By - Van Whitfield

Where the NCAA Stands

In 2006, the NCAA instituted sweeping changes to address the growing concern of diploma mills and questionable academic credentials prevalent amongst high profile prep schools and online academies.

As one who was directly involved in bringing two different schools up and running in the NCAA's new age of standards, quality control and academic reconditioning, I became keenly aware of what it takes for a school to become credentialed, while also learning first-hand how to get student-athletes prepared for initial NCAA Clearinghouse status.

When I started, the NCAA's entity for assessing a student-athletes academic record was known as "The Clearinghouse." Last year, in 2007, it became known as "The Eligibility Center."

Though the names are noticeably different, the mission remains the same ... to verify the academic standing of your child and determine if he or she is eligible to accept a collegiate athletic scholarship, while assisting your student-athlete and moreover, your family in navigating the process.

Living the Next Level Dream

As a high school coach, most, if not all, of the student-athletes I encounter have a simple and straight-forward dream.

They all want to get to the next level.

I've come to learn that most student-athletes believe that getting to the next level means you find a school that plays on TV often and then after making it big at that next level, you go to the next, next-level, essentially meaning that you go to the NBA - or The League - as they call it.

Never mind that 99% of high school athletes have a better shot at becoming President than becoming pros, especially because so many young men and women miss out on the single-most key element of earning a college scholarship to get to the next level ... so they can actually make it to the next, next-level.

They don't qualify (to receive a scholarship).

Where the Problems Start

It usually starts in 9th grade, though many scholars believe it starts in grade school and perhaps even earlier. We've all seen precocious young children who were more coordinated, more advanced and even considered athletically gifted.

Their "talent" affords them exception. And often times, the one exception they can least ill afford - an exception from the pursuit of academic excellence - comes into play.

They are passed on without achieving, they receive grades and test scores they haven't earned and after years of all-county, all-city, all-state and even All-American performances they're often confronted with a sad reality.

All of the exceptions they've been afforded come back to haunt them.

How Weighted Grade Scales Affect GPA's

I've seen a ton of high school transcripts from some of the very best public and private schools in America and many have an eerie commonality.

The student-athletes tied to these transcripts far too often seem to hover around a C average - or what appears to be a C average.

In public schools everywhere, 70 or above is a C.

But many privates utilize weighted grading scales. When you see a string of 91's on your child's report card, you're screaming to anyone who will listen that, "My baby is a straight A student!"

If your child is at certain private schools you sadly learn that your "straight A" student is actually a "straight B" student because if the school grades on an 8-point scale, it means that grades from 100-92 are actually A's. When you "fall" to a 91 - which looks like an A no matter how you cut it - you have a B.

B's aren't bad.

But the problem is how many of these schools don't take the full disclosure route when they recruit student-athletes at the middle school level.

A young lady in the eighth-grade accepts an offer to attend a particular private high school. She's been a C student all her life, consistent with an unfortunate pattern of a great many student athletes - why?

Because the cut-off point is usually 2.0 and if you tell children up-front all they need is a 2.0 to compete, they'll deliver exactly that - 2.0's. Many exceed that mark, because they're wired to compete across the board, both athletically and academically, but most are 2.0 compliant in every way.

Our young lady gets a line of 73's on her report card and is as happy as a clam. She's getting a great education at a great school, she's always eligible to play, she gets the exposure that comes with playing at a top program and she is a proverbial C student.

Only she isn't.

On an 8-point scale, she's an exception-laden D student.

I've seen it time and again where students and their parents proudly wave a transcript exclaiming that their grades represent hard work, intense effort and the always perfect 2.0 GPA.

And when a Director of Admissions or Registrar begs the question, "Nobody ever told you that these 73's are all D's?"

They hit the roof.

And then that bloated SAT kicks-in.
"My baby scored a 1700 on the SAT, so it doesn't matter, he's going to qualify."

