Winning 2024 T-Shirt Designs Selected

The National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) is always looking for ways to celebrate our students, and this year’s student T-shirt design contest was a great example. Current NASP students were invited to design artwork which might become the official 2024 design for State and National NASP tournament shirts.

More than 80 student designs were entered from 24 states. Entrants included archers from 4th-12th grade using digital artwork, paintings and drawings. There were no limits on what archers could create, and we were again impressed by the designs submitted. Many designs incorporated bows, arrows and targets, while others thought outside the box with mascots, skylines and what NASP means to them.

It was a difficult decision, and the top three favorite designs were selected by a panel of NASP team members. The first-place design will be featured on the 2024 Eastern and Western Nationals T-shirt, and the second-place design will be featured on the 2024 State Tournament t-shirts. Due to the amazing creativity of our students, we added a third category to be featured on the NASP volunteer t-shirts at all national NASP events. The top three winners won a standard color Genesis bow of their choice.

We would like to thank all student archers that entered, as well as the parents and coaches who assisted their students with the submission process. We look forward to conducting the student T-shirt design contest again next year to see what our archers create! Look for updates on the 2025 t-shirt design contest coming in September.

2024 Academic Archer Program Results

The National Archery in the Schools Program and Easton Technical Products celebrate the highest number of Academic Archer nominations ever recorded with 40,163 Academic Archers being nominated by their coaches for the 2023/2024 school year. According to the results of the 2017 NASP student survey, 40% of students indicated that participation in NASP motivated them to want to work harder in the classroom. Knowing this, NASP and Easton continue to promote the mission of NASP educators everywhere.

NASP coaches again utilized local criteria to nominate their deserving students. Registration for the Academic Archer program began back on Sept. 1, 2023, and concluded on April 1, 2024. NASP educators and coaches from 48 states, and four Canadian provinces enrolled students in the NASP Academic Archer Program this school year. Students who earn this honor through their hard work in the classroom are recognized at national events and through recognition programs at many local schools.

Across our many states and jurisdictions, participating schools also utilize the downloadable Academic Archer certificates to recognize their student-archers during their annual academic awards ceremonies.

Carri Garrett, archery sales manager of Easton Technical Products said, “We are thrilled to be the sponsor of the NASP Academic Archer program. At Easton, we believe in supporting the development of students by fostering the pursuit of excellence in both academics and archery among young people. We know that by supporting this program, we can help students build the skills they need to succeed in all aspects of their lives.”

NASP President Tommy Floyd said, “Academic Archer was established in 2015 to recognize success in the classroom by NASP participants in grades 4-12. The goal of the program is to reinforce the overall mission of educators. Lifelong learning and the support of it, has long been a goal of our school-based archery program. We know that once introduced, students love shooting NASP. We also know that savvy educators everywhere leverage this love of archery to promote better outcomes in the classroom. The emphasis on qualifying for Academic Archer can be an extremely powerful tool for any NASP instructor. Many times, students who are on the ‘bubble’ of performing better academically, find a reason to give the extra effort needed to succeed academically.”

Following the close of registration for Academic Archer, NASP conducted a random computerized drawing from among all registered students and selected 10 students. Each of these young people won a new Genesis Bow in the color of their choice and custom Easton Academic Archer Arrows! NASP would like to thank Easton Archery for donating the arrows.

Academic Archer will open again on Sept. 1, 2024, for the 2024/2025 school year. Be sure to recognize the achievements of your students and help NASP spread the message of how teaching archery as part of the in-school curriculum is important to the mission of educators and beneficial for students. Perhaps a qualifying student from your local school will be among the winners next year!

For more information on beginning the Academic Archer program in your school, visit nasp.org/academic-archer or contact Kevin Dixon at: kevin@naspschools.org.

Recognizing the Archery Hall of Fame

The NASP is a proud sponsor of the Archery Hall of Fame and Museum located in the Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s facility in Springfield, Missouri. NASP strongly believes in the value of commemorating archery’s past, and the accomplishments of those who have distinguished themselves in the sport.

As a part of the 2024 ceremony, NASP will unveil a perpetual plaque (above) that will be featured at the Hall of Fame and Museum that recognizes the top NASP male and female archers, going back to the beginning of the now 22-year-old program. Going forward, the top NASP Bullseye archers will also have their names memorialized on this perpetual plaque.

Each year, NASP uses the combined scores of the Western and Eastern National Tournament to determine top overall male and female archers. For the upcoming 2024 tournament season, NASP will again utilize this process and add new names to its plaque.

NASP President Tommy Floyd said, “The National Archery in the Schools Program recognizes the tremendous value of memorializing the work of individuals who have demonstrated excellence in archery. NASP joins in the celebration of the many outstanding target archers and bowhunters who have inspired others through their passion and dedication. We are extremely proud to now be part of this great work. We are excited that the top male and female NASP archers are to be memorialized there in the years to come. NASP is extremely grateful for the visionary work of the Archery Hall of Fame Committee and is proud of their work of preserving the rich heritage of archery.”

For more information on the Archery Hall of Fame, visit www.archeryhalloffame.com.

Sidebar: NASP: Changing Lives One Arrow at a Time

NASP is an activity that doesn’t discriminate based on popularity, athletic skill, gender, size or academic ability. It’s open to any student — and its biggest supporters are professional educators. NASP promotes instruction in target archery as part of the in-school curriculum in grades 4-12. Through participation in the shooting sports, students are learning focus, self-control, discipline, patience and the life lessons required to be successful in the classroom and in life. For more information, including the four steps for bringing NASP to your school, visit www.naspschools.org.