University helps athletes succeed in class

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With March Madness drawing to a close and spring sports well under way, N.C. State?s student-athletes are making headlines and being recognized for their excellence in athletics. However, there is another side to these individuals most students and fans rarely think about.

Basketball season may have ended last Friday night with a heart-breaking loss to the Kansas Jayhawks, but the athletes are still in the middle of another equally important season--known to most as spring semester. Monday morning, the members of the men?s basketball team hung up their jerseys and returned class.

For many students, such as Jackie Wyche, a freshman in First Year College, seeing players off the court is a surreal experience. Wyche sits behind sophomore C.J. Leslie, power forward for the men?s basketball team, in principles of microeconomics every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

?It?s almost an out-of-body experience seeing C.J. Leslie sitting right in front of me, doing the same work I?m doing,? Wyche said.

All the hype surrounding college sports makes it easy for people to forget that the athletes they are watching on television are not only students as well, but are held to similar, and in some cases more rigorous, academic standards as their non-athlete peers. Competing at the collegiate level, now more than ever, subjects athletes to intense pressure as they are expected to perform to the best of their abilities both on and off the court.

?Though the task of balancing school, practice and competition may seem daunting to many athletes who find there simply isn?t enough time in the day, the University does offer help to athletes in a variety of ways.

SeQuoia Watkins, a freshman in First Year College and thrower for N.C. State?s track and field team, is quite familiar with the stress that accompanies being a student-athlete. Watkins claims, however, despite the difficulty athletes encounter, the University constantly works to ensure their academic success.

?Watkins was a part of the summer START program last year--a program she said helped acclimate her to the time constraints many athletes face.

?We have to do in four days what everybody else has to do in five,? Watkins said discussing the limitations often imposed upon athletes by competitions and other means.

The summer START program works to combat this problem by allowing students to take entry level classes over the summer, helping them grow accustomed to the college environment and the fast pace of life as a student-athlete. START is not strictly for athletes, nor do all athletes participate in it. However, for many athletes like Watkins, it is a valuable resource.

In addition to START, the University has other methods for helping athletes maintain the grades they need.

Carrie Leger, director of the Academic Support Program for Student-Athletes and a former student-athlete herself, works with students to develop an appropriate plan of action that fits each student?s academic needs and is customized for their schedule. Leger says the key to academic success for athletes is working not only with them, but coordinating efforts with their teachers, advisors and tutors to help come up with the plan that best suits the student.

?We?re not on an island by ourselves, we are collective and transparent in what we do,? Leger said, elaborating on the importance of working as a unit with all of the resources available to the student-athlete.

This past fall, the board of directors of the NCAA increased the initial eligibility standards for athletes. However, Leger does not foresee this being a problem for the student-athletes or the faculty of N.C. State.

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