Chapter 8 8 Interscholastic Athletics C H A P T E R

Interscholastic Sport  Combination of sport offeringswhereby boys and girls can elect toparticipate in athletics at the highschool level

Arrival of Interscholastic Athletics  First intercollegiate athletics competition  Growth and size of sector in the sport industry

Interscholastic Athletics  Key segment within the sport industry  Potential influence on young adults  Media attention devoted to segment  Not the same attention intercollegiate and professional athletics, but still has an impact  Economic impact  Contributes more than $15 billion to sport industry  Influence of administrators  Responsibility & obligation to manage & deliver athletic programs  Helps students determine success and failure

Governance of Interscholastic Athletics  Development and growth of individual state associations  Rules, standards, & policies  Arrival of the Midwest Federation (1921)  Concerns of welfare of athletes  Representatives from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan & Wisconsin  The “mission of the federation”: to protect the athletic interests of high schools belonging to the various state associations and to promote pure amateur sport (continued)

Governance of Interscholastic Athletics (continued)  National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS)  1923 changed name from Midwest Federation  By 1969, all 50 states had joined  Examples:  Florida High School Athletic Association  Minnesota State High School League  University Interscholastic League

Value of Interscholastic Athletics Programs  Athletics support the academic mission of schools  Athletics are inherently educational  Athletics foster success in later life  Conflicting (critical) views

Participation Numbers  Impact of Title IX  States with the most participants  Most popular sports for girls and boys

Operating Models  Establish structure to fit stakeholders’ needs  Considerations for structuring athletics departments  The size of the school district  Centralized vs. decentralized organizational structure  Centralized – all decisions are controlled by central administration unit and carried down through chain of command within  Decentralized – respective units of an organization are given autonomy to control and carry out decisions, although each unit is expected to operate within the organization’s guiding principles.  Public vs. private schools  Athletics budgets

Figure 8.1a Centralized Structure Most often used by private schools and smaller school districts

Figure 8.1b Decentralized Structure Most often used public school districts who are large

Careers in Interscholastic Athletics  Positions within professional associations  Executive director  Chief financial officer  Director of media relations and marketing  Director of membership services (continued)

Careers in Interscholastic Athletics (continued)  Positions at the local school level  Athletics director  Associate or assistant AD  Athletics business manager  Coach  Athletic trainer  Officials

Issues Facing Interscholastic Athletics  Experienced and certified athletics administrators  Budgetary constraints  Coach turnover and exiting (continued)

Issues Facing Interscholastic Athletics (continued)  Recruitment and retention of officials -  Participation options –  Fair play-  Transfers-

Let’s Review….. 1. What are the major operational differences between public and private school athletics departments? 2. What are some of the perceived benefits that students receive by participating in interscholastic sport programs? (continued)

Let’s Take A Look:  Group 1  How equitable was your high school in providing opportunities for both girls and boys to participate in sports?  % of boys/girls, % of student athletes boys/girls, % coaches male/female  Group 2  Give 3 examples of how the athletics departments at your high school supported the school’s academic mission  Give 3 examples of how the athletics departments at your high school failed to support the school’s academic mission  Group 3  Some distracters of school-sponsored sports suggest that greater opportunities exist in the private sector. How many opportunities for participation in sports by high-school aged youth exist outside school sponsored programs provided by high schools? (Ex: YMCA, public rec leagues, etc.)

Next Session:  Chapter 9 – Youth & Community Sport & Quiz #1 on Moodle  Exam 1 will be Monday, September 29