Annual Conference July 15-18, 2015 in Arlington, VA
Winter/Early Spring 2015
Contents
Issue 5
Peer Network Newsletter
• News from around the network:
Heisman Gala, Irvington, Dieruff,
Seqouyah, James Madison, Coaches
in the Classroom and more..........1-4
• Save the date for the Summer
Conference!...........................................2
• Resource Connection.........................3
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Student athletes from Irvington HS (NJ) pose with the holiday cards they sent to children
in a local hospital. Stephanie Kaplan, Irvington’s new Academic-Athletic Coach, is
pictured in center. For more about Irvington’s program, see page 2.
@AthLifeArmy Members Attend the
Heisman Gala
It’s a black-tie affair for these members of the
AthLife Army!
Ten student athletes representing 5 network schools (Curtis HS, Park East HS,
Holcombe Rucker School, Urban Dove Team Charter, and Irvington HS) attended
the Heisman Dinner Gala on December 15, 2014. These student athletes had an
experience of a lifetime, and were joined by their respective Academic-Athletic
Coaches: Joe Baratta (Curtis), Steven Serling (Park East), Leo Bruno (Urban
Dove), Stephanie Kaplan (Irvington), and Tiana Millen (Holcombe Rucker). The
AthLife Foundation is currently in its 3rd year of partnership with the Heisman
Trophy Trust, and was a featured charity as part of the night’s program. Also
attending as part of the AthLife network were Dan Sanacore (Athletic DirectorIrvington HS), AthLife Foundation Board member Aaron Taylor, NYC PSAL Sports
Coordinator Tyrone Parker, and National Advisory Board member Gerhard Sanchez.
At left, from top:
Curtis High School student athletes Maliek Kelley & Bowlee Kortee with Coach Joe Baratta
pose with Aaron Taylor (L) and Tyrone Parker from NYC Public Schools Athletic League.
Urban Dove student athletes Asim Way and Briana Mcilwain pose with Joe Torre,
former New York Yankee Skipper and winner of the 2014 Heisman Humanitarian award.
(Bottom Left): Holcombe Rucker junior Yashlie Mejia and senior Raykwon Fenton pose
with Tiana Millen; (Bottom Right): Park East High School student athlete Jermaine Cooper
and Heritage senior Raquel Cortes pose with Matt Leinart, 2004 Heisman trophy winner.
Peer Network Newsletter
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Irvington HS:
New AcademicAthletic Coach,
New Travels
The 2015 AthLife
Foundation
Conference will take
place July 15-18 in
Arlington, Virginia
We look forward to seeing you all at
our summer conference! This year, we
are hosting some outstanding new
speakers and planning programming
fit for both new and veteran attendees.
Some of our confirmed speakers include:
• Dr. Tyrone C. Howard, author of
“Why Race and Culture Matter in
Schools, Closing the Achievement
Gap in America’s Classrooms” and
“Black Male(d): Peril and Promise in the
Education of African American Males”
• Dr. Taunya Marie Tinsley, Associate
Professor of Counselor Education and
Program Coordinator for the Graduate
Certificate in Sports Counseling at
California University of Pennsylvania.
• ...and you! Would you be interested in
presenting at this year’s event? Contact
Meg, [email protected]
The Marriott Key Bridge
Hotel, in Rosslyn (VA)
directly across the bridge
from DC, will once again
host the Conference.
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Peer Network Newsletter
This school year came with a new
leadership energy
for Irvington
High
School
student
athletes:
Stephanie Kaplan is now on board
as the school’s Academic-Athletic
Coach. In February, Kaplan brought
students who have been participating
in her challenge program, Tally your
Touchdown, to a Rutgers leadership
workshop and basketball game.
According to Kaplan, “the leadership
strategies that were taught are tools
that our student athletes can utilize in
their everyday lives. This experience
had a positive impact on the students
desire to attend a four year college and
further their education. What made this
trip all worth it was hearing my students
say to me, I am going to work harder
so I can go to a school like this Ms. K”.
Dieruff HS
Expands
Academic
Support Program
More student athletes at Dieruff HS in
Allentown, PA, are now supported by
Academic-Athletic Coaches, thanks
to the hard work and persistence
of the staff at the school.
The Husky Leaders began with only one
sport in their program, football; but now
the school district is providing funding
support for three additional sports: boys’
basketball, wrestling, and baseball. Next
up in their planning is further expansion
to reach the girls teams by the fall.
The success of the Dieruff program, like so
many others, happens when dedicated
professionals make big impacts on
student achievement. Congratulations
to Dieruff and to another school in
Allentown, Allen HS, who continue to
impress. Check them out in this article:
Ms. K’s student Stevenson Sainval said
“from the guest speaker, it made me
want to go to a big time school even
more”; and another student, Nelson
Cheridor, reported “the athlete that
was talking help me understand why
school was important and to work very
hard in high school and in college”.
Irvington HS student athletes visiting
Rutgers University.
Dieruff Academic-Athletic Coach Chris
Smith with student athletes.
Welcome to
the Network,
Sequoyah &
James Madison!
This fall, the AthLife Army grew in the
South Central United States when
Sequoyah High School of the Cherokee
Nation in Oklahoma joined our national
mission. Academic-Athletic Coach,
Angel Goodrich, and Athletic Director,
Marcus Crittenden, have been working
hard to lay the foundation for strong
leadership and support programming
for their highly successful Girls and Boys
Basketball teams. Most recently, the Girls
team won its 4th Oklahoma 3A State
Title since 2005. Congrats to all and we
look forward to supporting your efforts!
