About Orange Arrow

Too many young people are not developing the social and emotional skills they need to successfully manage modern life. 

This includes the ability to act independently and adjust to changes on-the-go, to communicate and work well with others, to be empathetic, creative, persistent, resist stress, think critically, exert self-control, demonstrate leadership, and more.

These social and emotional skills matter, directly affecting life outcomes. 

Universities and employers are picking up the tab. 

Less than half of employers rated recent college grads as proficient in areas like Professionalism/Work Ethic (42.5%), Oral/Written Communications (41.6%), Global/Intercultural Fluency (20.7%)  and Leadership (33%) (NACE, 2018). 

Colleges are spending significant time and resources on remediation, while also investing unprecedented amounts in non-academic and social and emotional support. 

College athletic programs have been on the front lines of both of these challenges, adding psychologists (WSJ, 2018) and life skills support staff to their payrolls and seeking new solutions to supporting athletes on and off the field (NCAA, 2015)

Major universities are investing in support for athletes to help them develop the life skills and dispositions to succeed off the field.

This includes transition services, Life Skills programming, mental health services, and student-athlete success centers. 
Sports-specific approaches to supporting grade school student-athletes are also emerging. Many organizations are researching, promoting and pursuing strategies including training coaches on social and emotional development and peer-to-peer mentoring. Organizations like the Positive Coaching Alliance and Aspen Institute are providing resources, connectivity, and thought leadership

Athletes are stepping up, and professional sports leagues are contributing. The NFL Foundation’s Inside Out Initiative is working to “redefine the role of interscholastic sports and help intentionally develop the educational, social and emotional well-being of each student-athlete”, and is now “funding statewide implementation” in nine states with plans for expansion. The US Soccer Foundation pursues a similar effort through Soccer for Success. 

While there is great work happening to integrate social and emotional learning into sports, there is much less effort underway to integrate sports into social-emotional learning. That’s where OA fits in. 

We are bringing a fresh new angle to this growing movement.

Shawn Robinson understands the value of positive mindsets and transferable life skills. Orange Arrow’s founder was a highly ranked college football player, widely expected to go to the NFL when an injury derailed his football dream. 

Thankfully Shawn had developed a transferable set of skills, habits, and social connections that enabled him to bounce back and find a new path to a fulfilling life. Since then, Shawn has been on a mission to make sure that ALL young athletes acquire the life skills to succeed off the field, and be prepared to win in the game of life.

He founded Orange Arrow in 2013 with this mission in mind. The pilot program connected the University of Pittsburgh student-athletes with grade school student-athletes in three Pittsburgh Public Schools. 

Today, Orange Arrow has tested and refined its model with over 1,500 students in two cities, Pittsburgh and Miami. The vision for Orange Arrow is to partner with 15 Power 5 Universities by 2026 to implement a strategic approach to community engagement that increases the personal development of college and grade school student-athletes. 

OA’s goal is to be operating successfully in 15 cities / towns at 15 Power 5 universities, and 105 grade schools in 2026.