Metro State Softball

April 22, 2008

The Metro State athletic department has received the Division II Community Engagement Award for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), the NCAA and the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators (NACMA) announced this week.

Metro State received the honor for its "Building Bridges to the Community" program. In the fall of 2007, the Metropolitan State College of Denver Softball Team "adopted" the Denver West High School Girls' Softball Team. This partnering between the Metro Softball Team and the West High School Team is an ongoing relationship meant to build bridges between the college and Denver Public Schools.

"I think this is a great opportunity, not only for the West High students, but for our student-athletes here at Metro State," Athletic Director Joan McDermott said. "They are great role models who can positively impact the lives of young people in local schools. It is also important for our student-athletes to realize they have a responsibility to give back to the community."

This past fall, Metro State softball student-athletes conducted several life-skills seminars at the high school dealing with leadership, the importance of academics, and success in athletics and life. Key to these seminars was the active participation of both the college and high school student-athletes in activities that included role playing, group discussions, and one-on-one interactions. Topics covered resisting negative peer pressure, the value of sports participation, and the college experience. Especially important was the pairing up of college and high school student-athletes in a study session; the college student-athletes were able to show the high school students what their studies at college are like, how they handle their busy schedules, and what their future plans entail. The Metro State softball players also attended a couple of the high school team's practices and games to show their support and provide encouragement to their "adopted" team.

The program will grow in the Fall of 2008 as all of Metro State's athletic teams will mentor select Denver Public Schools.

Division II and NACMA staged the contest to build momentum for Division II's community-engagement initiative and reward institutions for their creativity in advancing the initiative. Division II schools were encouraged to submit their best community-engagement promotion from the "ideas that work" section on the Division II community-engagement Web site (www.diicommunity.org).