College Athlete Academic Progress Rates May Not Be “Fair Or Accurate,” Sports Journalist Says

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Almost all of the public universities in Virginia have at least one sport with a perfect academic progress rate among its athletes, but that may not be as impressive as it sounds. The NCAA says schools are required to report how well athletes with scholarships perform in classrooms using “a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete.” But those scores may not be “a fair or accurate picture of [students’] academic progress,” Dom Amore, a sports journalist for the Hartford Courant, said. Amore, a columnist and reporter who covers the University of Connecticut men’s basketball team, said that to satisfy the NCAA, a university just needs to make sure its athletes don’t fail required classes and don’t transfer or drop out in the middle of a semester. “It’s not hard to achieve a [score of] 1,000,” Amore said. “You just have to make sure the kids go to class.”

Amore said that some schools are likely at a disadvantage for APR scores.

A Flip Of A Coin, Now He’s Editor Of His High School Newspaper

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Caleb Ogilvie entered journalism by a coin flip — heads for yearbook and tails for journalism – because he was unable to make a clear decision between the two. Since joining journalism class in high school, his passion for the profession has grown and he is now editor of his school newspaper. He has expressed his joy in interviewing people and being able to write stories on particular individuals. “I enjoy seeing people’s eyes light up when they are talking about their passions,” Ogilvie said. Although he is still looking at colleges, Ogilvie does plan to continue to major in and pursue a career in journalism.

Speaking For A Better Humanity: Smith Uses Journalism To Inspire Improvement

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A miscommunication between friends has led 18-year-old Rodjae Smith to become a passionate speaker inspiring those around her to always improve in the face of adversity. The senior was once soft-spoken in middle school, but was forced into presenting two seventh-grade projects when her friends were unorganized and embarrassing her group with poor collaboration skills. Realizing it was better to boldly present a project than have it seem like the group was unprepared, Smith shed her quiet personality and used impromptu communication skills to have a successful presentation. “I think, most likely, there was a competitive side to me that liked the attention of speaking,” Smith said. Today, the high school senior from West Haven, Connecticut, has been inspired by speaking her mind to use journalism to challenge readers’ ideas by introducing them to new perspectives.