Blogs about race in American still generate very heated, mean spirited, opinionated and sometimes racists statements especially when it comes to leadership. The blog that I am following discusses a recent study that looks at the lack of African American College Football Coaches in head coaching (leadership) positions. Please see attached blog that demonstrates the feelings of bloggers when race and leadership and discussed in sensitive issues.
http://www.blackvoices.com/blogs/2008/11/07/only-four-black-college-football-coaches-in-ncaa-lowest-in-15-y/#comments
The recent study by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida has shown that African-American head coaches in college football are the lowest it's been since 1993. With the recent firings of Ty Willingham at Washington and Ron Prince at Kansas State, out of the 119 NCAA football schools, there are only four Black coaches left: Miami's Randy Shannon, Mississippi State's Sylvester Croom, Buffalo's Turner Gill and Houston's Kevin Sumlin.
"While the percentages [of minority coaches] are slightly better, the general picture is still one of white men running college sport," the report's co-author, Richard Lapchick told the Associated Press. "Overall, the numbers simply do not reflect the diversity of our student-athletes. Moreover, they do not reflect the diversity of our nation where we have elected an African-American as President for the first time."
The study also looked at university leadership, which includes presidents and athletic directors, and found that 91 percent are held by white folks. Lapchick believes that NCAA should adopt a rule similar to the NFL's Rooney Rule where the league sanctions teams that do not interview minority candidates for coaching jobs. Lapchick hopes that Obama's election will make an impact on the hiring of minority candidates.
"His presidency will get people's attention, whether or not he gets involved," he said. "People will wonder: How can we have an African-American president and the lowest number of coaches in 15 years?"
For a comprehensive look at the report and its findings, please visit http://www.tidesport.org/Grad%20Rates/2008-09_FBS_Demographics_Study.pdf.
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1 comment:
I agree that it seems odd when there are mainly white men coaching a team that is primarily black. It makes the coach or coaches look like some sort of slave driver. It makes for a good comic: Small, well-dressed white guy cracking a whip while, huge, athletic black men are toiling for his benefit.
A lot of this issue comes from who these white men are. Many of the coaches in, lets say, football come from an era where white guys dominated the game. They have been in their coaching positions ever since they left the game. Other coaches develop, not from playing the game, rather from studying the game. These are those white guys that are younger but aren't typically of the physical likeness of the athletes.
I would agree that the racial equity is completely lopsided because of the opportunities offered. We see a lot of African American athletes because they come from typically poorer areas of our coummunities, and they strive to be the next superstar because it is a way that they can succeed. I think that it is great that they are given scholarships to become "better" through an education, and I think it is important that the school follow-up and make sure the athletes aren't taking the easy way out.
As more and more of these athletes put focus on their accademics and not just their athletics, we should have a balancing out. The management positions aren't given out to these people because they are superstars that know how to throw a ball, they are given out to the thinkers who can strategize plans of action and manage all the complexities of a team.
The problem is most likely with the education and prospects of athletes and not necessarily the interview process.
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