Georgetown University Athletic Department and District of Columbia Public Schools will begin a program which will allow local middle school students to spend a day at Georgetown observing intercollegiate athletics.
The year-long developmental program will involve eighth graders from Francis Junior High School, Garnett-Patterson Middle School, Lincoln Middle School and Shaw Junior High. Each week students from a different school will spend one day with members of one of the University’s athletic teams.
The students can attend practices, games and departmental meetings as well as meet trainers. They can also learn about conditioning and coaching.
“They’re getting an in-depth look at the world of athletics by shadowing the coaching staff and meeting other members of the staff, trainers, athletic directors, and seeing all the pieces that put together an intercollegiate program,” Associate Athletic Director Patricia Thomas said.
Middle school students will also have the opportunity to meet with student athletes. They will take a tour of campus and classrooms and spend time with the student learning about the academic side of athletics.
“I’m hoping that they get a better understanding of what this university is like,” said Craig Esherick, men’s basketball head coach. “I want them to be able to look at this university and know that if they do well in school, then they’d want to come here one day.”
According to Bill Shapland, senior sports communications director, the program is intended to show the students the opportunities that are available to them when they finish high school.
“I think that this is a part of the University’s responsibility to the community. The University is an educational institution and it’s always looking for opportunities to further education and that is what this program does,” Shapland said.
Esherick said the program is a way that the University can become more involved with local public schools as well as the lives of all members of the D.C. community.
“We’re a part of the city of Washington, D.C. and this is a way for us to build a community,” Esherick said.
At the end of the week-long introduction to intercollegiate athletics, students return to their schools and have to report to their class what is that they learned from their experience.
