Just in case you are among the uninformed, last week was National Signing Day. This is the day that high school athletes notify the college of their choice that they are planning to attend in the fall. AT 7AM students are allowed to fax the signed letters of intent to the college. At the other end of the fax machines are coaches and athletic directors eager with anticipation to see how their recruiting programs worked out. Along with many of these offers come athletic scholarships for the chosen few. This event was on the front page of USA Today was well as many other newspapers across the country.
After reading about all of the hoopla surrounding this event, I began to wonder- Do they ever have a National Signing Day for valedictorians? What about salutatorians? Do those students who received a score of “5” on their AP tests ever make the front page of national newspapers? Do those students who achieved a perfect score on their SATs or ACTs ever get the same accolades as their athletic classmates? Searching for the answer to these questions may lead us to uncover one of the reasons why American students are falling behinds their peers in other countries. Our society in the United States values athletic prowess more than it does academic excellence. The whole notion of an athletic scholarship is a bit of a joke. The first part of the word is SCHOLAR and many athletes are anything but scholars. They use up their four years of NCAA eligibility and head for the pros, often without a degree.
Since 1952 there has been an Academic All American list which is comprised of college student athletes and that meet requirements for academic achievement as well as athletic success but they often take a back seat to their peers. Maybe some time in the future the American public will realize that an educated society is the key to our success as a nation.
c. 2013 J. Margolis
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