Ram Life

A student-athlete life is busier now than ever, as Colorado State University’s (CSU) Head Volleyball Coach Emily Kohan said from her observations and experiences. This is why RAM Life was created at CSU, with Sierra Puente at the helm to guide student-athletes through the strenuous process in the moment and also to prepare them for life after college. 

Originating as a football-specific program, RAM Life turned into an athletics-wide operation. Nearing its first full year of serving the entire student-athlete body, the program focuses on career development, community service and personal enhancement. The focus on post-academic and athletic success is a fairly new field, and according to Puente this is something showing up more in Power Five schools but remains fairly unseen in Division Two.

Sierra Puente

Puente is currently a resource for about 350 student-athletes. While it is a huge undertaking for Puente, she can split the hundreds of students up for when each sport is in season. Every sport at CSU is accounted for, and Puente does her best to work with every athlete. The use of RAM Life is a bit of a mixed bag, as some students use the resource more than others. 

As with mental health services and the willingness to utilize them according to a survey done by the NCAA, it appears that some students struggle with using RAM Life as well. Puente has looked for ways to get student-athletes more engaged with the program.

One major issue Puente has identified is time. The work she does with each athlete takes time away from their already packed schedule, so most of her work is done between 6:30 pm to 8 pm to accommodate their schedule. 

“So that’s an issue that I had worked on, and one way I really tried to help that with them is by making stuff meaningful and impactful,” Puente said. 

To assist with making things “meaningful” and “impactful,” RAM Life works with outside organizations. Canvas Credit Union has come in to provide financial literacy instruction, a big volunteer event in the summer with the Boys and Girls Club and has had a Special Olympics event before a football game this year. RAM Life has also been doing Reading with the Rams which involves student-athletes reading to children at four Poudre School District schools a month. 

On top of this, RAM Life also holds a career fair for student-athletes, spirit squads, band members and managers. Freshmen through seniors also have to attend at least one cohort workshop each year. 

Although these services are new to CSU, they serve an important role in the student-athlete body. As previously mentioned, Kohan says this adds more responsibility to an already busy schedule. 

Emily Kohan

Kohan has a unique perspective as the current head volleyball coach at CSU. Kohan has experienced two sides of the student-athlete journey, seeing her team and their navigation through balancing their sport, education and life while also having experienced it herself while playing volleyball for the University of Iowa before graduating in 2009. Saying that the student-athlete experience has remained similar in some ways, Kohan has identified new changes and challenges as well. 

“I think it’s only continued to get busier and busier for student-athletes and you know, the time demands that are required of them,” Kohan said while comparing her experience to what her current team has to deal with. 

Class attendance coupled with academic tutoring, makeup exams, volunteer events, camps, hitting up the training room and gym, doctors appointments and now the new Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rule from the NCAA that allows students to make a brand from their name piled on top of the 20-hour-a-week practice and competition commitment for the student-athlete is without a doubt a demanding schedule. Fortunately, Kohan says that the resources for student-athletes have grown larger than when she was in college. 

Currently, there are several programs in place specifically for each athletic team. The volleyball team has tutors, mental health counselors, trainers, weight room coach, a strength and conditioning coach, a nutritionist and a psychologist specializing in sports on top of RAM Life.

Kohan points out the new trend with colleges investing in mental health professionals. According to Kohan, bigger schools have upwards of 15 mental health counselors that tend to the needs of student-athletes. Telling a story about how her team used the counseling resources after two tragic losses in the families of her players, Kohan has firsthand experience using these resources. 

While Kohan and her team were willing to use the resources at their disposal, this is not always the case when looking at the NCAA as a whole. In a survey conducted by the NCAA, out of 9,808 student-athletes surveyed, only 47% said they would be comfortable with seeking mental health assistance for themselves. Only 63% of student-athletes believe that their fellow teammates take mental health concerns seriously, and 53% of student-athletes feel that their coaches take mental health concerns seriously. 

Clinical Solutions Consultant at Mantra Health Dr. Liz Jodoin says that student-athletes are less likely to seek mental health assistance than non-student-athletes, claiming that they are typically conditioned to work through both physical and mental pain. Jodoin also says that this can exacerbate pre-existing mental conditions. 

Fortunately, it seems that Kohan and her team are willing to use the resources provided, but it may not be the case for other teams at the university. With less than half of the student-athlete body nationwide willing to seek counseling, it would be difficult to say with certainty that Colorado State is an outlier. The stigma of seeking mental health services appears to potentially be more potent in the world of student athletics. 

Since Colorado State has added mental health counseling specific to student-athletes, Kohan says the coaching job has grown beyond simply coaching a team. 

“I think, you know, it really has turned into head coaches kind of being a CEO, where we are managing and meeting with a lot of the experts in the different, like, silos that they are in charge of,” Kohan said.

Adapting to NIL: Green and Gold Guard

The Green and Gold Guard, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, has attempted to make CSU a marketable school for students on the college search. This official NIL collective has a fairly simple goal: Get student-athletes involved with the community in a way that is mutually beneficial at a monetary level. While the collective is a great way for student-athletes at CSU to market themselves and become profitable, they must do so while being a full-time student and athlete. 

Essentially working as an unofficial way to bring money into a particular athletic program, the Green and Gold offers a way to pledge a certain amount of money to individual sports, one example being “football pledge per point.” The money would go into a nonprofit fund that ultimately ends up being used for each athletic program. 

Additionally, student-athletes can become a member of the Green and Gold club, such as Isaiha Stevens on the men’s basketball team. This provides that aforementioned “market” aspect so that a player can show that they are willing to partner with businesses and companies. The website offers insight into the stories of athletes who choose to advertise themselves. 

With the new NIL rule in place, the Green and Gold simply exists to make it easier for student-athletes to make money off their talents. Much like RAM Life and the other programs provided to teams, the Green and Gold looks to guide student-athletes through another presented hoop. If the NIL exists, student-athletes are going to add it to their to-do list.