ABSTRACT
Mentoring young men is a long-term process with many ups and downs. Mentoring is not a vaccine that prevents all problems and turns youth lives around. Like the young men in Hoop Dreams, most student-athletes in high school need someone to listen to and ask them questions about what they want. High school students desperately need accurate information on their chances of pursuing a sports career, about what the role of college student-athlete requires, and what life is like as a pro athlete and after. Just informing students about National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) requirements for eligibility is a big first step, as these are often more stringent than high school standards. When it comes to issues of sports and achievement, students want to hear from athletes, not from their teachers, parents, or mentors. They have held programs to help high school students understand the world of college and professional athletics, and the impact of these events is powerful.
