Notable graduates: Prince Moody — Football player starts fitness program for low-income kids

UW-Madison student-athlete Prince Moody will graduate this spring with a bachelor’s in history and a plan to give back to the community.

Along with four other student athletes, Moody is finalizing the details of Athletes Emphasizing Athletics (AEA), a fitness program for low-income high-school and middle-school students.

Moody hopes to gain access to used equipment from the university, as well as Madison-area gyms and schools, to kick off the program.

“We want to be able to go out into the community as university athletes and play the role of mentor to high-school and middle-school children by teaching them about athletics,” he says.

Although the program will be centered on athletics, Moody intends to “help build their character as well,” by teaching students about the academic aspects of being an athlete.

Moody was inspired to start this program by the encouragement he received as a child.

“I know I wouldn’t have got to be where I am today if it had not been for people outside my family coming in and taking an interest in me,” he says. “There are a lot of bright inner-city youth, but sometimes they just don’t have the encouragement to go out and pursue their goals.”

During his undergraduate studies, Moody conducted independent research on Devic’s disease, a form of multiple sclerosis that his mother has.

Moody and his siblings have served as primary caregivers to his mother, a quadriplegic, most of their lives.

He researched the hereditary components of the disease, as well as ways to improve the quality of life for Devic’s patients, including information on a computer that allows disabled people to perform daily tasks such as answering the phone and opening doors.

Moody also met with people in the community who provided him with information on health advocacy for people with disabilities. He is now in the process of finalizing transportation details for his mother to travel from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.

Moody, the first person in his family to graduate from college, has been accepted to graduate school at UW–Madison, where he will study educational leadership and administration. He will also play Badger football for one more year.