Blue Square Student Athletes
Introducing the Blue Square Athlete Ambassador Program
As one of the first nonprofits to sponsor Jewish athletes in the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) space, we are bringing Jewish stories to a non-Jewish audience by highlighting athletes who are breaking barriers and representing unique stories of the Jewish experience– on and off the field.
Our Blue Square athletes are student leaders, unifying different communities on campus by creating visibility and demonstrating what it means to be a Jewish student athlete.
It refers to a person’s legal right to control how their image is used, including commercially. In college, student-athletes have long been prohibited from making deals to profit from their fame, so they forfeited their NIL rights by signing on with college sports teams. Three years ago, a combination of NCAA rule changes and state laws restored NIL rights to college athletes, and they’ve been making sponsorship deals ever since.
– ESPN
– ESPN
What is NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) in the NCAA?
The Ambassadors
“I think being a Jewish athlete is super special because representation matters and in women's basketball, there are not that many.”
Riley Weiss
“I got to college. Little did I know that Judaism was going to become such a bigger and more important thing to me than it ever has been.” Ethan Hott
"Being a Jewish athlete comes with the responsibility to set an example and help others believe in themselves." Alan Mashensky