The National Archery in the Schools Program and Easton Technical Products celebrate the highest number of Academic Archer nominations ever recorded with 40,163 Academic Archers being nominated by their coaches for the 2023/2024 school year. According to the results of the 2017 NASP® student survey, 40.15% of students indicated that participation in NASP® motivated them to want to work harder in the classroom. Knowing this, NASP® and Easton continue to promote the mission of NASP® educators everywhere! NASP® and Easton care about the academic success of NASP® students.
NASP® coaches again utilized local criteria to nominate their deserving students. Registration for the Academic Archer program began back on September 1, 2023, and concluded on April 1, 2024. NASP® educators and coaches from 48 US states, and 4 Canadian Provinces enrolled students in the NASP® Academic Archer Program this school year. Students who earn this honor through their hard work in the classroom are recognized at national events and through recognition programs at many local schools.
Based on feedback from NASP® state coordinators, NASP® added multiple pathways for NASP® educators and coaches to nominate students. Students can be designated by their local Basic Archery Instructor (BAI) via any of the following:
Archers competing in the in class (PE) tournament.
Archers receiving in-class NASP® instruction (not in any tournament)
Across our many states and jurisdictions, participating schools also utilize the downloadable Academic Archer certificates to recognize their student-archers during their annual academic awards ceremonies. NASP® cares about learning in the classroom!
Carri Garrett, Archery Sales Manager of Easton Technical Products said, “We are thrilled to be the sponsor of the NASP® Academic Archer program. At Easton, we believe in supporting the development of students by fostering the pursuit of excellence in both academics and archery among young people. We know that by supporting this program, we can help students build the skills they need to succeed in all aspects of their lives.”
NASP® President Tommy Floyd said, “Academic Archer was established in 2015 to recognize success in the classroom by NASP® participants in grades 4-12. The goal of the program is to reinforce the overall mission of educators. Lifelong learning and the support of it, has long been a goal of our school-based archery program. We know that once introduced, students love shooting NASP®. We also know that savvy educators everywhere leverage this love of archery to promote better outcomes in the classroom. The emphasis on qualifying for Academic Archer can be an extremely powerful tool for any NASP® instructor. Many times, students who are on the “bubble” of performing better academically, find a reason to give the extra effort needed to succeed academically.”
Following the close of registration for Academic Archer, NASP® conducted a random computerized drawing from among all registered students and selected ten student names. Each of these young people wins a new Genesis Bow in the color of their choice and custom Easton Academic Archer Arrows! NASP® would like to thank Easton Archery for donating the arrows.
2024 Academic Archer Equipment Winners
STATE
NAME
GRADE
SCHOOL
IA
Addison G.
9
Wapsie Valley High School
AR
Skylyn B.
9
Star City High School
OH
Abbigail R.
7
Nelsonville-York Middle School
IN
Lydia H.
11
Batesville High School
IL
Jordyn B.
8
GRF Middle School
KY
Bennett M.
5
Science Hill Independent Schools
TX
Andrew M.
6
O.P. Norman Jr. High
NC
Frederick N.
4
Covenant Classical School
LA
Walter V.
5
Alexandria Country Day Lower & Elementary
MN
Emmett H.
4
Albany Area Schools
Academic Archer will open again on September 1, 2024, for the 2024/2025 school year. Be sure to recognize the achievements of your students and help NASP® spread the message of how teaching archery as part of the in-school curriculum is important to the mission of educators and beneficial for students. Perhaps a qualifying student from your local school will be among the winners next year!
