NATIONAL HARBOR, Maryland – When Scott Krapf began his student-athlete career at Illinois State, he had heard rumors about how freshman and transfers into the Redbirds athletics program were welcomed into the fold.

The new members of the sports teams are led on the “Walk of Champions” through campus and are told about the historical parts of the university.

They also receive half of a medallion during the journey, symbolic of joining the Illinois State athletics family. The other half of the medal is given to student-athletes upon completion of their eligibility.

The walk ends with the band playing the school fight song. All other Redbirds student-athletes sing the song and teach their new teammates the lyrics –a memorable way to be indoctrinated into the program.

“It just sparks your curiosity of what your time will be like there,” said Krapf, who was on an Association-wide panel Thursday during the NCAA Convention discussing ways to celebrate the student-athlete. “It is a great icebreaker for all our student-athletes. It is like you are being welcomed into a family.”

Krapf, who runs cross country and track, is a member of the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. His advice to athletics administrators is to try to make any celebration of the student-athletes memorable.

“After you decide where you are going to go to school, this is the family you will be around the next four or five years,” Krapf said. “The way it is done at Illinois State makes it a spectacular experience. It had an element of surprise to it and that was the beauty of it.”

Krapf also advocated that the celebrations have some variety.

“Most of them focus on the best and brightest student-athletes,” Krapf said. “That part is important, but there is a wide range of things that can be measured to celebrate our student-athletes. Things like recognizing good work in the community or a student-athlete who has struggled but then has a successful academic term. That’s what can be celebrated.”

Illinois State also has a senior banquet to send its student-athletes off into the world in style. Krapf is a junior, so he has to wait another year before experiencing that one.

“Again, there should be an element of surprise to this,” Krapf said. “I met with my administrators on campus and they let me know what’s going to happen, but they are not going to give out the juicy details. That is a good thing. I know it will be something where you truly get the sense of completing your time at Illinois State.”