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For students of color, basketball scholarships can be a ticket to a better future - but only if you have fulfilled the necessary academic requirements. The national Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has established academic guidelines for scholarship-athletics in Propositions 48 and 16. If you can't meet these guidelines, your scholarship can be denied. - and that's before you even start college. Once you're in, earning your degree will take at least four years of hard academic work. That's why P. L. A. Y. emphasizes these skills above everything else. The man who wins may have been counted out several times but didn't hear the referee.

SAST/ACT PREPARATION
During P. L. A. Y.'s summer session, 33 hours are spent on SAT/ACT preparation; the follow-up includes a refresher course in the fall. This course is organized and taught by certified instructors. It is the most thorough SAT/ACT preparation course available. The course concentrates on the verbal, mathematical, and writing skills as well as the test-taking techniques that you will need to perform at your highest level on the SAT/ACT. The instructors are enthusiastic and highly trained to make learning fun and stimulating. With commitment and hard work, you'll raise your scores by a minimum of 100 points !

WORKSHOPS
The summer session includes these additional workshops on classroom skills.

Study skills, Note Taking and preparing for College Dr. Cheryl Stanley, Ph. D. (professor of Education, Westfield State College). Study strategies for more effective learning, college admission preparation and career exploration. Critical thinking techniques that work! Smarter NOT Harder.
Research - A Key Component of P. L. A. Y.
Kathleen Norton, Staff (Library Coordinator, Mount Holyoke College). An introduction to conducting library research on outstanding achievements by African American inventors in America. Learn a step process in doing research at the library.
P. L. A. Y. with technology, telecommunications and the Internet. Mr. Fadel Sesay (Academic Computing Instructor Windsor High School in Windsor, Connecticut,) and Dr. Joseph Bowman, Jr. Ed. D. (Associate Professor, University at Albany) Technology and Sports are interrelated and every time you watch a sports activity understand that technology is providing you with pictures, stats, and images into your home. Workshops include media literacy, video production, training, multi-media design, and desk-top publishing with computers.

YEAR-ROUND ACADEMIC SUPPORT
Over the 2005-06 school year, P. L. A. Y. will follow up the summer session's academic portion. You will have three sets of academic progress reports sent to your teachers through the guidance counselor, bimonthly telephones calls and personal visits to your home and school. You'll also become part of P. L. A. Y. 's extensive tracking system for a minimum of five years, or until you receive your college degree.