Another school that is off and running
with a student athlete development
program is James Madison HS in
Brooklyn, NY. Matthew Nanes is the
Academic-Athletic Coach for the James
Madison Dream Makers program.
Under the helm of Athletic Director
William Dumont, student athletes from
Madison’s Football, Girls’ Flag Football,
and Girls’ Soccer will now have this
vital academic support. The school
has wasted no time in “branding”
this new aspect of their athletic
culture. Check out their logo below!
Annual Conference July 15-18, 2015 in Arlington, VA
Resource Connection
New or unique resources to help your student athletes in the
classroom and beyond!
Maximizing the AthLife
Foundation Platform
Prep48 & Westhill High
School (Stamford, CT)
The Purple
PACT program
is the latest
network
school to full
embrace Prep
48 in their
efforts to educate student athletes,
their parents and guardians, counselors
and staff on the NCAA Initial Eligibility
process.
Academic-Athletic Coach,
Joe Devellis, and Head Football Coach,
Frank Marcucio, are driving Purple
PACT’s goal to have every student with
an account on Prep48, with special
focus on educating the freshman class.
Prep48 allows for year round emphasis
on gaining a complete understanding
of all the NCAA requirements.
Shabazz High School
(Newark, NJ) Set to Take
on Total Recall Learning
This spring,
Academic
-Athletic Coach,
Kizzy McFadden,
and Head
Football Coach,
Darnell Grant,
are launching
an SAT/ACT Prep supplement through
Total Recall Learning for a group of their
student athletes. Online Fundamentals
of Algebra and Vocabulary Building
modules are FREE for all AthLife
Foundation
network
schools.
Curious about our resources and
how they can work for you? Contact
Meg, [email protected]
Other Resources
Khan Academy
Are your
students
using Khan
Academy yet?
Have them
add you as a
Coach so you
can monitor
their progress!
You’ll get reports that show you what
topics they’ve mastered, and what they
have yet to conquer. It’s an amazing tool.
http://bit.ly/khancoach
MathPapa
A free
online
calculator
that
breaks down any algebra problem into
the steps your student needs to solve it!
Helps you answer the age-old question
“why do I have to show my work?”
www.mathpapa.com
LinkedIn YOUNIVERSITY
Recently at an AthLife Foundation
professional development day hosted
by the Heisman Trophy Trust, member
schools from NY and NJ got a preview
of a new resource for college planning.
Ben Ortman, Senior Manager of Global
Accounts at LinkedIn, presented a
powerful new search engine for high
school students to aide in their college
search. Get a preview of LinkedIn
YOUNIVERSITY right here:
https://www.linkedin.com/edu/
Peer Network Newsletter
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willed their way into the finals, but may
have felt the all too common sting of
fatigue as they finished short of taking
the title. It was a tremendous day of fun,
competition, and networking with Notre
Dame Alumni. It’s with much appreciation
for their efforts that we welcome these
Golden Domers to the AthLife Army!
Coaches in the
The Power
Classroom (CITC) of Soccer at
Schools Attend 4th
a Network School
and Life Event
If you ever wondered what can happen
In October, CITC schools were invited
by the Washington Redskins Charitable
Foundation to attend their annual 4th and
Life event. At 4th and Life, current and former
NFL players offer guidance and mentorship
to high school football student-athletes.
The day includes a lunch and a visit to
FedEx Field in Landover, MD. The 4th and Life
program is curriculum-based and meant for
high school student athletes focusing on
what it takes to be successful on the field,
in the classroom, and in the workplace.
DC area schools attending the program
included Park View HS (Sterling, VA),
Friendship Collegiate Academy (DC),
first year CITC school Ballou HS (DC), and
Columbia Heights Educational Campus (DC).
And four schools from Richmond (VA) also
made the trip: John Marshall, George Wythe,
Huguenot, and Armstrong. An educational
and motivating event for all involved.
Pictured above are the Richmond member
schools that were able to attend; from Upper
Left, clockwise: John Marshall HS, George
Wythe HS, Huguenot HS, and Armstrong HS.
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Peer Network Newsletter
when you take a young people’s passion
for their sport, mix it well with caring adult
mentors, and provide a structure and
context for growth . . . well . . . check out
what the student athletes from Oakland
International High School took on with
support from Soccer Without Borders!
A Little March
Madness . . .
Special Thanks to the Notre
Dame Club of San Francisco
On Sunday, March 22nd at St. Ignatius
College Preparatory school, the Notre
Dame Club of San Francisco hosted its
Annual Bookstore Basketball Tournament,
with the AthLife Foundaiton as the partner
charity for the event. Nine teams battled
it out all day, with two AthLife Army
schools, International Studies Academy
and Phillip and Sala Burton High School
representing the AthLife Army well with
teams of staff and students. Burton
Career Day at Park
East HS
Recently
the
AthLife
Foundation
worked with Park East HS AcademicAthletic Coach Steve Serling to secure
some fantastic community members
as participants in a Career Day event.
National Advisory Board member, Andrew
Fink from Getty Images, and AthLife
supporter Kevin McAleer (Chief Building
Engineer for Equity Office) joined other
professionals at the successful event for
Park East HS students. Each participating
professional spent 35 minutes with 3
different student groups discussing their
profession, education, and answering
pertinent questions from students. They
also stayed for a Career Fair-style experience
after the sessions. Coach Serling gave his
student athletes a top-notch event with a
diverse group of professionals. Bravo, Coach!
Pictured
below
is
Andrew
Fink
speaking with Park East students at
their Career Day on March 23, 2015.
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