BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Gov. Andy Beshear recently signed an executive order allowing student-athletes in Kentucky to make money off their name, image and likeness, and Western Kentucky University (WKU) is getting ahead of the game. 

WKU is launching its CLIMB program which aims to help all student-athletes maximize their NIL rights. The school will be partnering with the company INFLCR, who will provide personal coaching sessions as well as an application to help track things such as social media engagement. Athletic Director Todd Stewart is excited about the program. 

“The reason we started the CLIMB program through a company called INFLCR was to actually have an entity for our athletes to go to," said Stewart. "A one stop shopping entity to answer questions, and it will really help them in a lot of ways in terms of market value, helping them determine what opportunities they might have and will monitor their social media accounts for them."

The application will help the student-athletes with marketing and branding as well, which student-athletes will have full access to on the app.

Stewart said there are a lot of unknowns with NIL and setting up every student-athlete for success on and off the field or court is priority No. 1. 

“Relationships are a big part of college and success. You want to succeed as an individual and with the team you are on," said Stewart. "You want to win championships, perform well, do well in the classroom to get your degree. If athletes remain focused on that and the same time can make money, it is a great outcome. ”

The athletics department will also be heavy with career development and financial literacy sessions. The CLIMB program is available to any and all student-athletes on campus.