LAWRENCEVILLE – The Georgia Gwinnett Office of Athletics is proud to announce the launch of BE GREAT, a new student-athlete development program, in an effort to further fulfill the mission of Grizzly Athletics, which is to develop lifelong leaders of character through academic and athletic excellence.

BE GREAT, which will be administered by Assistant Athletics Director for Internal Operations Dr. Ian Potter, strives to support the growth of a well-balanced lifestyle for GGC’s student-athletes. The five core tenets of the program are growth, respect, exploration, accountability and transformation, and the program is designed to help student-athletes in the areas of academics, athletics, personal and career development and community service.

“I’m very excited to incorporate BE GREAT into our student-athletes’ experience at GGC,” Potter said. “The program is going to provide invaluable tools that will help them be successful both on and off the field. In addition to that, it will certainly help prepare them for life after college.”

“We take a lot of pride in our athletic success, but that’s only a small part of what we’re trying to accomplish here,” said Dr. Darin S. Wilson, GGC Director of Athletics. “We want to make sure that we do things in the right way, and BE GREAT is another part of that goal. This will help ensure that we continue to make a positive impact off the field and throughout the community.”
There are a number of components that will make up the program, beginning with programming that will encompass topics relevant to all student-athletes as well as programming that targets specific groups. For example, a freshman may attend sessions that focus on the rigors of being a student-athlete and managing time effectively, but a senior will participate in activities such as job interview training and an etiquette dinner. Meanwhile, the sessions for all student-athletes may focus on topics such as social media and drug and alcohol prevention.

In addition to programming, student-athletes will also have opportunities to get involved in leadership roles within Grizzly Athletics, including the continued sponsorship of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, which serves as a liaison between student-athletes and athletics administration as well as an outlet for Grizzly student-athletes to participate in service events both on campus and around the community.

Service throughout Gwinnett County has long served as one of the cornerstones of Grizzly Athletics, and that too, will now fall under the BE GREAT program as well as the continued battle between GGC’s six varsity sports for the Grizzly Cup, which is annually awarded to the team that best exemplifies Grizzly Athletics’ core values of responsibility, sportsmanship, leadership, service and the pursuit of excellence.

A select number of student-athletes will also participate in the newly-formed Grizzly Leadership Academy, which will run over the course of the academic year. Those chosen to participate will be provided with advanced leadership training and support from IDEALS Student Athlete Leadership Team program, which will assist student-athletes in developing the skills and knowledge necessary to be effective and vocal leaders as they navigate the day-to-day responsibilities and challenges of team leadership.

“I’m especially excited about the Grizzly Leadership Academy and what it will offer to our student-athletes with high-potential in leadership,” Potter said. “Through a partnership with Jack W. Williams, who founded IDEALS, our student-athletes are going to receive the kind of training that will empower them to become positive role models for their teams and institutions.”
Graduates of the Grizzly Leadership Academy will then form the foundation of the Grizzly Athlete Mentoring program, which is set to begin in fall 2016. The mentors will guide incoming student-athletes from a variety of sports as they begin their first year with Grizzly Athletics.

For more on the BE GREAT program, please visit: http://www.grizzlyathletics.com/article/1154.php

The 2015 Lakeside Student Council Dance-a-thon was a huge success! It was an afternoon to remember. Every student danced the afternoon away with a huge smile on their face. The fourth, fifth and sixth grade students danced for Saint Jude Children’s Hospital and Waner Children’s Vascular Anomaly Foundation. In total, the students raised $6,000. That’s a lot of money!
The students had a lot of fun dancing and enjoying snacks with their friends! The Dance-a-thon is always one of the highlights of the year. The dancers felt great being able to help others. Children helping children, thats the way to go!

To read more please visit: http://www.merrick.k12.ny.us/spotlight.cfm?sp=16483&school=0

University of Tulsa student-athletes spent the past week working with Day Spring Community Services, an organization that serves at-risk children. Members of the TU football, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s basketball teams each spent a morning working with the kids. Players and coaches led the children through drills and games, gave tours of the facilities, and emphasized the importance of teamwork, making good grades, listening and staying active.

Day Spring Community Services is an organization that partners with Tulsa Public Schools every summer, serving at-risk children who are in need of a positive, productive and nurturing outlet during the summer months. The annual relationship with Golden Hurricane Athletics is part of the “Teamwork Week” for the Day Spring summer program. Kids come to the Tulsa campus each morning and get to meet, play and interact with Tulsa athletes and coaches.

“It was fun getting to interact with all the kids,” senior women’s basketball player Kelsee Grovey said. “Seeing how it brightened their day to interact with us also brightened our day. It’s a great program that helps kids and to be part of that is a great feeling.”

Tulsa Golden Hurricane football season tickets are on sale now, and start as low as $78 per person. The season starts on September 5th against FAU at 2:30 p.m. in H.A. Chapman Stadium. New head coach Philip Montgomery brings his new explosive offense to The University of Tulsa.

To read more please visit: http://tulsahurricane.com/news/2015/7/9/GEN_0709153233.aspx?path=general

HUNINGTON STATION, N.Y. (May 7, 2015)- Returning sophomore Audrey Knowlton (Gloucester, Mass.) of the Bears women’s basketball team joined forces with head coach Anthony Crocitto on Tuesday, April 28, to reach out to the community one last time before the summer.

The team of two traveled to Oakwood Primary to sit with kindergarten children and inspire the students. Knowlton answered questions and spoke to the students about academics, college life and basketball. Crocitto and Knowlton also brought donuts and handed out autographed team photos.

“It’s always nice being able to share my experiences as a student-athlete, especially to a younger crowd. I know when I was that age I looked up to college basketball players and could not wait to be in their shoes, said Knowlton. “It’s very interesting to see how kindergarteners develop so fast and I think reaching out to elementary students is a great way to bring NYIT to the local communities.”

Knowlton started in 24 of the 31 games this season. She averaged 6.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game for the Bears. Knowlton also holds one of the highest free throw percentages at 74.0. NYIT women’s basketball finished fourth in the East Coast Conference with a record of 13-7 and 20-11 on the season. In the Bears final game of the season, the Knights of Queens College edged NYIT in the ECC Championship game, 65-63.

“This was an amazing experience for Audrey and me. Both the teachers and students were all extremely enthusiastic and accepted us with open arms,” said Crocitto. “We were thrilled to be there.”

Read more at: http://www.nyitbears.com/sports/wbkb/2014-15/releases/2015-05-07

Bridgeport, Conn. – The St. Thomas Aquinas College athletic department is the recipient of the 2015 Community Cup which is presented to the institution in that tallies the most number of community service and community engagement hours per student-athlete. This marks the sixth consecutive year they have received the award.

In the 2014-15 academic year, the Spartans averaged nearly one full day of community service per student-athlete, totaling over 23 hours each. They volunteered to assist at a SIDS Walk, donated time to Toys for Tots, lent a helping-hand on Cell Phones for Soldiers, and tallied over 500 hours with Friends for Jaclyn and the United Way’s Spring Day of Caring. Altogether, St. Thomas Aquinas’ student-athletes committed 5,280 hours to support the community that supports them.

The Spartans were recognized at the East Coast Conference Awards Dinner where they received the Community Cup as well as a $500 grant for 2015-2016.