News Releases
CLEVELAND – Northwestern Mutual, a financial security provider, and National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) announced today the launch of Life After Athletics (LAA), a program designed to help junior and senior student-athletes prepare for the next stage of life following their collegiate career.
“LAA falls in line with NACDA’s continued mission to offer member institutions an opportunity to educate and prepare student-athletes for life after college,” stated NACDA Executive Director Bob Vecchione. “It is important that student-athletes transition the skill sets they learn on the court and field of play, to real-life opportunities. Northwestern Mutual creates more than 3,000 intern positions annually, and has found that student-athletes are well suited to the opportunity because of their dedication, discipline and work ethic.”
“Northwestern Mutual is proud to support NACDA's mission to assist collegiate athletics administrators in preparing student-athletes for life after college,” said Michael Van Grinsven, director of Northwestern Mutual’s internship program. “The LAA program offers student-athletes important career transition skills presented by our highly talented field force as they move onto the game of life.
LAA is a suite of 60-minute, on campus presentations/lessons designed to help junior and senior student-athletes prepare for their next stage, which may not include athletics. Events can be scheduled any time during the school year when convenient for your student-athletes.
Topics range from networking to business etiquette to the elevator speech.
Through these interactive presentations, student-athletes will gain the necessary tools to help build on their successes, both on and off the field, and prepare for the workforce.
The student-athletes will:
- Hear from former student-athletes and learn how to translate their ATHLETE MENTALITY into the desirable characteristics employers are looking for.
- Participate in exercises and REAL-LIFE SCENARIOS that they may face as they enter the post-collegiate working world.
- Learn about Northwestern Mutual’s TOP TEN-RATED INTERNSHIP PROGRAM as noted by Vault Guide to Internships (2012) and its unique relevance to student-athletes.
To schedule a LAA event for your school, email lifeafterathletics@northwesternmutual.com.
You can also learn more about the LAA program by visiting the LAA program page on NACDA.com.
About NACDA
NACDA, now in its 48th year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,500 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,200 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, NACDA administers 13 professional associations, including seven for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics directors. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.
About Northwestern Mutual
Northwestern Mutual is among the "World's Most Admired" life insurance companies in 2013 according to FORTUNE® magazine and has helped clients achieve financial security for more than 156 years. As a mutual company with $1.4 trillion of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual has no shareholders. The company focuses solely and directly on its clients and seeks to deliver consistent and dependable value to them over time. Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI, and its subsidiaries. Northwestern Mutual and its subsidiaries offer a holistic approach to financial security solutions including: life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability insurance, annuities, investment products, and advisory products and services. Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC, broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company, limited purpose federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company; and Russell Investments.