Academic Sports Camp Helps High-School Athletes Improve Their Sat Scores By 100-200 Points

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A group of New York State's top high-school athletes who attended a sports camp called ACHIEVE held this summer at the University at Buffalo exceeded their goals -- and it had nothing to do with three-pointers or touchdowns.

Their accomplishment was measured on practice SAT tests, where some of the campers raised their scores by more than 100 points. In some cases, the improvement at the end of the week-long camp was more than 200 points.

The camp participants were selected based on their athletic accomplishments and the fact that they were not high scorers in standardized tests.

The test-score improvement they showed at the end of the free, academic camp Òwas absolutely amazing," said Nelson E. Townsend, director of athletics at UB.

"As the week went on, you saw their confidence build," he added. "They told us that they came into the camp ready to fail, but by the end of the week, they were saying 'This isn't as difficult as I thought it would be'. "

ACHIEVE stands for Athletic Camp to Heighten and Improve the Experience and Value of Education. It was coordinated by Fajri Ansari, assistant admissions director at Buffalo State College and a varsity coach at Turner Carroll High School here.

According to Townsend, the impetus for the camp was the fact that many promising local high-school athletes have been unable to fully exploit their talents at the collegiate level because of poor academic performance.

"Of the last 14 seniors who were named Athletes of the Year in Buffalo, only four were able to go on to the institutions of their choice because they didn't have the grades or the SAT scores," he explained.

"My theory was that if you put athletes together in a disciplined academic setting, they would succeed."

Students, drawn mostly from Buffalo and Rochester high schools, were recruited by their coaches, whom Townsend had contacted during the spring.

The atmosphere was intense. Students spent each morning from Saturday through Friday from 9 to noon in classes at the Stanley Kaplan Educational Center in the UB Commons.

Afternoon sessions dealt with aspects of college life, such as dating, drugs, religion, and financial issues, which were led by UB professors and staff and coaches from local universities. Sessions on athletic development and games also were held in the afternoon.

Coaches and speakers donated their time. The only out-of-pocket expense was compensation for the Stanley Kaplan instructors, which was paid for by UB.

"We made it very clear to these kids," said Townsend, "we said, 'If you miss one day or if you're late one day, don't bother coming back. The program costs you nothing, but you have to make a commitment and stick with it'."

There were no dropouts.

Townsend noted that the initial goal was to provide a 10-day, residence experience at UB.

"We wanted them to live in the dorms, eat in the dining hall, have a full college living experience," he said.

Unfortunately, because a corporate sponsor could not be identified in time, the decision was made to turn it into a day-camp format.

Impressed with the success of this summer's program, Townsend and Ansari are looking for corporate sponsors to fund a sleepaway experience for June 1997.