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NCAA News Release
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NCAA To Host First Team Summer Conference For Prep Basketball Student-Athletes, August 10-13 In Portsmouth, Virginia
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For Immediate Release
Wednesday, August 2, 2006
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Contact(s)
Gail Dent Associate Director of Public and Media Relations 317/917-6117
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INDIANAPOLIS --- As part of an effort to help male prep basketball student-athletes become more informed about the NCAA recruiting process and their academic and athletic choices, the NCAA will host its fifth annual First Team summer conference, August 10-13 in Portsmouth, Virginia.
The NCAA expects close to 225 First Team participants to attend this year�s conference. First Team mentoring provides male basketball prospects with resources to help them and their parents navigate the collegiate recruiting process and understand the role athletics plays in the educational process. The participants enter First Team in the ninth grade and remain in the program through their senior year in high school.
The three-and-a-half day conference features sessions on recruiting, education, life skills, health and physical fitness, media training, mock recruiting situations, study habits, preparation for college, time management, table and social etiquette, setting and achieving goals, nutrition and training, transition from high school, and understanding the student-athlete�s state high school athletic association.
Other conference highlights include an opening speaker and a panel discussion where participants from all levels of basketball talk to the students about their experiences and provide guidance on taking full advantage of their academic and athletic futures. Past speakers include Doug Collins, former Illinois State University college standout, NBA player and television network analyst; Clark Kellogg, former Ohio State University standout, NBA player and television network broadcaster; John Lucas, former University of Maryland standout, NBA player and coach; Dirk Minniefield, former University of Kentucky standout and NBA player; Reggie Minton, National Association of Basketball Coaches deputy executive director and former head men�s basketball coach at Air Force Academy; Michael Curry, former Georgia Southern University standout and current NBA player; Jarrett Jack, former Georgia Tech University standout and current NBA player; and John Thompson, former Georgetown University head basketball coach.
�We are looking forward to the 2006 First Team Summer Conference,� said Anne Little, director of the NCAA First Team program. �Each year the conference marks the start of another program year working with young student-athletes and their parents toward the goal of becoming NCAA Division I student-athletes, so we work especially hard to create a memorable experience.�
This year�s First Team senior class will be the second to complete the NCAA program. Thirty-nine members of First Team�s inaugural class recently completed the program and will be freshmen student-athletes in college this fall.
The First Team program is the result of recommendations from a subcommittee of the Basketball Study Group, later named the Basketball Issues Committee. The subcommittee, which was created in 1998, asked that education initiatives be developed to address negative influences impacting the game of basketball, including a year-round mentoring and educational program.
First Team conferences have been held in Colorado Springs, Colorado (2005); Charlotte, North Carolina (2004); Tampa, Florida (2003) and in Indianapolis (2002). The NCAA partners with the National Federation of State High School Associations and the National Association of Basketball Coaches on the First Team program.
NCAA First Team Program
The First Team program is designed to help young athletes and their parents navigate the collegiate recruiting process. There are three parts to the First Team program. The First Team Mentoring Program is for highly-talented prospective student-athletes. It is a year-round educational program designed to help these student-athletes and their parents navigate the collegiate recruiting process. Participants receive monthly communications, NCAA staff visits, attend an annual gathering called the Summer Conference and remain in the program throughout high school. First Team Ambassadors is an outreach program that provides information on the NCAA, First Team and the recruiting process. Youth basketball players, parents, coaches and administrators can join the First Team Club and receive materials about basketball recruiting and eligibility. Check out www.ncaafirstteam.org for more information.
The First Team staff is committed to providing useful program information to students, parents, coaches and administrators across the country. The �What Time Is It?� newsletter is one way of sharing information.
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