We have been honoring student-athletes nationwide for over 20 years
National STUDENT-Athlete Day was created in 1987 by the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS) and Northeastern University’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society. Currently, it is presented with The NCAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). National STUDENT-Athlete Day is one of America’s strongest endeavors to increase the positive virtues of sport and the recognition of student-athletes nationwide.
National STUDENT-Athlete Day has gone from recognizing a small number of outstanding student-athletes in 1987 to honoring over 2.6 million since 1997. National STUDENT-Athlete Day has also become an opportunity to honor the parents, teachers, coaches and administrators who have made it possible for student-athletes to succeed in all realms of their lives and who use sport as a vehicle to make positive social changes throughout the world.
Dr. Richard Lapchick, founder and Executive Director of the NCAS and founder and Director Emeritus of Sport in Society, hopes “that high schools, colleges and universities will take advantage of this opportunity to honor their outstanding student-athletes. National STUDENT-Athlete Day is a powerful opportunity to promote those who have become leaders and have gone above and beyond what is expected. Honored student-athletes have demonstrated the most important things we can get by being involved in sport.”
In conjunction with National STUDENT-Athlete Day, Giant Steps Awards are given on the national level in the categories of courageous student-athletes, coaches, civic leaders, athletics administrators, parents and teachers. Chosen by a national selection committee from hundreds of nominations received nationwide, these individuals exemplify the meaning of National STUDENT-Athlete Day. From 1995-1999, President William Jefferson Clinton honored Giant Steps Award winners with a private ceremony at the White House.
