Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Student-Athlete Enrichment -- 2021 Spring Recap
6/9/2021 3:10:00 PM | Student-Athlete Enrichment
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The 2020-21 academic year was certainly a challenging one for all 700-plus Bison student-athletes. Whether it was the uncertainty of competition and training opportunities surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, a modified academic and social environment, the ongoing social unrest across the nation, the critical election period in the fall, and simply staying physically and mentally healthy, Bucknell’s student-athletes had so much more on their plates in 2020-21 than in any previous “normal” year.
Even though athletics competition went on hiatus in the fall, and then all 27 varsity teams competed seemingly at once in a busy but modified spring season, the Bucknell Student-Athlete Enrichment program was there every step of the way to provide resources and support in a number of different areas.
“We are all so proud of how our student-athletes remained engaged and committed to a number of different causes, despite the uncertainty of the past year,” said Jen Kentera, senior associate director of athletics for leadership development. “We bid farewell to a tremendous group of leaders in the Class of 2021, and we wish them all the best as they move on to their next chapters. There is also a very dedicated leadership group returning in 2021-22, and we are excited to continue working with all of them later this year.”
The following is a recap of just some of the major engagement initiatives from the spring semester in each of the enrichment program’s three areas of focus:
DEVELOP
A major component of the enrichment program is developing student-athletes in a holistic sense, with a particular focus on their personal excellence and health and wellness. Partnerships with Togetherall and Headspace are two initiatives that place a particular focus on student-athletes’ mental health and preparation.
This past spring, the Bucknell Counseling & Student Development Center, in partnership with the Bucknell Student Government and the Division of Student Affairs, offered Togetherall for free to all students. This mental health resource is “a peer-to-peer mental health community that empowers students to anonymously seek and provide support.” Through the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee’s Health & Wellness Committee, every team’s SAAC rep watched a training session on how best to utilize the platform and then encouraged their teammates to create an account.
Bison teams and individual student-athletes also continued to utilize their free premium Headspace membership. An overwhelming number of student-athletes said this resource aided them in falling asleep more efficiently as well as getting better quality sleep. They also report that Headspace helps them feel less stressed overall, while allowing them to be more present and focused every day.
In terms of mental performance, sessions with Bucknell mental performance consultant Liz Brookhouse were available upon request throughout the spring semester, and eight group sessions were held throughout the year.
Academic coaching and tutoring opportunities continued throughout the busy spring semester. In fact, the Student-Athlete Engagement staff saw an increase in requests for individual academic coaching meetings, where students were able to meet one-on-one with trained staff to help them navigate the challenging semester.
Bucknell Athletics also works closely with the Teaching & Learning Center, where we continued to share resources with student-athletes and encourage them to sign up for both individual and peer tutoring sessions. If additional tutoring was needed, or if it pertained to a class not specifically supported through the TLC, enrichment staff was able to consult directly with professors and students to hire tutors.
LEAD
The Bucknell Athletics Leadership Institute saw a jam-packed semester geared toward its three leadership levels: Leadership Labs, Igniting Leaders and Team Leader Round Table.
Spring sessions for the Team Leader Round Table, comprised of designated team captains or team leaders, focused on leading with resilience during uncertain times, how to lead with an infinite mindset and important leadership lessons learned.
The Igniting Leaders group, comprised of selected sophomores and juniors, spent the winter break reading Dare to Lead, by Brené Brown, followed by discussions on key takeaways from the book that promotes brave leadership and courageous cultures. Another session focused on building confidence, and in the final session, Round Table and Igniting Leaders held a joint session that explored the student-athletes’ leadership journey with a sharing of valuable lessons from their fellow leaders.
Leadership Labs are open workshops for any student-athlete interested in growing their leadership skills. This spring’s Leadership Lab was led by Professor Amira Rose Davis. Her talk, “Black Women and the (In)Visibility of Athletic Activism: Past, Present and Future”, focused on race, gender, sports and politics. The session was offered to the entire Bucknell campus and was sponsored by the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Gender and the Women’s & Gender Studies Department.
In addition, Gideon Akande, a first generation and former Patriot League student-athlete of color, held a session open to all student-athletes in partnership with SAAC that focused on balancing academics and athletics, overcoming adversity, and how to stay motivated in challenging times. Akande, who was the winner of the Men’s Health Next Top Trainer Contest in 2015 as well as a two-time Chicago Golden Gloves Champion, shared his experiences transitioning from the corporate world to becoming a personal trainer and fitness instructor.
SAAC kicked off the 2021 calendar year with a Zoom HIIT workout led by Brandon Sanders of the Bison football team. Led by the Student-Athlete Initiatives Committee and open to all student-athletes, the session was a great way for everyone to connect during a break period prior to returning to campus.
SAAC was also proud to create and execute the First-Year Herd Together Program. This newly formed program paired first-year student-athletes across teams with SAAC reps to help them better integrate within the Bucknell community. The group is excited to keep building upon this initiative this fall.
