Scholarships Disappear With Extracurriculars

FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ohio -- Randy Hall plays football, runs track and planned to wrestle at Westland High School.

But, like many other kids in the South-Western City School District, Randy won't be counting on a sports scholarship because the district is eliminating all extra-curricular activities.

His mom, Cindy Skaggs says she's not sure what he'll do now. "Can I honestly say that he would be recruited by a college to play sports. I can't say that. But he ought to have that option."

A Washington Post investigation found that only about one- or two-percent of high school athletes get scholarship money to keep playing in college.

And the New York Times found that it's even rarer to get a full ride.

The Ohio State University Office of Economic Access says expenses for full-time, on-campus students run about $24,000 per year. The newspapers found that the average scholarship recipient gets about $10,000. And football players weren't the awarded the highest amounts.

The highest amounts went to men’s and women’s ice hockey players.

For some parents, the solution is to transfer to another school district.

The Ohio High School Athletic Association says transfer athletes have to sit out for a year unless their district has completely discontinued sports programs. But Exception 11 of Bylaw 4-7-2 only applies to students who've already played the same sport in the old school.

Tally Hart, the Senior Advisor for OSU's Office of Economic Access says only about 440 student athletes have full rides. And only half of the university's 47,000 students have even half of their expenses covered. The rest comes from loans, jobs and parents.

But, Hart says, "There has never been stronger support for state and federal financial aid. It's a great time to go to college despite what's going on in their school districts."

Hart says there are dozens of state, federal and institutional grants as well. Some businesses even offer tuition help for employees' families. She also suggests looking at organizations that the student or parents belong to like clubs, churches, and synagogues.

She says it is vital for every student, regardless of financial need or athletic prowess, to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application. She says it is the first step to all financial aid options. Hart also recommends staying in touch with school guidance counselors who may know about locally-available financial aid.

"And they should try FastWeb.com," Hart says. "It has more than a million scholarships that students can search to see if they find a good match."

Community service and leadership positions are helpful. "And they should spend some extra time on their academics," Hart recommends.

But time is running out for Randy. His mom is worried that losing sports may cost him a shot at a college culinary arts program.

"It's killing him," Cindy says. "He's worked so hard. And all of these kids have. I don't know what he's going to do."

She hopes the school board will find something else to cut and reinstate sports.

OHSAA Rules on Transferring from Schools Dropping Sports: http://www.ohsaa.org/news/misc/SchoolsDroppingSports.pdf

For scholarship information, visit:

Ohio State:
Minority Scholarship Services—
http://oma.osu.edu/current-students/minority-scholarship-services/funding-programs/index.php

Music Scholarships—
http://music.osu.edu/3_academics/undergraduate/majors/scholarships.php

Honors Scholarships—
http://honors.osu.edu/phHeadlines.aspx?h=61

Otterbein College:
http://www.otterbein.edu/Financialaid/scholarships.asp

Ohio University:
Comprehensive list of scholarships awarded at Ohio University—
http://www-sfa.chubb.ohiou.edu/cgi-win/SCHOLAR.EXE/list

Multicultural Scholarships—
http://www-sfa.chubb.ohiou.edu/cgi-win/SCHOLAR.EXE/multicultural

http://www.fastweb.com

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