By John Ingoldsby
Engagement Insider
SANTA CLARA, CA October 10, 2014 – The San Francisco 49ers are familiar with ground breakings having just opened their sparkling new stadium in Santa Clara.
Now they are breaking ground of a different type with the launch of the new “49ers Mentorship Academy,” where their rookies are becoming familiar firsthand with the famous phrase, “To Whom Much Is Given, Much Is Expected.”
A term that implies giving back, and one which the Academy is taking to a whole new level with the Class of 2014 interacting with a local high school football team, who then pass on what they learn to youth league participants.
An innovative form of “paying it forward” that has San Jose’s Oak Grove High School as the lynchpin in this three-tiered effort.
“We envisioned this as a real chance to bring a new program into our area for high school kids,” said Jared Muela, the 49ers Senior Manager of Youth Football Programs. “We centered on one high school, and molded the two groups together by having our guys mentor these students about all they encountered on their path to the NFL.”
That means both the good and the bad, from acting like leaders to knowing potential pitfalls, and understanding that the gifts don’t materialize without hard work.
“It really starts with our rookies learning from our veterans and staff that there are eyes on you, which our newcomers can impress upon the high school kids, who look up to them and want to be like them, which all adds up to the rookies hopefully becoming effective mentors.” explained Muela.
Those first impressions came a few weeks ago when the dozen or so rookies, as well as Niners’ staff members like Muela and player-turned-broadcaster Tim Ryan, went to Oak Grove to kick off the program in person.
“We gave a 30-minute presentation based on the Player Engagement model where we worked on the importance of football and education simultaneously, including NCAA eligibility guidelines, and stressing that it all hinges on the academics so to eliminate any disconnect between education and athletics,” stated Muela.
Then they moved into the activity portion, where the approximately 50 high school players were divided into seven groups led by the rookies to discuss and chart the foundations of succeeding both on and off the field.
Those categories were comprised of leadership, social media awareness, decision-making, managing relationships, sportsmanship, stress management, and nutrition health & wellness.
To highlight how one of those hot topics was discussed, Muela said the social media session focused on how it can be a great platform, but that everything – good and bad -- that is posted is in the public domain and may never go away.
From there, they reassembled as a group to touch upon specific points highlighted in each group, ranging from positives like listening skills and respect to negatives likes selfishness and tardiness.
“It was a great opportunity for our rookies to talk about all the hard work they put in, and how they balanced everything from study hall to lifting weights,” added Muela of the 2½-hour event.
Now, armed with this newfound knowledge as mentees and the ability to see that NFL players were once in their very same shoes, the Oak Grove team members are talking to the 10-to-14 year-old participants in the local American Youth Football League.
They even have the option to either share the messages with the kids for 10 minutes at practice or speak at their awards banquet, featuring the Courage Through Character award.
Then the Mentorship Academy comes full circle when all the Oak Grove players who complete the program will be recognized with a certificate from the 49ers.
Furthermore, Oak Grove, who was chosen since they are seeking all the appropriate high school football certifications, will have the opportunity to reacquaint themselves with the rookies, which follows their having attended the 49ers second preseason game in August.
All told, an ambitious undertaking that tackles practically the entire gridiron journey, from youth leagues to the NFL.
“We started working on this about six months ago because we wanted to find a new and engaging way to help develop the full football player complete with character development,” stated Muela. “More than anything we wanted the kids to take away that what was done for those of us who played football was being done for them, and that they can pass what they have learned onto the youngsters who look up to them in high school.”