Sports Bring Out Best In Students

As students prepare to head back to school next week, it's important to take a look at just how beneficial athletics are to the long-term stability of our youth.

In a recent comprehensive study that compared high school athletes with non-athletes, it was determined that high school athletics are producing many of tomorrow's leaders.

In addition, high school athletics promote better lifestyles. The Department of Health and Human Services has found that students who do not participate in after-school activities are 49 percent more likely to use drugs, 37 percent more likely to become teen parents and 35 percent more likely to smoke cigarettes and 27 percent more likely to be arrested.

Check out this graph, illustrating some key points regarding athletes and non-athletes (in averages):

Topic Athletes Non-Athletes

Grade Point Average 2.86 1.96

Average absences per school year 6.52 12.57

Dropout rate 0.7% 8.98%

Graduation Rate 99.56% 94.66%

*This information provided by and courtesy of the IHSAA.