Engagement Insider
This week some of the country’s brightest and most athletically gifted student-athletes are attending the NFL-Wharton PREP Leadership Program.
This year’s class is comprised of emerging high school seniors, both men and women, who compete in football, basketball, squash, sailing, skiing, snowboarding, sailing, soccer, track & field, volleyball, and wrestling. They come from all over the country and represent a diverse set of backgrounds.
During the opening night of the program, all thirty student-athletes were welcomed to the Philadelphia Eagles’ facility for a tour and opening night dinner. While touring the locker room, meeting rooms and gym facility was certainly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, the highlight of the night was the keynote address from Philadelphia Eagles’ Chief of Staff James Harris.
Harris provided extensive, personal insight into his athletic and professional background, from his time at Nebraska to his time under Chip Kelly at Oregon, and outlined numerous foundational rules for both on-the-field and off the field success. In addition, he stressed how many opportunities are available within the sports realm—while not everybody can be a professional athlete, Harris stressed the off-the field roles of an athletic organization—from accounting, social media, legal, and marketing.
While Harris was clearly excited about the opportunity to reach out to the group of student-athletes, he also felt that it was imperative to have these athletes exposed to a few important professional messages as early as possible. As Harris mentioned, “our future depends on being able to have people who are qualified and exceptional to keep this great organization and league growing and successful”, and it was clear that his message was a great step in developing the next generation of future leaders. His impact and personal experience was a very influential beginning to the NFL-Wharton PREP Leadership program.