NCAA – The Sport Journal

Title IX and Its Impact on Opportunities for Women in NCAA Coaching and Administrative Leadership

Authors: Elisa Van Kirk

Department of Education, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY, US

Corresponding Author:

Elisa Van Kirkl
SLU- 23 Romoda Dr.
Atwood Hall 21
Canton, NY, 13617
evankirk@stlawu.edu
860-919-3274

Dr. Elisa Van Kirk is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Education at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. Van Kirk played Division I softball and was a collegiate coach at the Division III level for over a decade. Currently, Van Kirk primarily works with the University’s graduate students who are pursuing a Master of Art in Leadership degree.
Van Kirk’s research focuses on collegiate athletics, athletic leadership, as well as sports and gender.

Title IX and Its Impact on Opportunities for Women in NCAA Coaching and Administrative Leadership

ABSTRACT

Title IX was evolutionary when first enacted, and it provided a framework to address equity in education in many respects; however, it has had limited effects in many other areas, including in NCAA athletic administration. In this commentary, a discussion is offered in regard to the ongoing impacts of Title IX in college athletics and ways in which this legislation has impacted women and their opportunities for leadership. Examples from the literature from women who once held roles in NCAA Division III leadership are considered and their experiences are drawn upon to demonstrate ways in which barriers and sources of inequity continue to exist. Recommendations are offered for women seeking leadership positions based on the experiences of the women in this study.

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Vandy Pacetti-Donelson2023-03-13T09:35:26-05:00March 13th, 2023|Commentary, Sport Education, Sports History, Women and Sports|Comments Off

The COVID-19 Pandemic and the stress it put on College Athletics

Authors: Matthew J. Williams¹, Devin M. Mathis ²

¹Department of Education, The University of Virginia’s College at Wise, Wise, VA, USA
²Senior Student, The University of Virginia’s College at Wise, Wise, VA, USA

Corresponding Author:
G. Andrew Williams M.A. M.S.
96 Los Olmos
Green Valley, AZ 85614
parktaylorplace@aol.com
520 668-4701

Matthew J. Williams D.S.M., M.B.A., M.S. is an Associate Professor of Sport Management at The University of Virginia’s College at Wise. His areas of research interests include NASCAR, COVID-19, college athletics, professional sports, and sports management issues.

Devin M. Mathis is currently a senior student majoring in Business and Sport Management at The University of Virginia’s College at Wise. Devin’s area of research interest is the COVID-19 Pandemic and the effect it has had on college athletics.

The COVID-19 Pandemic and the stress it put College Athletics

ABSTRACT

In the early spring of 2020, the COVID-19 Pandemic invaded the United States and brought not only the economy to a stand-still, but college athletics as well. When all spring college sports were halted, along with the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, it created a loss of revenue for college athletics. This forced college presidents and athletic directors to abandon their old business models in order to restructure their athletic budgets, thus moving both college presidents and athletic directors into uncharted waters. Before the COVID-19 Pandemic college athletics had a problem of long-term debt, offering too many sports, employing too many athletic staff, and paying an extraordinary amount in coach’s salary. Because of the Pandemic, college presidents, and athletic directors were forced to make drastic changes that consisted of salary cuts, elimination of sports, and athletic personnel in order to stay afloat. It will take years for athletic budgets to get back to the pre-pandemic era.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-08-13T12:56:33-05:00August 13th, 2021|Commentary, Sports Management|Comments Off

College Football’s Bottom-Line Impact: Exploring the Relationship of Football Performance on Athletic Finances for Division I Institutions Today

Authors: Spencer D. Wyld¹ and David C. Wyld²

¹ Walton College of Business, Department of Finance, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA
²Department of Management & Business Administration, Southeastern Louisiana University, Hammond, LA, USA

Corresponding Author:
David C. Wyld, DBA
47042 Scott Drive
Hammond, LA 70401
dwyld@selu.edu
985-789-2127

Spencer D. Wyld, M.B.A., is a doctoral candidate in finance in the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas with a focus on the financial aspects of energy, infrastructure, and transportation.

David C. Wyld, D.B.A., serves as the Merritt Professor of Management at Southeastern Louisiana University. His research interests involve the intersection of technology, society, sports and business.

