The first full-time female director of the Little League® Europe and Africa Region, Beata Kaszuba-Baker, a native of Poland, oversees the growth and development of nearly 750 teams and more than 11,000 players in more than 30 countries throughout the region. The Little League European Leadership Training Center in Kutno, Poland, hosts the annual Little League Europe and Africa Region Tournaments at Stan Musial and Ed Piszek Stadiums, with the winners advancing to the Little League Baseball® World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and the Little League Softball® World Series in Greenville, North Carolina.
During her tenure, she has been instrumental in building relationships with various national baseball and softball federations and developing the region’s qualifier tournaments, giving more teams and countries the opportunity to enjoy the Little League International Tournament experience. Her innovative approach to networking with various government entities and national sports governing bodies has effectively elevated the Little League program and its mission across several European and African countries.
“There’s a lot of passion for youth baseball and softball through Europe and Africa. But, what do you say when you witness a Little League practice where kids are playing with paper balls wrapped in tape just because they don’t have baseballs or softballs? The Little League mission teaches life lessons. I try to motivate volunteers by simply reminding them that they can help a child change the world, one player at a time.”
– Beata Kaszuba-Baker
Before joining the Little League staff in 2000, Ms. Kaszuba-Baker attended Arizona State University and was a three-time NCAA national champion swimmer (1994 and ‘95), set U.S. Open and NCAA records in two events, and was named the NCAA Swimmer of the Year (1995) and a three-time All-American (1993-95). The first female swimmer to break the one-minute barrier in the 100-yard breaststroke, her 1995 accomplishment ranks No. 7 on the Swimming World Magazine list of Top 11 Most Amazing Performances in Women’s Collegiate Swimming. From 1987-91, she was the Polish National Champion and record holder in breaststroke, and in 1992, she served as a member of the relay team across the English Channel, fastest in the world at that time.
Following graduation from Poznan, Poland’s Physical Education University (1992), Ms. Kaszuba-Baker obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Natural Resources Management from Arizona State (1996), and a master’s degree in business administration from Poznan University of Economics and Business and Georgia State University (2000). She speaks Polish, English, and some Russian.
This is the third in a series of Little League International Staff Spotlights that will focus on the Women In Little League (WILL) as part of the overall Girls with Game 50 Celebration (LittleLeague.org/GWG50).