Jed Lowrie Hits Books at Stanford to Keep Up With Globetrotting Fiancee

Finally,  some proof out there that baseball players finish their degrees during their playing careers.

Click on link above to read article written by Fanhouse.com's Ed Price

Jacksonville Jaguars-Back in Class

Posted this from Tom Kowalski's Twitter Feed.

Five members of the Jaguars are enrolled in classes this offseason.  Would love to see MLB encourage and assist their players in returning to class

www.jaguars.com/news/article.aspx?id=9811

Baseball's done, now what

I've never really thought about this too much since I threw my last pitch in Santiago, Dominican Republic in January 2008.  I remember thinking to myself after giving the ball to my manager for the last time,  "Well, that part of my life is over, now what?"  I almost immediately turned the page on my professional baseball career and looked forward to my life and career after baseball.  The problem was I wasn't prepared for life after baseball.  I wasn't prepared psychologically, financially, or mentally for the challenges that lie ahead.  I flew home satisfied with the modest career I put together but completely clueless on how I was going to lead my family and myself into the next stage of our lives.  From that point on, I began to make hasty and desperate decisions about my future because I never took the time to plan for life after baseball.

I had been lucky to enough to dream of doing something as a kid and having the talent and opportunity to pursue it.  For 25+ years I was all baseball, all the time, and then instantly that was gone.

Looking back, it would have been so easy to commit to finishing my education online during my playing career.  I was only15 hours shy or graduation and never even looked into what I would need to do to finish.  I also should have taken offseason jobs that could have helped build my resume or give me the opportunity to network with valuable future contacts. 

NFL players get help with post football careers

An excellent article highlighting the NFL-NCAA Football Academy, a program the NFL developed to assist current and former players who want to get into coaching at all levels once their playing careers are over.

Another example of the reason why the NFL is the gold-standard of sports leagues in providing opportunities for current and former athletes to excel in business and career pursuits once their playing days are over. 



http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/article/New-academy-geared-at-helping-players-transition-1016274.php

Follow NFL Player Development Program on Twitter

The NFL Player Development Program can be followed on Twitter.

http://twitter.com/#!/NFLPlayerDev

Major League Baseball's College Scholarship Program

In the early 1960s, the Major League Baseball Clubs established the Professional Baseball Scholarship Plan to help baseball players further their college educations.  A players is eligible for this program if it has been included in their first year Uniform Player Contract.  Not all players are eligible to receive the benefits of this program.

The basic agreements and guidelines of the scholarship program can be found here:

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/official_info/scholarship.jsp?content=guide

 During my research I found that a great number of Arizona Fall League players rec'd some version of the Professional Baseball Scholarship Plan included in their first year contracts.

However,  of  the 22 players that rec'd a version of the Professional Baseball Scholarship Plan only 4 had since returned to school to complete additional coursework.  Three players re-enrolled during the fall semester during an offseason and one player had taken additional coursework online. 

More assistance is needed to assist ballplayers in taking the necessary steps to finish their education before or immediately after their playing careers are over.  Their chance for success outside the game of baseball increases if they have their four-year college degree.  

NHL Continuing Education and Career Development Programs

The NHL Alumni Association partners with the Professional Athlete Transition Institute (PATI) to develop and implement programs to assist with career development and transition services for all former and current NHL athletes.  The PATI is implemented by Quinnipiac University and is located in Hamden, Connecticut. The PATI is dedicated to the development of niche services designed to meet the career development, career transition, education and research needs of elite athletes and the organizations that serve them. (“Professional athlete training, 2010”)  The PATI offers a variety of customized services for former NHL athletes. These services are designed to enhance the educational, business, skill development, and personal goals of current and former NHL members.

The PATI offers the following specialized services to all current and former NHL players: entrepreneurial services, educational services, career exploration and transition, one-on-one business and life coaching, business skills development, and work study programs. 

The PATI recognizes that all professional athletes possess a variety of unique competencies and skills related to teamwork, leadership, perseverance, and discipline that are unique to the  new career seeking athlete.  They also understand that athletes lack first-hand corporate work experience.  The PATI strategically partners with several corporations to develop a dynamic learning community, with customized, flexible job-shadow, information meeting, mentor and Internship guidelines and programs. (“Professional athlete training”, 2009

 Below is a link to the PATI

http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x270.xml