Tusculum College Women's basketball student-athlete Breaira
Barksdale attended the recent NCAA Career in Sports Forum, which
was held June 8-11 in Indianapolis.
Barksdale was among nearly 300 student-athletes from Divisions I,
II and III at the forum, which focused on assisting
student-athletes with making a successful transition from
competition to their future professions in intercollegiate
athletics.
"It was a very humbling experience. I got the chance to meet and
work with other student-athletes who are trying to get in the
business. It's a very competitive field," said the native of
Baltimore, Maryland. "My goal was to go in as open-minded as
possible. I was expecting a lot, and got more than a lot out of it,
whether it was learning an elevator speech or how to shake hands
properly. The forum went into so much detail on how to get an extra
edge. There was constant networking and connecting with all
different types of people."
The student-athletes who were selected for the Career in Sports
Forum were chosen by a committee made up of administrators from
member institutions, conference offices and affiliate member
organizations. Also included were the 2013-14 Ethnic Minority &
Women's Enhancement Postgraduate Scholarship recipients. Barksdale
was the lone representative from the South Atlantic Conference at
the forum, and is the first Tusculum student-athlete to attend the
event.
"I would definitely encourage other student-athletes to apply next
year. I have a lot to share about the forum and the NCAA, and what
it takes to be successful in the business," said Barksdale, who was
able to meet and speak with NCAA President Mark Emmert during the
forum. "The chance to mingle with people from all across the
country was one of the best experiences of my life. I had the
opportunity to meet people just like me, with ambition and hunger,
and it allowed me to size myself up to see where I stand."
Barksdale was a member of the Women's basketball team at Tusculum
during the 2012-13 season, and was a second-team All-SAC honoree
after averaging 10.6 points and a league-best 4.2 assists per game
last season for the Pioneers. She also recorded a team-high 59
steals and led the Pioneers in field goals with 117 as Tusculum
finished 16-13 overall and 8-10 in the SAC, advancing to the
conference championship game for the fifth time in six years.
"I would love to coach or be an athletic administrator, and I was
able to get direction on which people at the forum I should connect
with," Barksdale noted. "It was an opportunity to gain more
knowledge of what path I'm supposed to take. Everyone there wanted
to be a sponge and learn as much as they could."
The annual Career in Sports Forum brings career leaders together to
discuss their professional career paths and to enlighten
student-athletes on career choices and future decisions they will
need to consider. Barksdale believes that this and other similar
events sponsored by the NCAA are the true reflection of the
organization.
"The NCAA gets a bad rap from a lot of people, but events like this
are truly what the NCAA is all about," she observed. "Their goal is
to ensure the success of student-athletes by giving them the best
resources possible. The most important message we received is that
we are the future of college athletics."
Barksdale attends NCAA Career In Sports Forum
Posted: Jun 20, 2013
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