FAIRFAX, Va. ― For high school student athletes concerned about making the grade in college and beyond, experts say the formula for success is fairly simple: have a plan, execute and take responsibility.
On Thursday, the young adults at the 2014 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars Symposium and Awards Luncheon were provided with the opportunity to learn from panelists who ranged from former star athletes to educators to entrepreneurs.
Titus Duren, who had been a high school principal for 28 years in South Carolina and had guided scores of successful student athletes, emphasized that good study habits and hard work are the foundation. Jim Lewis, women’s basketball coach at Georgetown University, said that science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) courses are the coin of the realm today, especially since he advises everybody—not just student athletes—to have a Plan B in life.
“We’re all going to be pros for 40 years and not just four years in the NBA,” Lewis said.
Steve Neal, who admittedly was not a good student during his days as a basketball player at George Mason University, spoke of how important it is to be nimble and ready to change course when adversity stands in the way.
“There will be many ups and downs,” said Neal, CEO of K. Neal International, a multi-location commercial truck dealership that did nearly $150 million in business last year and ranked No. 33 among minority-owned businesses in the nation. “How you handle those ups and downs will determine your success.”
Neal has walked the walk. After coming to terms with the fact that he wasn’t going to play pro basketball after graduating from George Mason, he spent 25 years at Giant Food Stores and worked his way from a manager’s program—“When everybody else worked 8 hours, I had to work 16 to get to the same place,” Neal said—to become the Chief Operating Officer at age 49.
