Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Rowing Conducts Learn to Row Program at Local Middle Schools
11/28/2011 7:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
Nov. 28, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell women's program has been conducting a Learn to Row initiative that has introduced the sport of rowing to more than 1,000 seventh and eighth graders at local Central Susquehanna Valley middle schools this fall. Bison student-athletes, members of the coaching staff, as well as representatives from the Bucknell men's club-varsity crew team and Susquehanna University rowing program participated in the educational sessions.
The Learn to Row clinics have been conducted during physical education classes at Danville, Selinsgrove and Shikellamy middle schools. Future clinics will take place at middle schools in Milton and Montandon in early 2012. Each hands-on session is two days and includes detailed instruction about how to row on an ergometer.
Each class received one-on-one instruction from either a coach or rower, and the last 15 minutes of each session featured a relay race between teams from the phys-ed classes. The relay race allowed the students to see the fun, engaging and competitive side of rowing.
"The middle school Learn to Row erg clinics are a great way to introduce rowing to our area," commented Bucknell first-year assistant coach Chelsea Pemberton, who was the organizer of the initiative. "Our hope is that we will be able to spread the word about the sport of rowing and possibly see a high school rowing program start in the area. Rowing is a sport that promotes time management skills, focus and teamwork, and it is so fun to watch a middle school student who didn't even want to participate at the beginning of class make a change and end up being the leader of his or her team by the end."