The second week in March was Mental Health Awareness Week, and each of the SAAC committees was assigned a day for a different initiative. On Monday, the Campus Events Committee organized “In the Flow and In the Know”, a mind and body yoga session. On Tuesday, the Health & Wellness Committee’s “Destress on the Go” allowed student-athletes to make their own stress relief goodie bags with stress balls, a mindfulness journal, coloring pages, and more. On Wednesday, the Student-Athlete Initiatives Committee hosted a virtual pet show, showcasing everyone’s favorite pets. On Thursday, the Community Service Committee highlighted different initiatives that were conducted throughout the year, with a focus on how giving back can help improve one’s own overall wellbeing. And finally, the week wrapped up with the Social Responsibility Committee providing teams with inspirational posters to hang in their locker rooms.
In partnership with the Patriot League SAAC, an awareness campaign was held in April and May to remind student-athletes who might be struggling with their mental health of the many resources available. Simply bringing to light the fact that many students and student-athletes suffer from anxiety, eating disorders and depression helps destigmatize talking about mental health.
Also this spring, the Social Responsibility Committee hosted an Anti-Asian Racism community discussion, led by Bucknell professors and students. Participants were asked to watch the PBS documentary “Breaking Through” in preparation for the discussion session.
Continuing its efforts from the fall semester, the SAAC’s Bison Cares group members met bi-weekly throughout the spring to highlight virtual and in-person community service opportunities.
ENGAGE
Continuing on the theme of giving back to the community, Bucknell student-athletes continued to expand the “Books by Bison” initiative. Numerous student-athletes participated in virtual reading sessions on Instagram Live. The entire Bison wrestling team read children’s books over the course of three weeks, and coaches Matt Brown (men’s soccer) and David Madsen (women’s soccer) participated as well. The reading sessions will continue to be made accessible to parents and local communities.
The Bison Athletes of Color affinity group and SAAC put together a reading initiative with more than 30 reading sessions for kids in kindergarten through third grade (including e-school students) at Lewisburg’s Kelly Elementary School. Every child had an opportunity to interact with a Bucknell student-athlete via Zoom, and the books were also available in the school library, so students could then check them out themselves and explore them on their own. Each book highlighted people of color and historic events, and we even had three student-athletes read to ESL classrooms and engage in both English and Spanish.
Bucknell Athletics also continued to partner with various elementary schools that serve low-income students as part of the “Read to Lead” program. Derek Knight (swimming & diving), Kelsey O’Loughlin (volleyball) and Chris Lanciano (wrestling) read virtually to classrooms across the area, and thanks to funding from the Bucknell Community Engagement Fund, the books were then donated to every student.
In partnership with Bucknell Sports Properties and Weis Markets, SAAC helped stage a food drive that resulted in more than 1,000 items going to the Union County Food Hub.
All told, Bison student-athletes completed more than 1,500 hours of community service during the spring semester, and Bucknell finished 11th in the HelperHelper challenge among all Division I schools.
Just as they extended their reach into the local community, Bucknell student-athletes were just as active on campus last semester. Bison student-athletes were well-represented on campus committees such as the Dining Committee and the Library & IT Committee.
And then there was the area of social responsibility, and once again Bucknell student-athletes proudly stepped up. The student-led Bison Athletes of Color affinity group, which just wrapped up its inaugural year, already has been actively involved in a number of initiatives, such as partnering with SAAC for the Bucknell Athletics Virtual Reading program. They offered sessions for its members with Amira Rose Davis and Marcus Scales, Bucknell’s Director of Multicultural Student Services. In addition to the BALI Leadership Lab open to all students, Professor Davis led separate discussions for BAC and staff. The latter session focused on ways to continue to create diverse and inclusive spaces throughout Bison Athletics.
BAC strives to create an environment that fosters development, engagement and collaboration between peers from underrepresented racial and ethnic backgrounds, as well as bridge partnerships with other affinity groups, staff and faculty, and resources across campus.
Bison student-athletes and staff were able to attend this year’s virtual Black Student-Athlete Summit, where key takeaways and resources were shared during a Bucknell Athletics DEI Council meeting.
In an effort to show visual representation around social justice, student-athletes were able to select and receive tee shirts with one of four phrases: Black Lives Matter, Justice, Equality or Anti-Racist.
Join us this upcoming Tuesday for a discussion on Anti-Asian Racism. Swipe to see how to prepare for the meeting! #supportapida #saac pic.twitter.com/qmp4VZMcT4
— Bucknell SAAC (@BucknellSaac) May 6, 2021
Excited to launch our brand new ?? Summer LEAD Fellowship ?? #rayBucknell pic.twitter.com/VPKS8ZXLSq
— Bucknell SA Enrichment (@Bucknell_Enrich) June 3, 2021
