NexStep Student-Athlete Academy

NexStep Student-Athlete Academy (NSAA) provides high-level preparation and education for student-athletes and parents. NSAA will prepare student-athletes to be knowledgeable in diverse areas of life, academics and athletics including: character, community service, athlete recruiting process, nutrition, and sports training. NSAA is committed to the development and growth of building the knowledge of secondary level student-athletes and parents to prepare for the next level. NSSA is equipped with an educated and successful team who will serve as a resource for both student-athletes and parents.

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Early Signing Period & Wake Up Call for Unsigned Seniors

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Coaches Coach & Athletes Listen, Accept, Apply

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Check out NSAA representative Celestine Peters as she discusses what colleges are looking for and the importance of a core GPA. Mrs. Peters brings years of experience as a high school guidance counselor.

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It is Not A Coaches Job to Get You Recruited

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Social Media: Eliminating the Recruits

De’Angelo Bryant, NexStep Student-Athlete Academy

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Sports Versatility: What an athlete develops

By: De’Angelo Bryant

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Student-Athletes and Parents: How Proactive Are You Being?

Below are a series of rec­om­men­da­tions pro­vided by the NCAA on steps to be taken to ensure eli­gi­bil­ity atNCAA insti­tu­tions. For more infor­ma­tion about eli­gi­bil­ity visit the NCAA Eli­gi­bil­ity Cen­ter Online.

Grade 9

Ver­ify with your high school guid­ance coun­selor and the online core-course list­ing to make sure you are on track.

Grade 10 

Ver­ify with your high school guid­ance coun­selor and the online core-course list­ing to make sure you are on track.

Grade 11

Reg­is­ter with the eli­gi­bil­ity center.

Make sure you are still on course to meet core-course require­ments (ver­ify you have the cor­rect num­ber of core courses and that the core courses are on your high school’s 48-H with the NCAA Eli­gi­bil­ity Cen­ter). After your junior year, have your high school guid­ance coun­selor send a copy of your tran­script. If you have attended any other high schools, make sure a tran­script is sent to the eli­gi­bil­ity cen­ter from each high school.

When tak­ing the ACT or SAT, request test scores to be sent to the eli­gi­bil­ity cen­ter (the code is “9999″). Begin your ama­teurism questionnaire.

Grade 12

When tak­ing the ACT or SAT, request test scores to be sent to the NCAA Eli­gi­bil­ity Cen­ter (the code is “9999″).

Com­plete ama­teurism ques­tion­naire and sign the final autho­riza­tion sig­na­ture online on or after April 1 if you are expect­ing to enroll in col­lege in the fall semes­ter. (If you are expect­ing to enroll for spring semes­ter, sign the final autho­riza­tion sig­na­ture on or after Octo­ber 1 of the year prior to enrollment.)

Have your high school guid­ance coun­selor send a final tran­script with proof of grad­u­a­tion to the NCAAEli­gi­bil­ity Center.

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4-Year Academic Road-map in 4 Days (Juniors)

Junior Year

Once a student-athlete has made it to their junior year, consider it as a ‘make or break year.’ Hopefully your freshman and sophomore years in the classroom has placed you on an academic path to begin discussing scholarship opportunities as a junior. Remember the race is on at this point, most Division I programs will begin making their offers to student-athletes for the next year’s signing class.  While Division IA and Division II may not be at the point to begin offering scholarships, student-athletes should engage further with these schools and sport(s) program to find out more information. Everyone is NOT a Division I prospect. Many of the Division IA, Division II, and Division III programs are regarded as high academic institutes and compete on an even higher level in sports. Research to see what these programs have to offer, you may find yourself being an ‘early bird’ prospect for a college or university both academically and athletically.

SAT/ACT in Relation to GPA

During your junior year, prepare to take the SAT and/or ACT on multiple occasions. Be sure to focus on your CORE GPA rather than your OVERALL GPA. Understand that by taking the SAT multiple times, student-athletes have an opportunity to increase their scores on each section of the test and are allowed to combine the two highest scores to receive an increased total score. The ACT will feature all core course subject areas and a student-athlete(s) highest score will only be accepted in one test sitting (different than the SAT). Similar to the SAT, the ACT does give you a ‘composite score’ which will be equivalent to the SAT on a Sliding Scale. Be sure read, analyze, and know the NCAA’s sliding scale. 

Time to Shine

College recruiters expect athletes to have prime numbers during their junior seasons. Not to say you need to be the team’s leading scorer, have the most hits, or fastest time, but college recruiters look for potential numbers and play-making ability that translates to the collegiate ranks. Student-athletes will be heavily evaluated during this process and most high school coaches are prepared for the obvious questions once they speak with college recruiters. Do not panic if you have or are not receiving corresponding letters. Keep in mind if you are a first-year starter as a junior, your film and evaluations are still in a developmental stage versus a sophomore who has starting experience at the varsity level. Play hard, play fast, and show the skill set that is transferable to the collegiate level.

Scheduling

Scheduling during your junior year can be hectic, but it is imperative that the student-athlete, parents/guardians, and coaches sit down with a list of potential schools and camps to attend. During the fall most collegiate sports programs simply would like for you to visit their campus (spring sports included). This is also known as an unofficial visit. Student-athletes can take as many unofficial visits as they desire. Student-athletes and parents should have a few schools of their choice to visit, as well as the schools that may be showing interest (if any). During the spring, plan to visit campus’, attend spring practices/competitions, and prospect/showcase camps. This is why scheduling those appointments are important. By May of a student-athletes junior year, they should plan to attend prospect camps during the summer (especially if invited) and more importantly register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. 

