Spring is in the air

The PRDVA car is yellow with tree pollen, my allergies are in overdrive and the dogwood blooms have come and gone -- Spring is here! Spring also ushers in the annual Tim Reid Celebrity All-Star Basketball game at Norfolk State University. This year's all-star basketball game will be held at Echols Hall on Saturday, May 16 at 6 p.m. If you purchase a ticket for the all-star game, which costs a mere $7 (general admission), you get free admission to a concert featuring gospel singer and rapper Tonex. This brother can throw down and you don't want to miss him. Also on the ticket that night will be gospel singer Minister Earl Bynum and the Trinity Faith Diamond Mime. Put this event on your calendar. The pre-game concert starts at 5 p.m. Proceeds benefit the Virginia Scholarship and Youth Development Foundation, founded by Tim and Daphne Reid. Help send a deserving student to college. Tickets can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, Farm Fresh markets, NSU, Macy's-Lynnhaven Mall and Ronnie's Professional Cuts. Call 757-393-4007 for more info.

NSU Receives NCAA Recertification

Don't you just love the "new" media. Now, we don't have to solely rely on reporters and editors in mainstream media to tell our various stories. We can do it ourselves. Point in case, Norfolk State University received its NCAA recertification last week. The story made the papers -- along with every other school that received recertification. Receiving the NCAA certification is no easy task. For that fact, accreditations throughout the academy require a great deal of work. And, these accrediting bodies are tough! NSU's news release read in part . . . "By achieving certification status, NSU is considered to be operating its athletics program in substantial conformity with operating principles adopted by the NCAA’s Division I membership. This is a major accomplishment for Norfolk State University, because it reflects the overall efficiency of the leadership team at the University and its commitment to excellence,” said Athletics Director Marty Miller. Way to go! NSU.

Higher Standards

To my loyal two blog fans:
I'm back from a short break hanging out with my son during spring break. I'm sure you read all the news about the Norfolk State University students who have been arrested for allegedly committing armed robberies. Two of the students were athletes. In the NSU student newspaper -- The Spartan Echo, sports editor Joe Cook wrote . . ."Our student athletes have to remember, in-fact, it must be engrained in their minds that when they are on or off campus they represent not only themselves, but things that should mean something to them . . . such as their families, their university and their own reputations." Well said, Mr. Cook. And, this comes from one of their own peers. Young people often make bad decisions -- sometimes critical decisions that impact the rest of their lives. Student athletes are like celebrities. Everything they do, say or don't do, or say impacts them and those around them. They are held to a higher standard because they are positioned as role models. It is disappointing and hurtful to see these kinds of things on the news. Students and in particular, student athletes need to realize that one's reputation is a terrible thing to waste. It is a fragile thing and must be protected at all cost. Joe Cook was right on point. As an NSU family, we have to nip this kind of behaviour in the bud ASAP!