When Sarita Prabhu and Jacque Kruppa first enrolled their sons in recreational soccer, it cost about $80.
But as the boys advanced into more competitive leagues, the price tag climbed to upwards of $5,000.
They saw other kids drop out because their families could not keep up with the rising costs.
Prabhu, managing vice president and legal counsel at Gartner, and Kruppa, a partner and transactional lawyer at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, occasionally made donations to their nonprofit soccer club to bridge the gap. But they also began thinking about how they could make a broader impact after seeing the value soccer provided their kids beyond the field – leadership, teamwork, strategy, grit and exposure to diverse groups of kids.
“I was always so shy. My son is not shy. And I think it’s because he is constantly performing,” said Prabhu, who added that she never participated in sports growing up. “I think it makes a huge difference in so many different ways, and we don’t want that to just be available to kids who have a lot of money.”
“We started thinking, what if we got really organized on this and really methodical and started a nonprofit that could really help these kids — not just from the soccer standpoint but holistically on the kid in general — and give them some incentives to maintain the scholarship,” Kruppa said.
That vision became Dallas Soccer Scholars, which launched in July, and obtained 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status in January. The team also includes communications consultant Gabriela Andersson.
Dallas Soccer Scholars has accepted 12 scholars into the program and has pending applications for the 2026-2027 season. The organization has also sponsored two soccer tournament teams to ease travel costs.
The organization is a little over halfway toward a fundraising goal of $25,000 for this calendar year.
Dallas Soccer Scholars serves Dallas-area youths ages 10 through 18 with demonstrated financial need. To qualify, scholarship recipients must maintain at least a 75 grade, or C average, and complete five hours of volunteer work each year.
The lawyers’ professional and volunteer backgrounds made them especially well suited to create the organization.
While attending SMU Dedman School of Law, Kruppa worked in what was then called The Small Business Clinic, where she advised small businesses and nonprofits. Much of the work involved helping form and secure 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. She has continued assisting nonprofits through her pro bono legal practice.
Prabhu brings extensive board management experience. Through her pro bono work, she has partnered with Human Rights Initiative, helping organize cases and clinics while she was in-house counsel at AT&T. She later joined HRI’s board and has also served on the board of POETIC, which supports Dallas girls who have survived sexual exploitation, trafficking and maltreatment.
For more information and to donate, visit dallassoccerscholars.org.
Call for Pro Bono Lawyers
The Immigration Detention Project is a new project housed at the Texas A&M University School of Law Legal Clinic. IDP seeks to assist individuals seeking release from immigration detention in Texas through habeas petitions in federal court.
Upon receiving a request for help, IDP reviews the individual’s case for habeas eligibility and then places that reviewed case with a pro bono attorney.
IDP is hoping to expand its pro bono attorney volunteer list. This pro bono opportunity would be a great way to gain federal court experience without taking on a time-intensive case. IDP has several cases ready to place with pro bono attorneys, so they are hoping to gain more pro bono attorney volunteers asap.
Reach out to Zainab Khan, managing attorney for IDP, at zainab_khan@tamu.edu if you are interested in volunteering.