THE 2011 WAKE FOREST ATHLETICS C.H.A.M.P.S. COMMUNITY REPORT CHallenging Athletes’ Minds for Personal Success
A word from Athletic Director Ron Wellman: As you know, Demon Deacon student-athletes are committed to excellence in their athletic and academic pursuits. They also are committed to service in our community. Whether it be volunteering for Santa's Helper, Project Pumpkin, Special Olympics, Eat With the Deacs, or tutoring in elementary and middle schools, our student-athletes are there helping others. In fact, 77% of them volunteer each year. And each of them state that they get much more out of their experience than they give. The Pro-Humanitate spirit of Wake Forest is honored in the Athletic Department through the volunteer efforts of our student-athletes and staff. We recognize how fortunate we are and believe it is important to help those who are less fortunate than us. Please review this 2011 C.H.A.M.P.S. Community Report. It is another reason for us to be "Proud to be a Deacon!"
Program Spotlight Eat With The Deacs Every month during the school year our athletes invite a children’s group from the community onto campus for a tour and a pizza dinner. During this time our athletes show the group that, to succeed, you must also take your studies seriously. The kids and student-athletes all have a great time! Santa’s Helper Santa’s Helper is a non-profit organization that was started by a Wake Forest football player 25 years ago. Volunteers wrap thousands of presents, and deliver them to over 300 families and 1000 children in the greater Winston-Salem area. It is a two-day event that take places after the student-athletes’ final exams in December. Many, however, choose to stay and volunteer before heading home for the holidays. They are joined by coaches, staff, and administrators to make the event one that positively affects children’s lives. Habitat for Humanity For the past two years, Wake Forest has sponsored a Habitat for Humanity house. It is a point of pride that we have several of our teams take their weekends off to go together to build on the house. In fall 2010 the student-athletes were able to commit six sessions of building for the house.
Other Programs Project Pumpkin. Around Halloween each year, WFU brings in thousands of children for games and trick-or-treating on the Quad. Wake studentathletes love having fun with the kids!
Sports Spectacular. Wake Forest Athletics hosts a sports day for the Boy Scouts of America every spring. The day gives them a great experience at a baseball game and a chance to hone their athletic skills with the student-athletes.
D.E.S.K. Every April on the Magnolia Quad, hundreds Read Across America. As part of the naof WFU student organiza- tionwide event, Wake Forest Studenttions, student- Athletes enjoy taking an afternoon or morning to read to athletes inelementary school cluded, can be children. found painting a school desk for a boy or girl. The groups paint what the child likes, and they all have a good time giving the child a proper place to study. Skip Prosser Literacy Program Special Olympics. Each May Wake For- Named for the late men’s basketball coach Skip Prosser, the Skip Prosser est hosts the Special Olympics Spring Games. Student-athletes are instrumen- Literacy Program encourages fourth graders in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth tal in its County school system to read as many success, books as possible in a certain time cheering frame. WFU on particistudentpants and athletes help giving out kick off the awards and program each ribbons after each event is completed. year and visit schools.
The CHAMPS Cup In the spring semester of 2011, the CHAMPS/Life Skills program introduced the CHAMPS Cup. The CHAMPS Cup is a competitive game that is played by all the varsity sports at Wake Forest. It is a fun, easy way to track volunteer hours, and gives a sense of personal accountability for teammates. It provides a means by which student-athletes can compete on behalf of their teams for points in different categories. The categories are based on the five commitment areas of the NCAA CHAMPS/Life Skills Program, renamed slightly to fit the needs of WFU. The categories are: • • • • • •
Community Outreach Enhancement Programs Athletes Supporting Athletes sporting events Athletic Achievement Academic Achievement Above and Beyond
One men’s team and one women’s team is named each year as the victors. This year’s inaugural winning squads were Field Hockey and Men’s Track & Field/ Cross Country! For the Spring 2011 semester alone, the two teams combined for 545 hours of community outreach. They were treated to a victory dinner by the Athletic Director, Ron Wellman, and each team will be given a trophy to display in their locker room or office. The hope is that, as time goes on, the teams will embrace this fun competition and increase their volunteer hours, as well as continuing to strive for the highest academic and athletic standards.
Student-Athlete Volunteer Hours Analysis It is a point of pride on our Athletic Department that our student-athletes regularly choose to volunteer much of their time. Here you will find information that will give you an idea about how much our student-athletes do each year. Total Number of Hours for the 2010-2011 school year………………...2,444.5 Number of Athletes who volunteered…………………………………..330 Percentage of Athletes who volunteered………………………………..77% Average number of hours per athlete……………………………………7.4 Percentage of teams that volunteered…………………………………...100%