High school basketball player Willie Breedlove grinned only a bit self-consciously as classmates applauded to recognize his achievements.
The 16-year-old starting forward at Encinal High School in Alameda was honored as "Athlete of the Day" one recent afternoon during an innovative class designed to help student-athletes reach their goals in academics as well as sports.
Breedlove, along with students in California and Illinois, have added the PASS class to their school schedules. PASS—Promoting Achievement in School through Sports—was created in response to California's "No Pass, No Play" legislation.
"It teaches you to concentrate on your grades and your sport," said Breedlove. "It's like free throws. You really need to concentrate on free throws. Well, you can take that into your classes, too. That's what I've learned."
The principal of Breedlove's high school is ACSA (Association of California School Administrators) member Milton Werner.
The PASS program was developed by Susan Kirsch and her husband, Joel Kirsch, who is president of the American Sports Institute. The Institute, based in Mill Valley, California, is a non-profit, educational organization.
California's "No Pass, No Play" legislation, enacted in l987, dictates that student-athletes must maintain a 2.0 grade point average to participate in sports.
The PASS class helps students meet that requirement while teaching such life skills as time management and problem solving. The curriculum is built around the "Fundamentals of Athletic Mastery," or FAMs. They are: concentration, relaxation, rhythm, instinct, attitude, flexibility, power and balance.
Joel Kirsch, who teaches the class at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, argues that physical and mental pursuits should be encouraged equally in school. He cites the ancient Greek philosophy of an "integrated perspective of body, mind and spirit."
In other words, athletes shouldn't be dismissed as jocks. And students shouldn't buy into this stereotype. "If they really want to be athletes—rather than jocks—they have to perform as athletes in and out of the sport," he said.
Kirsch admits such theories don't always go over well with those who sign up for the class, which students attend daily for a school year. "I think the initial reaction is, "What in the world is this?" They're kind of taken aback by it," he said. "You see a lot of kids who come in and think this is an easy 'A' course."
About 280 students in the San Francisco Bay area, San Diego and Chicago are taking the PASS class this year. Outside the class, students must monitor their academic and athletic progress. They set goals and are required to meet them. Their parents and other teachers are encouraged to get involved.
Peter Nelson of Mill Valley says PASS helped him get his priorities straight. The 18-year-old baseball player, who took the class as a sophomore, raised his GPA to 3.0 and is looking forward to college. |
