Challenges Student Athletes Face

           

This is an article that I had wrote for the school newspaper. I was in control of the sports department so I wrote an article about the what student athletes have to go through and deal with.           



           

          We all know that being a student and an athlete isn’t as easy as it seems. Managing our time in the correct way is very important. We have to make time to get our school work finished and make sure we attend every practice.

            Like most schools School of the Arts in order to be eligible to play sports, athletes have to maintain a 2.0 GPA. Even though most teachers and administrators would like everybody to have a 4.0, they had to make it fair so everyone has a chance to play. If a student does happen to get one F in any class, the athlete automatically gets put on probation, but if the student gets more than one , he or she are declared ineligible. 

According to the Athletic Director of SOTA, Mr. David Michelsen, “A successful athlete would be a well-rounded athlete.” This student should also be a good leader and show good citizenship. The main concern of all is academics.  Talent is very important too, but without good grades your talents will no longer matter. The hardest thing for students is becoming eligible again. Students are given a run around sheet. Which is used for the teachers to sign and put on current grade. Athletes have four weeks to bring up all of their grades so they can play the sport they wish to play again.

Determination is a key characterized that you must have if you wish to be a successful student well as an athlete. If you’re not determined to become a better athlete then how do you feel your going to get better? If you’re not determined to get your GPA over a 2.0 how will it ever happen? Being a student athlete requires hard work and dedication of your time.

Athletes at SOTA have a lot of weight on their shoulders. Many people view SOTA as one of the top schools in the RCSD.  With that is a lot of pressure on us students. We are already known for our high graduation rate, but we aren’t known as an athletic school. Mr.Michelsen is working to change that, by hiring new coaches and getting more students to participate in sports. Determination is the only thing that can make this possible.