Fitting in other EC's as a varsity athlete

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would suggest a couple things:

1. Whatever class is the “leadership” thing at his school. It is strictly a resume type thing.
2. Scouts. He is not very likely to make Eagle but it is easy to get involved and ticks leadership boxes. Maybe he loves it and pushes through. Certainly Eagle rank is a plus for military academies. But, Eagle or not, he can still be a troop leader which will help and scouts are very understanding with time requirements for high school kids. Most Scout things are self paced, and meetings are evenings. Two of my kids did Scouts with friends who later swam in college so it can easily be done.

Honestly, a 14 year old kid who joined and focused on advancement during the summers could easily make Eagle, and that still has some little pull at the academies (and elsewhere). My two youngest are Eagles and they regularly stop by to grab their camping gear as they are off to hike/camp for a few days.

He's thought about scouts but would prefer Civil Air Patrol. (He wants to fly eventually) Good enough alternative?

[Anonymous]

It's hard. But as a Scout leader, I will say that we've had many kids do very well and even make Eagle while playing varsity sports. They just put in extra time during their off season and summer. We have one kid now who hasn't attended a single meeting since January due to his spring sport, but he joins weekend activities when he can, took a Troop role that he can do somewhat independently, and works on advancement requirements at his own pace. He'll be more active again when playoffs are over. We're flexible.

Depending on where you live, you could also look into the Civil Air Patrol cadet program. The group I knew about many years ago had more weekend/ evening activities, but I don't know what schedule the local groups have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does his school have an activity period? My kids go to a private school that does this. Once a week, there's an extended lunch period when clubs meet. They may have extra activities at other times, but nothing after school.

Aside from that, he could look for something that doesn't meet that often but that he still finds interesting. He could explain to the moderator that it's tough to come during swim season. A lot of club moderators are willing to work with kids who show up most of the time.

He could also look for church-oriented activities.

+1 One of my athlete son's clubs meets before school on Friday mornings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you should focus on the activities that will help your DC get an appointment. If your kid isn't fast enough to get recruited, then dial back the swimming and focus on scouts and leadership opportunities. Swim for fun and to stay in shape. Good luck.

Coaches don't allow this. It's what everybody has been saying.

That's not entirely true, that level of swimming exists in many clubs, or just doing the HS team unless the team is so competitive it's really only year round swimmers, which is definitely the case at some DMV schools.

However, many kids who have been at this high level of swimming have a very hard time "dropping back" and prefer to leave the sport instead. I have HS kids at the highest level, one is already committed to college. I have never seen a kid leave this group and keep swimming at the base club level for fun and staying in shape. Pride, burnout, moving on, different priorities... any number of reasons, but although a low level commitment group is an option, they just don't do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s tough with sports but kids do it so they might have better advice.

My advice - don’t do everything at once. What season does your son play his sports? Could he devote more time to his leadership activities in the off-season?

It's EXTREMELY difficult. And I worry about my kid doing too much. It's almost like they have to choose between things, even when they have multiple interests (like mine does). And it sucks.

And I'll note that the coaches and teacher advisors don't help. Everything is "this activity needs to be the priority and if it's not you won't [letter/get credit/ be permitted to participate]." There's VERY little flexibility to allow kids to try different things, or recognize some kids have an interest but may not want to dedicate themselves full time to the Green Club or other clubs, and then they get spread way too thin. This is the time to try things! And yet they can't do it.

Depends on the coach. My son plays a varsity sport that is very competitive. We have about 90 kids come to try out for 25 spots. His coach is great about missing practice for school activities or simply because they have a heavy school load and a test is coming up.

The issue is the sport is competitive and even when you make the team you still have to keep your starting spot. If another kid is at practice more and progressing you can lose your starting position or lose some play time if you are not starting. My son starts in his position and there are two guys behind him. He’s always watching his back and trying to keep his top spot and he knows he can only do that with practice and dedication. His coach makes changes in the starting line up all the time based on how kids are performing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree that it's very hard. Mine is involved in a sport that is also year round and very time-intensive. We found that adding the HS version of the sport was really challenging b/c it left so little time outside of school hours to get anything done. I'm not sure it was worth it.

We know a family friend going to a service academy and that student did JROTC at school. That took away time from their sport on occasion, but was a huge help getting into the service academy. Maybe look at that instead.

I will second the suggestion to look into JROTC (CAP or Sea Cadets as outside alternatives) for both service/leadership and "military" style ECs. It's my understanding Service Academies also look very favorably on Varsity sport participation so if your DC can keep it up, that is in their favor.

Good luck! (And remember, once they can start to drive themselves to activities -- it's a game changer!) Swim parents have my mega-respect for their likewise early morning dedication.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that it's very hard. Mine is involved in a sport that is also year round and very time-intensive. We found that adding the HS version of the sport was really challenging b/c it left so little time outside of school hours to get anything done. I'm not sure it was worth it.

We know a family friend going to a service academy and that student did JROTC at school. That took away time from their sport on occasion, but was a huge help getting into the service academy. Maybe look at that instead.

I will second the suggestion to look into JROTC (CAP or Sea Cadets as outside alternatives) for both service/leadership and "military" style ECs. It's my understanding Service Academies also look very favorably on Varsity sport participation so if your DC can keep it up, that is in their favor.

Good luck! (And remember, once they can start to drive themselves to activities -- it's a game changer!) Swim parents have my mega-respect for their likewise early morning dedication.

OP here. I am SO excited for the drivers license! Not a morning person.

He's been wanting to look into CAP (not JROTC here), so we'll see if we can fit that in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I will second the suggestion to look into JROTC (CAP or Sea Cadets as outside alternatives) for both service/leadership and "military" style ECs. It's my understanding Service Academies also look very favorably on Varsity sport participation so if your DC can keep it up, that is in their favor.

Good luck! (And remember, once they can start to drive themselves to activities -- it's a game changer!) Swim parents have my mega-respect for their likewise early morning dedication.

OP here. I am SO excited for the drivers license! Not a morning person.

He's been wanting to look into CAP (not JROTC here), so we'll see if we can fit that in.

No doubt. I'm already dreading the short window we'll have between when DC1 is off to college and DC2 won't quite have a DL and I'm back to being a Moober (Mom-Uber!). Teen driving is the epitome of a dual-edged sword: you so want them to do it, to be independent but inherently know the risks and even when they're certainly not all of their own doing. Just try to be patient and put them in the car, behind the wheel, every chance you get while they have their learner's. Also, don't forget to model good driving behavior yourself; they learn best and most from you. If you are a courteous, conscientious driver, they more than likely will be too.

As for CAP, DC1's best friend is about to graduate and did CAP all of their HS years. I suppose it didn't hurt to have a parent who is a former naval aviator and a current commercial pilot but that's the caliber of families involved in that program (at least here in our area).

Again, sounds like your DC is diligent and dedicated. Definitely a winner! Fly, baby, fly!