If he didn't get a 2.0, he won't - he could have scored a million on the SAT. But with the NCAA 2.0 GPA as the bare minimum, he's not qualifying for anything.

Except junior college.

The other "crime" that many privates apparently subscribe to is the notion that the less the parent knows, the more control the school keeps.

I've met with countless parents who never understood that the NCAA considers only Math and Verbal scores on the SAT - they could care less about writing.

So your baby's 1700 may very well be a 1000. Which is actually quite good.

Except, your baby still won't qualify because your school - the one somebody paid 12 grand a year for - never bothered to explain that your baby is a D student and even with a strong SAT, he or she won't qualify for a scholarship because your baby didn't do his part to meet the NCAA's GPA/SAT sliding scale.

What You Need to Know

The three most important areas of consideration for accepting a collegiate athletic scholarship are:

1. A student-athlete has to successfully complete a required number of NCAA-approved core courses (For Division 1 - 16 ... 14 for D-II).

2. That same student athlete must have test scores from either the SAT or the ACT and his or her score must fall within the SAT/GPA sliding scale guidelines; and,

3. The student's GPA is determined based solely on NCAA-approved core courses.

So, your son's Art, Music, Religion and Sports Theory classes mean exactly nothing to the NCAA.

For instance, if your son has a 3.5 overall GPA (he did great in PE, Bible, Keyboarding and Health), but has pulled C's in English, Math, Science and Social Studies, in the NCAA's eyes, he's a classic C student with a 2.0 GPA.

What does that mean for your young man?

Simply put, with a 3.5 core GPA, he needs only a 420 SAT (and remember, we're talking Math and Verbal only. By the way - he'd need only a 39 on the ACT).

With that 2.0 core GPA, your son needs a 1010 SAT - close to triple than what he would have needed with a 3.5 core. On the ACT, that 2.0 core means he would need an 86 on the ACT - a very high score.

Don't Go Blaming the NCAA

The NCAA is far from a brooding monolith without care or compassion for student-athletes. In fact, they are quite the opposite. They have taken strong measures to educate and make student-athletes and their families aware of where students need to stand.
They make materials free and readily available at every national AAU sponsored event starting at age 9. By age 12, the NCAA is a welcome presence at national AAU competitions with mandatory sessions to cover and dialogue on the mechanics of the process.

The NCAA Eligibility Center is a one-stop shop on what it takes for your son or daughter to meet initial eligibility qualification. They are a valuable resource on what is exactly a core course at your child's school and they will give you an unbiased and educated analysis on where your student-athlete stands and on what he or she needs to do to get qualified.

If you have a computer and Internet access, the NCAA has a substantial amount of information available online at https://web1.ncaa.org/eligibilitycenter/common/.

If you'd prefer to speak with the NCAA directly, you can call 317-917-6222 or you can reach them toll-free at 877-622-2321.

Don't Leave It Up to a Coach

Take the time to educate yourself on the process. Your son or daughter's coach may be the greatest X's and O's person on the planet. He or she may have multiple championship banners hanging in your school gym. They may have a resume swimming with students that they've sent to the college ranks.

But they may not have the time, wherewithal or working knowledge on how the process works. I've sadly spoken with many coaches who have been extremely successful at placing young men into scholarship situations, but who sincerely believe that their job stops at coaching - they believe that academic situations are to be rightfully handled by Academic Deans and even Guidance Counselors.

Worse yet, many coaches don't fully understand how their schools 8-point grading scale is affecting the students they lead. High school coaches work extremely hard and they are often times the best and only role model, mentor and advocate for a struggling student-athlete.

But ultimately, the responsibility for your son, daughter or guardian's academic progress and NCAA Eligibility Center Status is with your child ... and you.

Establish early on that strong academic habits, a strong academic record and knowledge of the NCAA Eligibility Center process, the GPA/SAT sliding scale and good core course grades are key to your student-athletes success in the NCAA's new age of qualifying.

Princeton Day Academy Basketball 2008