Jon Harris, the founder of athlife, and Dr. Kathleen Gabriel, a professor at California State University - Chico, address the 11th Annual Play It Smart Conference.

DALLAS - July 24, 2008 – The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced today that several leading organizations will provide in-kind support for the NFF’s Play It Smart program during the 2008-09 school year, including Prep 48, athlife and Total Recall Learning, and the National Association of Academic Advisors for Athletics.

“Play It Smart has proven that football can be a powerful force for improving academic performance when the right resources are in place,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “The support of Prep 48, Total Recall Learning, and the N4A will greatly enhance the resources available to our academic coaches. We applaud their leadership in supporting our efforts and hope others will follow their example helping us serve student-athletes in underserved communities.”

Launched in 1998 and proven as one of the most comprehensive and effective youth development programs in the nation, Play It Smart currently partners with more than 150 schools in 82 different cities throughout the country. The program has shown that sports, when coached in the proper environment, can be used as an effective tool for significantly enhancing the academic performance and goal-setting practices of its participants.

“The in-kind support from Prep 48, Total Recall Learning, and the N4A provides another valuable set of tools for our academic coaches and members schools to help reach their student-athletes,” said Len Stachitas, Executive Director of Play It Smart and NFF Vice-President. “The more resources that we can provide our members schools, the more essential Play It Smart will become in their efforts to lift academic performance. It’s a great addition to the program.”

Prep 48, a web-based solution, allows students, parents, coaches and guidance counselors to simply and accurately track a student-athletes academic progress toward qualifying for NCAA initial-eligibility. The solution automatically computes a student’s necessary Core Course GPA and corresponding SAT/ACT score, eliminating mistakes and confusion about where they stand. Several Play It Smart schools had access to the Prep 48 solution this spring, and Prep 48 has decided to expand the partnership to every Play It Smart member school in 2008-09.

“We are thrilled to play a role in supporting Play it Smart member schools in their efforts to provide the best possible resources for their student-athletes,” said Jamie Ryan, the founder of Prep48.

athlife and Total Recall Learning have created a program that utilizes a set of algorithms and learning theories to help student-athletes study more efficiently, gain long-term retention of materials, and achieve better results in the classroom while providing metrics for administrators to monitor each student’s progress. The program is currently utilized by a number of athletic/academic support units to focus study hall sessions, including Georgia, Southern California, and Duke. Jon Harris, the founder of athlife, in partnership with Total Recall Learning, has established a SAT/ACT Prep pilot program for Play It Smart participants that will also assist with their transition from high school to college.

“The partnership between Play It Smart, athlife, and Total Recall Learning, backed with a formal study by Dr. Kathleen Gabriel of California State University at Chico, will not only help those that take advantage of the program but will help us attract future funding so that all Play It Smart schools can have access to the programming,” said Harris. “I applaud the efforts of Play It Smart in their quest to provide their schools with the tools necessary to compete in the academic world.”

The National Association of Academic Advisors for Athletics (N4A), the national organization of academic support and student services personnel, has agreed to offer discounted membership to the Play It Smart academic counselors. The relationship with N4A will provide academic coaches access to professional development opportunities and additional resources in the field. The Play It Smart N4A partnership builds on past connections that have provided job opportunities for academic coaches at several of the nation’s top colleges, including Cincinnati, Fresno State, Nebraska, Syracuse, Temple, Villanova, and Virginia.

“We are proud to partner with NFF and its Play It Smart program,” said Jane Moore, the executive director of the N4A. “The Play It Smart-N4A partnership builds on the common goals for academic achievement of student-athletes. Play It Smart academic coaches will benefit from N4A education materials and training which can enhance their services to high school athletes who wish to pursue the collegiate student-athlete experience.”

Play It Smart fulfills its mission by facilitating the hiring and training of “Academic Coaches” who work at high schools in underserved communities during the entire school year. The year-round Academic Coaches teach participants how to transfer the life skills learned on the playing field and apply them in the classroom and the community for success throughout their lives. With major financial support from the NFL and the NFL Players Association, as well as a broad-coalition of corporations, school districts, individuals and organizations, the Play It Smart program is a unique public-private initiative that has achieved dramatic results, including:

* 96% of Play It Smart seniors graduate vs. 76% of their senior classmates;

* 79% of Play It Smart seniors enroll in college vs. 63% of their senior classmates;

* More than 69,000 hours of community service completed last year;

* Participants earned more than $8 million in college scholarships last year; and

* 200-plus graduates will have places among the elite collegiate ranks during the 2008 season on Football Bowl Subdivision rosters.

Academic Coaches build on the positive peer pressure of the team and a participant’s interest in football by utilizing a set of guiding principles and tactics, which are designed to make academic achievement the norm. Tactics include one-on-one goal setting meetings, career and life skills sessions, mandatory study halls, SAT/ACT prep classes, community service projects and other team building events. The success of the program requires the full support of a team’s head coach, who must lend his full authority with his players to the efforts of the Academic Coach, as well as the support of the school’s administration, especially the principal, the head of guidance, and the athletics director.

ABOUT PLAY IT SMART
Play It Smart is an educational program established in 1998 by The National Football Foundation. The program’s mission is to help student-athletes take responsibility for their futures through lessons learned on the playing field, in the classroom, and in service to others. At the heart of the program is a year-round academic coach, an official member of a team’s staff, who serves as a direct link to the classroom by helping players and the team set and achieve their academic and personal development goals during the entire school year. Learn more at www.PlayItSmart.org

ABOUT THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION & COLLEGE HALL OF FAME:
Founded in 1947 with leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl “Red” Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, a non-profit educational organization, runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. With 121 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide, NFF programs include the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., the NFF Hampshire Honor Society, Play It Smart, the NFF-FWAA Football Forum, the NFF Gridiron Club of New York City, and scholarships of over $1 million for college and high school scholar-athletes. The NFF presents the MacArthur Trophy, the Draddy Trophy, presented by HealthSouth, and releases the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Standings. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org

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