Dr. Hinsey back home set to conduct college info session

Wed, Jun 15th 2016, 12:51 PM

Bahamian Dr. Simeon Hinsey is back home, and he's looking to assist Bahamian youth in a tangible way.

Hinsey left The Bahamas after grade 10 at Nassau Christian Academy (NCA) at just 15-years-old. He attended high school in the United States before earning a full basketball scholarship to John Brown University. Upon graduation with a degree in broadcasting and digital media, he worked for three and a half years in the field, simultaneously obtained his masters, and then worked on his doctorate which he completed in December of 2015. That opened the door for him to transition to the University of Arkansas, coaching at arguably the top level of collegiate athletics in the world.

Currently, Hinsey is the director of student-athlete development for women's basketball for the Arkansas Razorbacks. In conjunction with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, he and his sister-in-law Monique Hinsey will host a free college info session this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Golden Gates Baptist Church on Lobster Avenue and Baillou Hill Road South. All are invited to attend, particularly high school student-athletes, their coaches and parents.

"My heart has always been in The Bahamas," said Dr. Hinsey.

"The first thing that I want to do is to give kids the information so that they are knowledgeable to the process from a sports perspective. Getting these kids off to school through sports is what's going to fix some of the societal ills. A lot of these kids know about the D-I schools like Oklahoma because of Buddy Hield, but they don't understand that there is also division two and division three schools that they can attend. There are scholarships available through division two schools. I just want to help with these kids get educated on the process, and also help the coaches and parents get educated on the process so that they could make the best decisions possible."

Hinsey said that some of the topics that he will cover include how to get into college, making a connection between academics and athletics, preparing for the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) and ACT (American College Testing) examinations, the process of getting exposed, the different levels of competition, introduction to recruiting guidelines, setting realistic goals, social media and self marketing, the realities of going pro, athletic scholarships, and being able to access those scholarships.

He said there are avenues available in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) just to name a few.

"Academics is the key," said Dr. Hinsey. "We have to show these kids how to register with the NCAA eligibility center and the NAIA eligibility center. There is something called the sliding scale that has just been introduced where your GPA (grade point average) over here, based on results from the BGCSE (Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education) examinations, will be compared to what it will be in the U.S.

"You still have to take the SAT or ACT, and the higher your GPA is, the lower your SAT or ACT score needs to be, and vice versa. The eligibility centers over there are just making sure that they are balanced. Also, there is the issue of amateurism. That has to be maintained. You can't be a high school student-athlete over here and making money from paying in night league or whatever. That will eliminate your amateur status."

Overall, rejection of student visas to Bahamian high school student-athletes is reported to be more than 50 percent. Hinsey said that it is imperative that they work to get this number down, and he will do what he can to assist. One of the major issues is that of time eligibility and meeting deadlines.

Most Bahamian student-athletes take their BGCSE examinations in June in their senior years in high school. In most cases, it is reported that scores and grades are unavailable to transfer to the respective institutions in time for the start of the fall semesters that same year. As a result, a number of Bahamian high school student-athletes find themselves enrolling in high schools in the United States.

"We wanted to make sure that the Ministry of Education was aware of this issue," said Hinsey. "We want to put our kids in the best positions possible for them to be successful. Maybe there is a way that we could do a pre-certification process when they are in the 11th grade to get these kids in a position where they can enter college after their 12th grade years. If that doesn't happen the majority of the kids will have to leave to go to high school in the U.S.

"With the SAT and ACT exams, those tests are taken several times through the school year, and the scores are submitted electronically and automatically, so there is no issue with that. Those scores go directly to the NCAA and NAIA centers. Right now, it's all about getting these Bahamian kids into schools in the United States. That's the important thing."

Hinsey said that he is just basically just coming in and sharing the information that he has acquired to Bahamian youngsters.

"I'm real excited to be back home. The plan is to do a lot of back and forth, do different initiatives, in terms of getting our kids off to school. Right now, we're just trying to get as many kids, coaches and parents out as possible," said Dr. Hinsey. "The plan is to give them the information for the kids to get college. That will be something that can benefit the entire country. People just need the information, and I want help as much as possible."

For more information, interested persons can contact Hinsey at e-mail address hinseys@gmail.com or his sister-in-law Monique Hinsey at e-mail address info@gcatoday.com.

Sheldon Longley, Guardian Sports Editor

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