Built to Lead
Pictured left to right: Polaris Athlete Mentors Shawna Ferraro (Middlebury College Field Hockey) and Ellie Rodriguez (University of Texas Rowing)
I began writing today’s blog in regards to the mentorship program that we’re about to launch, and how it connects to girls and women in sports. This past week, we celebrated National Girls & Women in Sports Day (NGWSD), an annual celebration recognizing the impact of sports in empowering girls and women.
I’ve always leaned on data as an educator, former school counselor, and director of college counseling. Even as a student-athlete and coach, it was the data that always told the story and helped shape our gameplan.
With that, today’s blog post was going to focus on how the data confirms what many of us have seen firsthand: female student-athletes disproportionately become leaders. They know how to perform, lead, and execute under pressure. And as I was beginning to expand on the data pictured above, I heard the hammering of footsteps coming down the hall.
“Today’s the day!” our five-year-old daughter exclaimed just before 6:00 a.m. as she ran out of her bedroom to greet us. We matched her enthusiasm, turned on her music, and soon her three-year-old brother joined in, hopping on the residential Bosu ball in the living room. While today’s the day every day in their world, today really is the day. It’s the day of her figure skating exhibition, an event the Austin Figure Skating Club hosts before sending their athletes to compete in U.S. Figure Skating competitions throughout the state of Texas.
After the excitement settled, I returned to writing and began reflecting on NGWSD. I found myself thinking less about statistics and more about what I was witnessing firsthand in our home: the joy, the confidence, the community, and the personal growth that sports creates. Throughout my career in school counseling and college counseling, I had a front row seat to the impact athletics can have on young people, especially when paired with the right guidance and support system.
This is exactly why Polaris Athlete exists.
Founded by educators with expertise in school and college counseling, higher education, and the sports industry, our mission is to empower student-athletes with clarity, purpose, and confidence. This is done by bridging the gap between academics, athletics, and college planning. As we build our mentorship program, we’re creating opportunities for student-athletes to connect with role models who have already walked the path. Leaders who can share perspective, lessons learned, and real insight into what it takes to succeed in sport, in school, and in life.
NIL education is one of the most important launch pads we have for girls and women in sports. For the first time, female student-athletes are being given a legitimate opportunity to build their personal brand, tell their story, and create value from the work they have already put in. When done the right way, NIL is not just about deals or dollars. It is about identity, confidence, leadership, and teaching young women how to advocate for themselves in a world that has not always created equal opportunities. NIL education gives female athletes a new platform to be seen, supported, and celebrated, and it creates pathways that can extend well beyond sports.
That is why we are proud to build this product alongside Bill Carter, a national leader in NIL education and research, and the creator of the NIL Research Poll. Bill’s work has provided some of the most important insights in the space by capturing what student-athletes and families are actually experiencing in real time. His data helps bring clarity to a rapidly changing landscape, and it reinforces the need for structured education and guidance. At Polaris Athlete, Bill and I are building a platform that supports student-athletes through college counseling, NIL education, and long-term development.
Together, we are committed to ensuring student-athletes are not left to navigate this new era alone, but are equipped with the knowledge, confidence, and support systems to thrive.
As we build these tools and programs, I am reminded that the impact of sport is not theoretical. It is happening in real time, in homes like ours, every single day. Today, as a dad, I cannot help but think about the future. When I see our daughter’s excitement, the friendships she is building, and the pride she feels in her growth, I am reminded that sports are shaping far more than performance. They are shaping identity. And that is something worth celebrating every day.
