GRIT LEAGUE LAUNCHES INAUGURAL SEASON IN THE HUDSON VALLEY

The National Grit League Foundation has officially launched its first season of competition, marking the start of a recognition program that celebrates the academic performance, attendance and continuous improvement of high-commitment school teams and activities. Mahopac High School joins the League as a founding partner, with additional Hudson Valley schools expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The League is built around a simple idea. Every varsity team, club and high-commitment activity is measured against the average performance of its own school, never against another school, and never against a national benchmark. That single design choice is what makes the League fair for every participating school, regardless of size, resources or community. A team's Grit Index reflects how it performs relative to its own school, so a small rural program and a large suburban one can each earn recognition on genuinely comparable terms. Three indices form the backbone of the program. The Scholastic Grit Index (SGI) compares a team's average GPA to the school's average GPA. The Attendance Grit Index (AGI) does the same for attendance rates. The National Grit Index (NGI) combines the two, weighted 70 percent for academic performance and 30 percent for attendance, into a single overall measure. An index of 100 means a team is performing exactly at its school's average. Anything above 100 means the team is exceeding that benchmark. A different kind of scoreboard "There is already a scoreboard for what happens on the field and the court," said Thomas Higgins, founder of the National Grit League Foundation. "There is not one for what happens in the classroom and in the habits that make a team show up ready. That is what we are trying to change. When we measure and celebrate something consistently, it improves. The Grit League gives schools a way to celebrate the habits that matter most, throughout the year, not only at the end of it." Patrick Keevins, Principal of Mahopac High School, said the school's participation reflects a broader belief in what athletics and student activities can contribute beyond competition itself. "Our student-athletes and activity participants are among the hardest working people in this building," he said. "They balance demanding schedules with real academic expectations, and they do it because they care about their teams and their teammates. The Grit League gives us a new way to acknowledge that, and to make it visible for the whole school community." Privacy by design The Foundation has designed the program to protect individual student privacy from the outset. Individual student records never leave the school. The Foundation does not receive student names, individual GPAs, individual attendance records or transcripts. Schools submit only aggregate school and team summary statistics, which is all that is needed to calculate the three indices. The approach is consistent with the principles of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), and each participating school retains complete control over its own student records under a written Data Sharing Agreement. Only leading teams are publicly named on the League's scoreboard each quarter. Data for other teams is not publicly identified, and small teams below a minimum roster size are not published individually, further reducing the risk of any information being tied back to any student. A quarterly rhythm The League follows a quarterly rhythm that matches the school year. Q1 results reflect the first academic quarter, and each subsequent quarter builds on the last, allowing schools and teams to track progress across the year rather than seeing only a single end-of-year figure. Change indicators show whether a team is trending upward, downward, or holding steady. Recognition sits at three levels: Platinum, Gold, and Silver, awarded based on sustained performance across the year. A separate Iron Grit recognition honors teams with exceptional attendance and reliability, whatever their SGI. Awards are announced at the end of the school year and celebrated on the League's public scoreboard. Looking ahead The Foundation is in active conversations with additional schools in the Hudson Valley about joining the pilot, with further founding partners expected to be announced during the fall. Founding schools receive lifetime complimentary participation in the core program in recognition of their willingness to help shape the League in its first year. More information about the League, its methodology and its participating schools is available at gritleague.org.