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Student-Athlete volunteers score bigUniversity of Rhode Island student-athletes and the local community have been scoring big with URI's new "Athlete Volunteers in Action" program. Through the program, student-athletes and coaches volunteer in local schools, centers, and programs, in addition to hosting youth sports teams and students on campus. The program coordinates the efforts of URI's coaches, student-athletes, Ram Choices (a student-athlete leadership program), Rhody Talk (a student-athlete speaker's bureau), and the local community. The program provides athletes and coaches with a chance to serve as role models in the community to emphasize the importance of education. As a result of their efforts, URI's student-athletes received a proclamation from the Governor in honor of National Student-Athlete Day on April 6. "The program was extremely successful and it exceeded our expectations. Athletes enjoyed their experiences and most want to come back next year. The response from the community was very positive, also. We received letters and posters from children and teachers who were happy to see student-athletes out in the community. We are really proud of the program's success," said George Nomis, coordinator of the "Athlete Volunteers in Action" program. Throughout the school year, these students conducted a very successful clothing, sneaker and toy drive during the holidays for the Johnnycake Center and volunteered to sort and price clothes at the Center. Baseball players and coaches visited Hasbro Children's Hospital and the soccer, basketball, gymnastics, track and field, and field hockey sports teams have hosted a number of youth sports clinics. During Reading Week, more than 30 student-athletes visited local elementary schools including West Kingston, Peace Dale, Richmond, South Road and Quidnessett Elementary. Throughout the semester, student-athletes spoke to local schools at assemblies. Rhody Talk also organized campus tours for elementary and junior high schools. This year, many community groups joined forces with URI athletic teams to spread their message. At sports contests, groups such as the RI Breast Cancer Coalition, the Coalition Against Domestic Violence and the Feinstein Center for A Hunger-Free America distributed information and spoke about their programs. The Visiting Nurses Association was on hand to conduct a blood pressure screening before a game this season. The volunteering didn't end with the semester, however. Over the summer, the student-athletes are participating in the Ronald McDonald House Walk-a-thon, the Peace Dale Library Reading Night, visiting the St. Rose Lima School, and volunteering at the Rhode Island Special Olympics Summer Games. By Jennifer Smith |
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