Pennsylvania NASP State Championships to be Held on March 9

Registration open from Jan. 27 until Feb. 17

HARRISBURG, Pa., Jan. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pennsylvania Game Commission officials are encouraging all schools participating in the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) to register for Pennsylvania's 2012 NASP State Tournament, which will be held on Friday, March 9, at the Penn State Multi-Sport Facility in University Park, Centre County. 

While there is no fee to register, registration opens on Friday, Jan. 27, and closes on Friday, Feb. 17. Registration can be done through the NASP link in the "Education" tab of the Game Commission's homepage (www.pgc.state.pa.us), or directly through the NASP Tournament website (http://nasptournaments.org).

NASP helps school districts in Pennsylvania meet physical education curriculum requirements of the state Department of Education, while at the same time introducing them to the world of competitive archery.

Last year, more than 350 students from a dozen school districts participated in the NASP state competition.  This year, event organizers are expecting nearly 600 students from even more school districts.

"In addition to offering students a state archery championship for teams and individuals to compete for honors and trophies, the Game Commission is working with various partners to provide tournament participants and spectators the opportunity to visit a host of vendors, from archery equipment suppliers to wildlife exhibits from Shaver's Creek," said Samantha Pedder, who is the Game Commission outreach coordinator and state-level administrator for NASP.

Started in Kentucky, in 2002, NASP has spread throughout the United States, and is now reaching around the world, and includes nearly nine million participating students. There are 8,800 schools participating in NASP in 47 states, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Tournaments are held at the state, national and international levels.  The 2011 national competition was held in Louisville, Kentucky; and the international event was held at Walt Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Florida.

NASP came to Pennsylvania in 2005. In mid-2010, the Game Commission began coordinating the program and has grown the program by working with 40 different school districts to get NASP up and running in their schools.

For more information on NASP, visit www.archeryintheschools.org. To get NASP started in a Pennsylvania school, contact Samantha Pedder, at the Game Commission headquarters, at 717-787-4250 (ext. 3327). Also, "PA NASP" can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PennNASP.

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SOURCE Pennsylvania Game Commission