Trace Darnell Essays - College Sports In The United States

Trace Darnell Essays - College Sports In The United States Trace Darnell Prof. Pauley English 1302 March 3, 2016 Moneyball "Conversely, when sports are no longer fun, children and youth are more likely to step participating" ("Why We Play",1). Going to college is not just a dream anymore, it is a requirement. Having a high school diploma or a GED does not help you achieve or acquire a high paying job. A high school education can not stand against the superior four-year degree from a university. For college being so important, there is a sudden amount of college athletes dropping out. As kids, we begin to play sports to have fun, but sports also benefit children by helping build social skills and self-esteem, vital to their success. Working with teammates, apprehending constructive criticism, becoming interactive with other adults and children help create these skills. Becoming older, kids or teens, sports seem to become more "job like". When teens enter into high school sports they became a "student athlete" and playing sports in high school seems to become a full time job ("Why We Play" 1-3). Playing for a high school team in today's generation a new rule is introduced to them, "no pass no play". To be able to play any kind of sport, a student athlete has to have an average of 70 or above in any classes that he or she is currently taking. Along with the most important aspect, grades, the need for athletic ability comes into play. High school sports seem to be extremely competitive and every team wants the best of the best to play for them. Becoming a student athlete requires some extreme hours of hard work and dedication. The average high school football player spends seven hours attending school Monday through Friday, at least three hours a day at practice, an additional two hours for weightlifting, and countless more doing homework or even eating. But that's just football, what about baseball, soccer, tennis, or any other time consuming sports that require numerous hours of dedication. So why after all the effort and dedication that student athletes put into their grades and sports in high school do they give it up and quit in college? Does it become even more "job like" with even more hours and requirements? Does the love of participating in sports just die? How big of a factor is money? College athletes, stars and leaders of their respective colleges or universities, seem to be dropping out for unbelievable reasons. All college athletics are based off of five different divisions based on enrollment and the number of sports the college or university offers. Only Division 1 schools, junior colleges, and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), can offer a full athletic scholarship for student athletes, while Division 2 and 3 schools can offer a partial athletic or a full academic scholarship. Focusing on one individual sport, only about 6.5 percent of all high school football players actually play football in college. Only 2.6 percent of these players receive a full ride scholarship while the rest of the 3.9 can only receive a partial. "Graduate rates also vary by sport" (Sharp 2). If the majority of the football players receive only a partial scholarship, colleges must ask themselves how many families can actually afford to play the rest. Only 59 percent of college freshmen graduate with a 4-year degree within 6 years. Low-income families face education problems starting from elementary school. In the 1980's, only 54 percent of the richest families received a bachelor's degree, while only 9 percent of the poor received a degree. Since the 1980's the cost of college has significantly risen because of the expenses of tuition, books, materials, transportation, and housing. The majority of the students that drop out of college because of money are extremely close to finis hing ("Dropout Rate for College Students" Lamb 1-3). With college tuition still rising, it creates an even bigger problem for students that want to come back. Some families have the resources to spend on college education, but many families do not have the money. There is very little hope for low-income families to attend college themselves or send their children. Without the resources or the money, it is rather difficult for a child who is