Winning is everything

“If you ain’t first, you’re last.” 
Ricky Bobby’s father said that to his son in the movie ‘Talladega Nights,’ and though it was meant to be humorous, there are those out there who believe that winning is the most important thing, regardless of the cost of victory.
While there is value in possessing a competitive spirit that drives you to be your best, there’s more to participating in sports, and other extracurricular activities, than the final score of the game, or who crosses the finish line first. In fact, the real winners when all is said and done, are the ones who use the skills they learn from participating in sports to win at life.
There has long been an underlying academics vs. athletics rift that — though not always obvious — exists and can pit administrators, teachers, coaches and even parents against each other.
Some will accuse education of focusing more on sports programs than on academic expectations. 
The reality is that the two not only function in harmony, the mere fact that students are involved in activities (not just sports) often translates to better academic success.
Perhaps you’re doubting that this is true. After all, students that are involved in extracurricular activities are absent from class due to the scheduling of their events, and if they are active in more than just one activity, those absences can pile up.
However, every activity at Newcastle High School (and all high schools for that matter) has an academic requirement in order for a student to participate.
Students must be passing all of their classes, and most teachers require that students who are gone for a school sponsored activity have their assigned work turned in prior to their absence.
Attendance is also required for students to participate in practices and games. If they are absent from school, they may not take part in either.
Coaches keep tabs on their participants’ grades, and offer encouragement if they see students slipping in their courses.
Students show up on late-start Wednesdays to catch up, get ahead, or get help from teachers when they know their ability to participate depends on their academic success. 
Throughout the school year, many examples can be pinpointed of students who keep their grades up, or even just come to school, so they will be eligible to participate in their chosen activity.
The expected academic performance and attendance requirements of activities has been largely responsible for providing the incentive for more than a few students to walk across the stage on graduation day to receive their high school diploma. 
Whether those students ever won a competition, or a team title, or brought any other hardware home from whatever they were involved in matters very little at the end of the day. 
Those students who earned that diploma, those that excelled in their academics because of the discipline they learned from their participation in activities and those that use the plethora of other life skills they gained won the most important title of all.
They set themselves up to win at life, and in that respect, winning is indeed everything.