So, your son or daughter will soon be researching colleges and you both hope to pursue an athletic scholarship. Do you know what to do next? Most parents don’t realize they can play a major role in guiding their children to a college scholarship or a tryout in their sport of choice.

Georgia Perimeter College can help…

GPC Coaches' hints:

1. First, emphasize that the athlete has all the technical skills, athleticism, speed and intangibles that go into a great college player. A parent can give the child an honest assessment.

2. Early in the high school career, take your child to junior college games if you think that’s the level your child can play. Then be honest with your athlete: “You’ll need to work on your ball-handling to compete at this level.” And just as importantly, stress the importance of academics. Coaches don’t want to invest scholarships into players who flunk out after the first semester.

3. The player should write an informative letter to the college coach and mail a skills video along with it. A letter is important because oftentimes videos are so poorly made that the college coach hasn’t a clue about the player’s skills. For example, a home video may’ve been shot to highlight your son or daughter’s best game, but the image of YOUR child is either not in focus or so far away from the action that the recruiting coach can’t tell who’s doing what. So, write a letter to accompany your video submission.

4. If your child is a soccer goalkeeper, don’t show 10 shots of him or her picking up rolling balls and repeatedly punting or making goal kicks. The coach wants to see saves and one-on-one breakaways—can the goalie give directions to the defense?

5. Attend camps and combines at the college of interest.

6. Invite the college coach to high school games. Have your high school coach make contact, too. Some college coaches will welcome you to practices or games.

Parents, you can be a huge help in this stressful time. Sit down with your athlete and draw up a recruitment plan applying these guidelines. Emphasize that coaches want to see the talent clearly communicated, and most importantly they want to see an academically focused young lady or gentleman who will represent Georgia Perimeter College in a mature and professional manner.

Congrats to Taiwo Adeshigbin
named NJCAA Player of Week

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“Things I Learned” with Steak Shapiro
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  • Boston Red Sox utility man Nick Green played two outstanding seasons at Georgia Perimeter College in 1998 and 1999. He hit .429 his sophomore year with 29 home runs and 80 RBIs.
  • Marlon Byrd, slugging outfielder for the Texas Rangers, played at GPC in 1998 and 1999.
  • Former GPC catcher Robby Hammock (1996 and 1997) caught Randy Johnson’s perfect game against the Braves in 2004 while playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Currently, he’s playing for the Orioles organization.
  • The GPC men’s soccer team won the NJCAA national championship in 2005.
  • The men’s soccer Jaguars have gone to the NJCAA national tournament for five straight years and in eight of the past 13 years.
  • Martin Nunez, a GPC All-American who led the nation in scoring, was co-offensive player of the year for the Carolina RailHawks in 2008 and a finalist for the Rookie of the Year in the United Soccer League First Division. He’s now playing for the Puerto Rico Islanders.
  • The men’s basketball team has gone to the NJCAA national tournament in seven of the past 13 seasons. They reached the final four in 2003.
  • Rocky Trice, GPC alum who played for South Carolina, was 2008 Player of The Year in the German Basketball League.
  • The women’s basketball team has gone to the NJCAA national tournament in four of the past five seasons.
  • The men’s tennis team won the national championship four years in a row. And in one of those years, 2000, the women’s tennis team won the national title as well.
Jaguar Soccer – Men

October
Oct. 1 Georgia Military College* 6 p.m.
Oct. 6 Young Harris College* 4 p.m.
Oct. 10 At South Georgia College 2 p.m.
Oct. 13 At Middle Georgia College 4 p.m.
Oct. 17 At Darton College 2 p.m.
Oct. 24 Andrew College* 2 p.m.
*Home games at Dunwoody Campus, 2101 Womack Road, Dunwoody, Ga., 30338
* Georgia Junior College Athletic Association game

Jaguar Soccer – Women

October
Oct. 2 At South Georgia College* 4 p.m.
Oct. 6 Georgia Military College* 3 p.m.
Oct. 9 At Gordon College* 4 p.m.
Oct. 11 At Cape Fear Community College Wilmington, N.C. 1 p.m.
Oct. 13 Oxford College 3 p.m.
Oct. 16 Darton College* 3 p.m.
Oct. 20 Young Harris College* 3 p.m.
Oct. 23 At Georgia Military College* 2 p.m.
Oct. 25 Spartanburg Methodist College 4 p.m.
*Home games at Clarkston Campus, 555 N. Indian Creek Dr., Clarkston, Ga. 30021
* Georgia Junior College Athletic Association game

Jaguar Basketball – Men

November

Nov. 6-7 At N.W. Fla. State College Tip-Off Classic
Nov. 6 Alabama Southern Community College 3:30 p.m.
Nov. 7 Northwest Florida State College 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 13-14 GPC Tip-Off Classic
Nov. 13 Atlanta Metro College vs. Chipola College 5 p.m.
GPC vs. Northwest Florida State College 7 p.m.
Nov. 14 Atlanta Metro College vs. Northwest Florida State College 2 p.m.
GPC vs. Chipola College 4 p.m.
Nov. 20-21 GPC Thanksgiving Classic, Decatur, Ga.
Nov. 20 USC Salkehatchie vs. Mississippi Elite 5 p.m.
GPC vs. Spartanburg Methodist College 7 p.m.
Nov. 21 Spartanburg Methodist College vs. Mississippi Elite 2 p.m.
GPC vs. USC Salkehatchie 4 p.m.
*Home games at Decatur Campus, 3251 Panthersville Road, Decatur, Ga., 30034

Jaguar Basketball – Women

November
Nov. 6 Spartanburg Methodist College 6 p.m.
Nov. 7 Gordon College 2 p.m.
Nov. 20-21 At Gulf Coast Tournament, Panama City, Fla.
Nov. 20 TBA TBA
Nov. 21 TBA TBA
Nov. 27-28 GPC Classic, Decatur, Ga.
Nov. 27 TBA TBA
Nov. 28 TBA TBA
*Home games at Decatur Campus, 3251 Panthersville Road, Decatur, Ga., 30034

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Did You Know?

• Current cost of tuition and fees for full time, in state students is less than $2,200

• 22% of GPC students receive HOPE scholarships

• 93% of GPC students are Georgia residents

• GPC has more than 460,000 alumni

• 23% of students are in learning support classes, meaning we open the door to higher education

• GPC has Transfer Admission Guarantees (TAGs) with almost 37 four-year institutions in Georgia and beyond including the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Kennesaw, Clark Atlanta, Clayton State, Valdosta State, University of West Georgia, Oglethorpe University, University of Alabama Huntsville, Breneau, Georgia Gwinnett College, Southern Polytechnic Institute, University of Louisville and Whittier College in California. Many more Transfer Admission Guarantees are in progress. These TAGS allow students w ho meet certain criteria including grade point average to transfer to a TAG school of choi ce after completing 60 hrs. at GPC or upon graduation.

• GPC typically accounts for 1/5 of all transfers within the University System of Georgia

• USG transfer surveys show that GPC students who transfer as juniors typically do as well as native students in their junior year.