In high school sports, some things last long after final scores are tallied, sports seasons come to an end and jerseys are hung up for good.
Like leadership, self-confidence and values.
In a study of 931 men who participated in varsity-level high school sports an average of 60 years earlier, they demonstrated higher levels of leadership and enjoyed higher-status careers. They also exhibited more prosocial behavior than non-athletes—they more frequently volunteered their time and donated to charity.¹⁰
These findings confirm that the important life skills, traits and values learned on the playing field never fade, even six decades later.
And parents of today’s high school athletes can already see it forming:¹¹
• 90% say participation is building their student’s leadership skills
• 86% say participation gives their student positive mentorship from a trusted school-based adult
When a student learns they can do hard things, they become an adult who believes they can do hard things. When they develop confidence in the game, they carry that confidence with them into the rest of their lives. And the lessons that start at this formative age last decades after their playing days are over.
Simply put, the measure of a high school sports program is not the trophy case—it is the adults that student-athletes become. State high school associations are run by educators, and THAT is the outcome that educators are accountable for.
¹⁰Sports at Work: Anticipated and Persistent Correlates of Participation in High School Athletics
¹¹The NFHS National Parent Benchmark Study
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THE MISSION
Helping students learn life lessons. Grow as people. Become responsible adults and productive citizens. Why do our 51 state high school associations exist?
To make sure that happens.
Run by educators, our state high school associations protect high school sports and activities by:
So our students have the opportunity to compete, to learn and to belong.
State high school associations believe in the power of high school sports and activities for every student, every school and every community. And they believe the true purpose of high school sports and activities is worth protecting and preserving for generations to come.
Join us in sharing these messages all year long on social media! Together, let’s all #ProtectThePurpose!
