The Fast Lane to College – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 22, 2007
– by Erin Greene
Ohio State Athletics Communications
For some people, the path to college is paved with support and encouragement. However, for others, the road can be full of potholes and speed bumps, while others get lost along the way. So, when Todd Kucinski, former Ohio State assistant director of marketing, recognized that some students’ journeys to college dead-ended before they had a chance to get behind the wheel, he decided to help alter their route. Kucinksi did so by putting Columbus Public School (CPS) Day on the map.
CPS Day was created three years ago in hopes of educating students in the Columbus Public School system about the process involved with attendance to college. Each year since the inception of the program, approximately 3,000 sixth-grade students have earned the privilege of taking a field trip to The Ohio State University campus.
Todd Kucinski’s dream to make this an annual event,” Diane Ging, supervisor for higher education partnerships at CPS, said. “We have now been able to pull it off for the past three years. It is a wonderful opportunity because, although many of the students live within minutes of Ohio State, they have not actually been to campus.”
Ging also explained the reason the sixth grade was targeted is because it is a watershed time in their educational careers to begin thinking about college. However, there are criteria the sixth graders must reach to attend the festivities on campus. They must have a 95 percent attendance record, no discipline referrals and have completed their Ohio Achievement Tests. If they meet these standards, they are permitted to attend an hour-long pep rally at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium where values such as leadership, hard work, community involvement and continuing their education are promoted. The students then head over to the Bill Davis Stadium for lunch provided by the Children’s Hunger Alliance and an Ohio State baseball game.
“The point of CPS day is to expose the kids to a university setting,” Scott Jurgens, Ohio State marketing coordinator, said. “We also want to demonstrate to the kids the multitude of opportunities that come from graduating high school and going on to college.”
During the program May 16, students were exposed to various aspects of a college environment at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. They watched an ROTC performance complete with a Blackhawk helicopter demonstration, learned Ohio State cheers from the cheerleading team and listened to TBDBITL. The middle school students also heard words of encouragement from former CPS graduates and current Buckeye student-athlete Cherise Daniel, former OSU Young Scholar Ashley Randle and I Know I Can participant Ibraham El Galled. Dr. Gene Harris in addition to two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin also spoke to the sixth graders.
After the educational program, the students headed over to the Bill Davis stadium for a Buckeye baseball game. After receiving their lunches on the first base line, the 3,100 sixth graders took their seats to cheer on what could be their future alma mater to a 9-3 victory over the University of North Florida.
“It is great for us to come out and play in that atmosphere,” Dan DeLucia, Ohio State senior left-handed pitcher, said. “It is good to see all the kids in Columbus come support Ohio State. It is a good opportunity for them and nice that they are rewarded by coming to campus for a day.”
DeLucia’s involvement with CPS Day went beyond the baseball game. He, along with sophomore left-handed pitcher Jake Hale, took time from their hectic schedules on May 14 to visit a sixth-grade class at Indianola Middle School. There, the pair of student-athletes talked to the class about what it takes to become a college student.
“We just tried to preach hard work and leadership to the kids,” DeLucia recalled. “We told them it doesn’t matter what your interests are, just to do it with all of your mite and as hard as you can. Everyone can do something and you have to use those abilities you are given.”
The finance major enjoyed his visit with the youngsters, saying he remembered the days when people came to speak to him about his future. While the Buckeye pitcher found satisfaction in sharing his experience with the students, the students seemed equally excited to share his experience of winning that Wednesday.
On top of spending the day outside at a ball game, some students found themselves gaining real-world experience in the press box. Students from various middle schools were chosen to help announce the game and read the team line-ups. For Makaila Cavin of Dominion Middle School it was the highlight of her day.
“The best part of the day was being able to speak on the big microphone,” Cavin, an avid White Sox and Yankees fan, said.
Cavin said the most valuable lesson she learned was the importance of going to college and its impact on her future. She hopes to return to the state of her birth, California, to attend a university to study either medicine or forensic science.
“I want to be a doctor because they help people,” she explained. “Or a forensic scientist because I like examining stuff.”
When Jessica Henderson’s social studies teacher approached her about watching the game from the press box, she jumped at the chance. For her, however, the high point of her day was spending a little time in the limelight.
“My favorite part was being interviewed on TV,” Henderson, who attends Medina Middle School, said. “All my friends are jealous now.”
The sixth-grader, who enjoys spending time playing soccer with her family, said qualifying to attend CPS Day was a year-long goal for her and her friends. It is a fun outing her group has been looking forward to. Henderson also explained that she learned about what is required to gain entrance to college, and now plans on attending a university when she graduates.
Ging believes the day was a success, saying it was by far the best year they have experienced.
“I had a lot of people come up to me and say it was a good day,” Ging recounted. “By and large I think the kids were really excited. They listened carefully to the message and paid attention to the ball game. This program just keeps getting better.”
