The New CKA App

 

Launched in September 2026, the new CKA App was rebuilt around three priorities:

1. Support boys to take ownership.
2. Offer compelling content.
3. Reward the right engagement.

The result is an app that gives boys a clearer picture of how they are doing, makes it easier to know what to do next, and rewards consistent participation in CKA.

Here’s what changed.

Scorecard

The Scorecard is the biggest addition to the new app.

It is designed to give boys more ownership of their CKA experience by making four things easy to understand:

• Academy Level, a new measure of program participation
• App Usage
• Event Attendance
• Event Makeups

Academy Level

Every boy has an Academy Level:

Rookie → Starter → Pro → All-Star → Legend

Every boy begins the September 15 relaunch at Pro.

After that, the Academy Level is recalculated each night based on two things: recent app use and CKA event attendance.

For app use, the calculation considers the previous 90 days, with recent participation counting more heavily than older participation.

For events, it considers the three most recent CKA events, again giving more weight to recent events.

Newer participants are not penalized for not having 90 days of app history or three previous events.

Academy Level is meant to make one thing clear: boys control their own CKA experience through their participation.

December 31

A boy’s Academy Level on December 31 determines whether he can continue in CKA the following year.

Boys who are at the Rookie level on December 31 will not be able to continue in CKA.

Using the app at least 3 days per week and attending CKA events will keep boys on the right track.

Leaderboard Removal

We removed the old city leaderboard that ranked boys against one another.

The reason is simple: on a leaderboard, one boy is at the top and everyone else is behind him. That message does not fit a program built around personal growth, healthy habits, good choices, self-efficacy, and positive identity development.

Especially during the transition from elementary to middle school, we want boys focused on a more important question: Am I making progress compared with where I was before?

The new Academy Level system shifts the competition from boy vs. boy to boy vs. himself. Each boy can see whether his own participation is improving, slipping, or staying strong.

That does not mean we are lowering standards. In fact, the standards are clearer than before.

• Rookie and Starter make it clear when participation is below the level CKA expects.
• Pro represents solid participation.
• All-Star and Legend give boys something higher to pursue.
• Unlike a leaderboard, there is no limit to how many boys can become Legends.

We want every boy to push himself, exceed expectations, and build the habits and mindset that will serve him well beyond CKA. The new system makes that challenge personal to him instead of dependent on how someone else is doing.

App Usage

On the Scorecard, boys can see exactly how they have been using the app.

They can see:

• The specific days they used the app this week.
• The specific days they used the app last week.
• Their average days of app use per week over the last 30, 60, and 90 days.

CKA weeks run Monday through Sunday.

The 30-, 60-, and 90-day averages appear only after a boy has been using the app long enough to have that amount of history.

Event Attendance

The Scorecard also gives boys a complete view of their CKA events.

Boys can:

• See their attendance at previous events.
• See upcoming events that have already been announced.
• Tap an upcoming event to view its date, time, location, and other details.
• See where they currently are in their three-year CKA experience, what event comes next, and how many events remain before they complete the program.

This section is designed to function as a road map through CKA, not just an attendance record.

Event Makeups

Now, each boy may use up to two event makeups during his three-year CKA experience.

If a boy misses an event, a Makeup option will appear on that event and on the Home Screen for 10 days. He can use the app to complete and submit the makeup.

A completed makeup earns partial attendance credit. That means missing an event can still affect Academy Level, but completing the makeup reduces that impact.

The Scorecard also shows how many of his two available makeups a boy has already used.

Home Screen

The new home screen is intentionally simple. It puts the actions and information boys use most right in front of them.

From the home screen, boys can:

• Open today’s activity or habits with one tap.
• See their progress toward this week’s goal or set a goal before the Wednesday deadline.
• See their current Academy Level and reach the Scorecard with one tap.
• See the current Legends in their city and view Legends across all CKA cities. The list updates daily. If a boy is a Legend himself, his icon appears first.

When an upcoming CKA event has been announced, a countdown also appears on the home screen. Boys can tap it to see the event date, time, location, activities, and other details.

Weekly Goals

Goals have been completely redesigned.

The old goal feature allowed boys to choose almost any goal and mark it complete themselves. The new system is based entirely on actual app use. Boys still control the goal they choose, but the app determines whether they achieved it and awards points automatically.

Instead of setting a monthly goal, boys now set a weekly goal: how many days they want to use the CKA App during the current week. CKA weeks run Monday through Sunday.

• Boys must set their weekly goal by Wednesday at midnight.
• They have through Sunday at midnight to achieve it.
• Higher goals offer larger potential point rewards.
• Boys earn the points only if they meet the goal.
• The app uses each boy’s recent usage and the current day of the week to offer realistic goal choices. For example, a boy setting his goal on Wednesday will not be offered a goal that is impossible to reach by Sunday.
• Boys can see their progress toward the current goal and look back at previous goals they successfully completed.
• Before the Wednesday deadline, boys who have not set a goal will see a reminder on the home screen.

Activities

Activities still help boys learn, reflect, and earn points, but we made several improvements:

• For video activities, boys must now watch the entire video before they can see or answer the questions.
• Available and completed activities are separated into different tabs, making it easier to see what is still unfinished.
• Activities still begin at 600 points, but their value now automatically decreases by 25 points per day. Each activity still remains available for 21 days.
• When a boy completes an activity, the app celebrates his accomplishment with a custom animation and gives him an easy opportunity to complete his daily habits.

Habits

• Daily habits work largely the same way as before.
• The app now makes it clearer that habits reset every night at midnight, giving boys a fresh start each day.
• Completing all available habits unlocks a custom animation and a convenient path to the day’s activity.

Rewards

Boys can reach the reward redemption area directly from their Scorecard.

When a boy has enough points, he can redeem them for available rewards.

After a redemption:

• His parent or guardian receives an email confirming the redemption.
• When CKA staff fulfills the reward, the parent or guardian receives another email so they know to watch for the package.

Notifications and Emails

Every boy still receives one notification per day about that day’s new activity. Beyond that daily message, we built a personalized notification system designed to encourage boys, recognize progress, explain what is happening in the app, and help them stay on track.

Boys receive only personalized notifications that apply to them.

To avoid overwhelming them:

• Personalized notifications are capped at 3 per week.
• The system limits how often the same type of message can be sent.

We were also intentional about what these notifications do not do.

The CKA App does not use gambling-style mechanics, misleading urgency, bait-and-switch messages, or artificial claims that something is available only for a very limited time or quantity. Notifications are designed to support healthy participation, not manipulate boys into opening the app.

Parents are part of this communication too.

When a boy moves up or down to a new Academy Level, his parent or guardian receives an email. That way, families have visibility into how their son is doing and changes in his participation should not come as a surprise.

What Did Not Change

Several important parts of the CKA App remain familiar:

• Daily activities
• Daily healthy habits
• Points
• Rewards

All points earned in the previous version of the CKA App transferred to the new app. Boys will start the new app with the same point balance they had before the relaunch.

Questions or Need Help?

We like hearing from CKA families, especially when you have questions or need support.

If something is unclear or you need help with the new app, contact us.