College Football’s Bottom-Line Impact: Exploring the Relationship of Football Performance on Athletic Finances for Division I Institutions Today

ABSTRACT

Purpose: This study examines a heretofore unaddressed area in both sport and economics literature, looking at the relationship between on-the-field college football team performance and the financial performance of university athletic operations overall. Methods: The researchers, building upon prior research employing econometrics to sports analysis, utilized data spanning 2005-2018 for 106 Division I college athletic programs to examine how specific aspects of offensive, defensive, and overall team football performance related to four measures of overall athletic department financial performance (donor contributions, corporate sponsorships, ticket sales, and profit). Results: Based on three separate regression analyses, the study found that while institutional and state control variables were important in explaining overall differences in universities’ athletic department performance in terms of donor contributions, corporate sponsorships and ticket sales, some football-specific factors were found to have significance as well. Overall, college athletic departments that had teams which produced exciting football on the field (with scoring and with a lack of turnovers) were found to be better performing off the field financially in contributing to the overall success of their university’s athletic programs. Conclusions: The present research demonstrates for the first time how – and how much – on-field football team performance can play a role in athletic operations overall from a financial standpoint. The researchers go on to analyze directions – and challenges – for future research in this area, especially considering the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for college sports operations. Applications in Sport: For athletic departments and athletic administrators, the findings in the present research provide new insights on what donors, sponsors, and fans of their football programs value in terms of on-field performance of their respective university’s football team.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-08-20T13:12:01-05:00July 23rd, 2021|Research, Sports Management|Comments Off

Self-efficacy in college athletics: An exploratory study

Authors: Martha G. Dettl-Rivera¹, Diane L. Gill², Erin Reifsteck²

¹Physical Education, Sport and Human Performance Department, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC, USA
²Department of Kinesiology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA

Corresponding Author:
Martha G. Dettl-Rivera, EdD, SCAT, ATC
116A West Center
Rock Hill, SC 29732
dettlriveram@winthrop.edu
215-264-6090

Martha G. Dettl-Rivera is an assistant professor of Athletic Training at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. Her research interest includes mental health in college athletics.

Diane L. Gill is a professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in Greensboro, NC. Her research interests include social psychology and physical activity.

Erin Reifsteck is an assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in Greensboro, NC. Her current research focuses on promoting lifelong physical activity and health among athletes.

Self-efficacy in college athletics: An exploratory study

ABSTRACT

This research examined the self-efficacy scores of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college athletic trainers from Division I and Division III Southeastern universities. Implementing mental health best practices for college athletic trainers to recognize and to refer student-athletes with mental health issues and disorders have been top priorities of the NCAA and National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA). Purpose: This research explored the influence of the USA Mental Health First Aid (MHFA-USA) course of NCAA college athletic trainers’ self-efficacy levels of college student-athletes’ mental health referrals. Methods: A survey approach was adopted to measure participant (n=8) confidence levels of referring student-athletes to qualified mental health care practitioners utilizing a valid self-efficacy scale. Results: Overall, there was improvement in self-efficacy scores immediately following the course as well as consistent improvement at the one-month follow-up survey. Conclusions: There has been no current research on mental health formal trainings of practicing athletic trainers at the NCAA level. Findings from this study were promising as NCAA college athletic trainers’ self-efficacy improved following completion of the MHFA-USA course. Application in Sports: This study offers exploratory insight of the potential training of NCAA college athletic trainers to appropriately and to confidently refer student-athletes to appropriate care. Findings suggest mental health training programs focused on improvement of confidence levels of NCAA college athletic trainers should be considered.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-04-29T11:15:55-05:00April 30th, 2021|Research, Sports Health & Fitness|Comments Off

Pay to Play in the NCAA: A Data Driven Playbook on How to Compensate Athletes

Author: Cameron Van, J.D.

Contributing Author:
Cameron Van, J.D.
University of California, Davis School of Law, Davis CA

400 Mrak Hall Drive, Davis, CA 95616
Email: Cevan@Ucdavis.edu
Phone Number: (650) 740-2235

Cameron Van is a recent UC Davis School of Law Graduate with a focus on the intersection of business and the law.

ABSTRACT

This article offers the NCAA a reputable, repeatable, and reasonable formula for a student-athlete revenue scheme that will ensure its competitive edge in an ever-encroaching market. The NCAA uses amateurism to restrict artificially the compensation of student athletes’ compensation to “cost of tuition,” at best. It is precisely this reason that more athletes are finding alternative ways to capitalize on their talents. As a result, this amateurism scheme is not Pareto Efficient. Pareto efficiency is reached when a situation cannot be modified in a way that would have one party better off without making another party worse off. Notably, Pareto efficiency does not imply equality, equity, or fairness, rather simply that there could be no economic changes that would better off the overall system. Here, this article explores a rare occurrence where the system can be made both more efficient and equal by increasing the supply of revenue generators – the athletes. This article will build upon Stocz formula for deriving a student-athlete’s salary, as well as give examples of what such a salary would look like for said athletes.

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U.S. Sports Academy2020-07-16T11:29:28-05:00October 16th, 2020|Contemporary Sports Issues, Research|Comments Off