Dr. Earnest Fingers Leads NFL Jags Rookie Transition Program Session

Pictured: Marcus Pollard, Director of Player Engagement (Jacksonville Jaguars) and Dr. Earnest Fingers, B-CU Director of Student Life & Activities and Title IX Investigator

Making it to "The League" is a dream shared by many young men in America. From Pop Warner to AAU, middle and high school, scholar athletes set their sights on being one of the 1,696 players chosen to don a jersey on one of the NFL's 32 teams. Remaining there once chosen adds another dimension. Sudden fame and new wealth can be a formidable opponent for those unprepared.

For the second year in a row, Director of Student Life & Activities and Title IX Investigator Dr. Ernest "Doc" Fingers has been invited by the Jacksonville Jaguars to lead a session with the team's rookies on successful and seamless transition to the League through the NFL's Rookie Transition Program.

"I approach topics with a mindset that my job is to enhance thinking that will reinforce the likelihood of positive outcomes and to prepare each player for success," said Fingers. "We maximize these opportunities by working to ensure that players have the tools they need to succeed both on and off the field." Covered were social responsibility for players and the ramifications of issues like driving under the influence or committing acts of domestic violence or sexual assault for 28 rookie players.

Fingers earned graduate degrees in both counseling and community psychology and has spent more than twenty years in intercollegiate athletics, working with student-athletes at Michigan State University, LSU and the University of Maryland. Having earned certification through the The Lighthouse Program’s, Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Advocate Training, while at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. “This is a critical topic that impacts so many homes and communities regardless of one’s economic background or race.”

During the school year, Dr. Fingers oversees Student Life & Activities within Student Affairs, which covers the gamut of the student experience at B-CU. This involves coordination of Student Clubs and Organizations, Student Government Association, Student Activities Board, Student Leadership Initiatives, Fraternity and Sorority Involvement, and Recreational Services (Intramural and Club). His team works to empower students through a belief in the practices and benefits of collaboration, communication and cooperation in order to maximize the Wildcat student experience.