It is time to start thinking about our S.K.A.T.E. Program for the 2023-24 school year. As parents, we have the responsibility to help ensure our athletes work hard in the classroom as well as on the ice.
Please familiarize yourself with the information on the AAHA Website. We want to give all of you as members an awareness of this program to recognize the hard work of our athletes.
Students who achieve a 2.5 (K-5th grade) and a 3.0 (middle and high school) cumulative grade point average during the hockey season, submit an application , and copy of the appropriate grade report, can be eligible for this recognition.
We wanted you to continue having the discussion with your children about achieving EXCELLENCE in the classroom as well on the ice. Thanks in advance. We hope to have many of our players again recognized this year
Purpose
Skaters Keep Achieving Through Education (S.K.A.T.E.) was stablished to encourage, support and reward youth hockey players who commit themselves to their schoolwork while enjoying the sport of hockey.
Goals
It is the goal of the Skaters Keep Achieving Through Education (S.K.A.T.E.) program to significantly increase awareness among youth hockey players that performance in the classroom is more important in life than performance on the ice. It is also a stated goal of S.K.A.T.E. to generate a lasting, measurable impact on higher achievement in the classroom.
History
In 1993, S.K.A.T.E. began in the Armstrong Youth Hockey Association to encourage academic performance among youth hockey players. Merilee Reilly and Lynn Leopold were among a group of "hockey moms" who championed the effort for Armstrong.
“So much emphasis in youth hockey and all of youth sports is placed upon performance on the field of play,” said Leopold. "We wanted to create a program that placed greater emphasis on academic performance and recognized the sacrifices young student-athletes make to juggle schoolwork with an active sports lifestyle. We wanted to teach our kids better time management skills."
Jordan Leopold and his long-time buddy, Pat O’Leary, were exposed to the S.K.A.T.E. program at the squirt level. Multi-sport athletes growing up, Leopold and O’Leary became outstanding multi-sport, scholar athletes, graduating with honors from Robbinsdale Armstrong High School.
Impressed with the impact this program had on academic performance among youth hockey players, the folks at Minnesota Hockey Journal (MHJ), in cooperation with the statewide governing body for hockey in Minnesota (Minnesota Hockey), have made it available to every youth hockey organization under the Minnesota Hockey umbrella.
Qualification Criteria
- Middle and high school student athletes must have a Grade Point Average of 3.0 or above.
- Elementary (K-5) school student athletes must have a Grade Point Average of 2.5 or above (SKATE does not use a rounding system i.e. 2.49 will not qualify).
- Special education students may qualify by completing the S.K.A.T.E. Special Education Exception Form and submitting it with the S.K.A.T.E. application.
- First Trimester or 1ST Quarter grades will be utilized to determine eligible qualifiers for the program.
- No incomplete grades are allowed during the designated grading period. If a student receives an F or Incomplete, they cannot qualify for S.K.A.T.E.
- Report cards will be utilized to determine Grade Point Average, and S.K.A.T.E. will respect all laws and privileges for privacy. All information will be kept confidential.
- Eligible student ages are from kindergarten through Bantam. Must be a member of the Anoka Hockey Association.
- Students who qualify will be notified via email.