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4-Year Academic Roadmap in 4 Days (Sophomore)

Sophomore Year

Getting familiar with ‘The Tests’

Student-athletes should begin preparing for the SAT and/or ACT during this time. Most guidance counselors will advise you not to take either of the tests until you have completed a Geometry course or are currently enrolled into an Algebra II. While their philosophy on test taking may indeed be true, student-athletes should at least take the test once to become familiar with the testing format before their junior year. Most sophomores should be enrolled into a Geometry class or higher. In addition there is a verbal portion of the test, but more of the emphasis is placed on the math because it combines three different math subject areas. Parents assist your student-athlete(s) by following these three simple steps to enhance their scores: (1) invest in SAT & ACT test taking material (available online, hard copy books, and applications) (2) find test taking workshops or clinics for you and your student-athlete to attend, (3) have your student-athlete take the practice SAT (PSAT), followed by the SAT at the completion of their sophomore year.

Target List

Most student-athletes are goal oriented individuals and by their sophomore year they will experience the upside of having team goals. As a team (student-athlete(s), parents, coaches, guidance counselor, etc.), there should be collective brainstorming, goal assistance, and an academic roadmap set in place. As a sophomore student-athletes need to begin identifying and targeting potential schools of their choice. Before moving forward, someone within the assembled team needs to ‘be real’ with the student-athlete about their true potential. Understand the dynamics of a person and their situation has potential to change, but the percentage of that occurring remains low. The team should begin: (1) researching various colleges of the student-athletes interest, as well as those advised to the student-athlete. Research everything about the school from its proximity and location to class majors to potential athletic program. (2) Begin reaching out to those colleges both academically and athletically. Remember as a sophomore collegiate coaches cannot contact you via phone. Therefore, contacting collegiate coaches not only gives the student-athlete the experience at engaging in conversations, but it will assist them in potential relationships leading to the future. In addition, initiate contact with the schools admissions counselors to begin receiving additional information about the college.

Allow the Playing to Speak

Student-athletes still may not be receiving corresponding letters from colleges at this point. No worries. Most student-athletes are still in-between the junior varsity and varsity stages. Therefore, there are still many colleges that are unaware of a student-athletes true talent. As a freshman, you were advised to play the game with excitement and to learn more about your sport(s) program. As a sophomore, student-athletes should be acclimated to the school both academically and athletically. At this point, being reliable on the playing fields, courts, or track is important. Off the field, coaches want to begin to see your character blossom, while on the field they want to see you establish yourself for the future within the program. Don’t be content with just being a back-up or playing second fiddle to an upperclassman. Most sophomores, who are no longer sub-varsity players, see extensive playing time (but the leash is shorter than the starters). You don’t have to be the superstar, but simply show consistency with your effort, knowledge, and development both on and off the field.

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4-Year Academic Roadmap in 4 Days (Fr.-Sr.)

Freshman Year

With recruiting developing for student-athletes at an earlier age, it places more of an emphasis on student-athletes to start their high school careers in the classroom very strong. In fact, some student-athletes enter their high school careers with high school credited classes. As a freshman, the key to finding success as a student-athlete in the classroom is having an ACADEMIC ROAD-MAP to guide them throughout their high school career.

Academic Road-map

First, parents and student-athletes should be aware of the NCAA’s List of Approved Core Courses (also known as the 48H Form or Form 48H). This form is very important, as it assists student-athletes, parents, coaches, and guidance counselors on the necessary CORE classes one needs to take to be eligible for a NCAA scholarship.

Secondly, student-athletes and parents should begin to understand the academic roadmap (there are no shortcuts). Today there are many materials available as resources whether it’s online, by book, pamphlets, or magazines. Don’t be afraid to read about the bad recruiting stories at an early age, it only enhances your knowledge and possible gives you a sense of awareness of what can truly happen. Research various statistics about student-athletes from your school, city, state, race, and/or gender.

Third, an emphasis on high grades is a must. Do not allow the new schedule of practices, games, and other outside things prevent you from overworking yourself in the classroom. Parents it is imperative that your student-athlete gets off to a great start in his/her high school career academically. Letter grades such as D’s and F’s only set your student-athlete in a hole they will struggle to dig themselves out of for the remainder of their high school careers. The GOAL should be for your student-athlete to come out of their freshman year with a minimal CORE Grade Point Average (GPA) of a 2.8. That is a GPA that is solid between a B and C average.

No Heat, No Pressure

During most student-athletes freshman season, they are still at a developmental stage. In other words, the likely percentage of pointing out an individual and identifying their college projection is about 5%. This number may seem low and for many reasons such as: most student-athletes are reaching or developing a growth spirt, developing their bodies in a strength and conditioning program, and maturing or regressing each season they play a sport. Despite recruiting becoming a norm at such an early age, student-athletes are encouraged to have fun playing the game and to soak up as much information as they can from their coaches. High school sports will be a huge learning curve for most freshman and they should learn more about the athletic program rather than the pressure moments.