosse!
Our mission is to use lacrosse as a platform to provide opportunities that empower our players to reach their full potential as students, athletes and people. Over the past 6 years we have had the privilege of making a positive impact on our players. Your contributions make the difference between just teaching lacrosse, and being able to help shape players' futures.
Our Brands
Dragons Lacrosse offers lacrosse training, teams, tournament travel and recruiting support for beginner to advanced boys in grades 2 through 12. Dragons Lacrosse also offers a recreational girls program for players in grades 2 through 8. Our goal is to make lacrosse accessible to everyone so we continuously strive to grow the game by hosting free clinics for boys and girls, running PE demos at various schools, offering free loaner gear and advocating for more field space.
Fire Lacrosse is a new force on the girls lacrosse scene. It is the Elite division of Dragons Girls Lacrosse and offers athletes dedicated to the sport a chance to play at a higher level and to reach higher goals. Fire is backed by an incredible coaching staff that trains our players, guides them through tournaments and actively supports them in the recruiting process. We have an amazing team environment and a great attitude.
The LA lacrosse scene is full of talented players. We believe that not enough is being done to get many of them together on the same roster during the summer. LA All Stars is designed to change that. We will field single-grade teams from some of the most competitive school and club programs in LA, provide the teams with six 2-hour practices, a tune-up tournament and then compete in the Denver Shootout. LA All Stars strikes a balance between giving players the training they need to keep improving, while also focusing on the recruiting process.
Why We Coach
Your Support Matters!
Learn more about how you can support the players of Academy of Lacrosse by clicking HERE.
LAPS 4 LAX 2019 IS LIVE!
One of the most exciting things about Dragons and Fire Lacrosse is that we belong to an extended family, and our family has the opportunity to positively impact the lives of others. Every year our community makes it possible for players to get on the field, learn the game, learn the value of being a teammate and learn valuable life lessons.
Laps For Lax is great way for our boys and girls to give back, make a difference in the world and to learn something about the value of money.
How to register as a participant:
- Visit https://go.rallyup.com/lapsforlax2019
- Click the blue “Participant Center” button.
- Click “Individual Registration” to set yourself or your player up as a participant.
- Make sure to select either BOYS or GIRLS from the “TEAMS” pull down menu.
- Send the link to anyone you can think of.
- Attend the Laps For Lax event on June 2nd at Santa Monica HS.
How to make a pledge or donate:
- Visit https://go.rallyup.com/lapsforlax2019
- Click the green “Make A Pledge” button.
- Select a player.
- Make contribution.
Community Events
Our Story
Academy of Lacrosse was formed as a 501c3 non-profit in May of 2012 and plays as Santa Monica Dragons and Fire Lacrosse. We first took to the field in December of 2012 as a 3rd and 4th grade team with 14 or so players. We played a "development season" in the West LA winter league in early 2013 and then won the 2013 Adrenaline Youth League Spring championship in the 3/4 division with a 14-0 record. Along the way we solidified our approach to teaching the sport and running our organization. The following year we were asked by other parents to start offering additional age levels, and we did.
Since 2012 we've grown from the original 14 players, to over 250. We run recreational and travel programs for boys and girls in grades 2 through 12, and we've become one of the most accomplished programs in Southern California. Our programming includes Lacrosse 101 introductory classes, Speed Lacrosse (stick skill development on the beach), positional clinics, athletic training, box lacrosse and team training for local and travel teams. We also run countless introductory clinics through out the year, usually in conjunction with a school or another organization, and they are usually free.
We believe in putting the highest quality product on the field. We do an excellent job of teaching the game of lacrosse, but just as importantly, our program teaches the players life lessons, a good work ethic and solid values. The result has been teams that play and compete at a very high level. We've won league championships, box tournaments, local tournaments, as well as state and regional tournament championships. But we're also the best place to send a beginner. An incoming 2nd or 3rd grader learns more in our program than he or she would anywhere else.
Academy of Lacrosse co-founders are Jim Gelb and Randy Grube. Our Athletic Director is Erik Krum, who is also head coach of the 2021 squad, our original team. Erik is responsible for infusing all of our teams with the knowledge, drive, focus and passion he brings to the game. Our Girls Program Director is Meghan Toomey who has done a wonderful job of establishing Dragons as one of the most robust girls programs in the area. More recently, Meghan launched the Fire brand, which is a regional program for advanced girls to play at the highest possible level, and to help the most passionate players find their way into a college program.
Media Information
Our Audience: Dragons and Fire represent a unique audience of approximately 250 active players and their families, as well as 200 or so former players and their families that are still in touch with, and follow the organization. Our families are unusually diverse for a lacrosse program and include all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Our families are loyal and rally behind causes.
Newsletter: Since 2016 we have published over 210 newsletters. Each newsletter is sent to an active list of over 950 e-mails and is opened by an average of 37.5% of the recipients, with some newsletter getting opened by close to 50%. The industry average for non-profits is 20.7%, which means we have a sought after newsletter.
Website: Our website attracts an average of 350 to 450 unique visitors daily, with peaks as high as 1,500. Total unique visits to the site since it was launched in 2013 is almost 1.1 million.
Social Media: We operate 3 Instagram accounts (Dragons Boys, Dragons Girls & Fire) with a cumulative audience of almost 3,500. Specific breakdown is as follows:
Santa Monica Dragons:
- Audience size - 2,483
- Frequency of posts - twice a week on average
- Men - 71%
- Women - 29%
- Age - 56% 18-34
Dragons G_Lax:
- Audience size - 506
- Frequency of posts - once a week on average
- Men - 41%
- Women - 59%
- Age - 60% 18-34
Fire:
- Audience size - 540
- Frequency of posts - once per week on average
- Men - 36%
- Women - 64%
- Age - 27% 25-34; 23% 45-54
Our Partners
We are excited that the Sports Medicine Program, part of the Children’s Orthopedic Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, is a partner. Their pediatric specialists help kids stay in the game, and get back in the game quicker when injuries occur. From sprains and breaks to concussions to motion analysis, and everything in between, the Board-certified experts at the Sports Medicine Program will use state-of-the-art tools and unmatched expertise to provide the very best care for your children.
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Testimonials
"I moved to California because I knew I wanted to coach lacrosse and bring this amazing sport to as many girls as possible in the area. Although, I didn’t fully know what to expect, I quickly found out Fire Lacrosse is different than any other club I’d coached for. A family culture combined with a constant pursuit of excellence is exactly what I believe club lacrosse should be, and Fire has created just that."
"We would like to thank you both so much for your acknowledgement of Harlow's hard work. She was so excited and couldn't wait for this season with Fire. She strives to be a better player playing with both you girls and the team. She is doing her pre-season training with SamoHi and doubling her practice time by playing Fire."