Amy Sandler, Ph.D. Department of Women’s Studies University of Nevada, Las Vegas Niki Quasney, PE Teacher Doris French Elementary School Clark County School District, Las Vegas, Nevada Bridging Differences: Race, Sexuality, Religion, and Gender in Athletics ***A Special Thank You to Pat Griffin of It Takes a Team! for generously contributing to this presentation***

 ITAT is an education and advocacy project  Its goal is to make sports a safe and respectful place for all, with a focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT)  ITAT develops and disseminates educational materials and information to sport administrators, coaches, teachers, athletes and parents  ITAT is an initiative of the Women’s Sports Foundation (

 A dynamic web site:  An educational kit for sport administrators, coaches, athletes and parents  A monthly e-letter with news and resources  Workshops for athletic staff, students and parents

 Relationships  Team/student productivity  Team/classroom climate  Leadership and modeling opportunities  Legal requirements  Professional and ethical responsibilities

 Stereotype them: “Those people…”  Minimize/Ignore them: “Students are students”  Be defensive about them: “I don’t have a prejudiced bone in my body”  Eliminate them: “I don’t allow ‘them’ on my team”

 Be open to learning  Understand and validate differences and seek common ground  Act to create better communications and relationships, eliminate prejudice and discrimination

◦ GOALS:  To identify how differences in race, gender, religion and sexuality can affect team relationships and performance, and physical education environments  To identify ways to learn, understand and act to create better communications and relationships, eliminate prejudice and discrimination

 How do race, sexuality, gender, religion come up in my professional experience?  How do my personal experiences and relationships prepare me to address race, gender, sexuality and religion issues in athletics?  What kind of professional preparation have I had to help me address race, gender, sexuality and religion issues in athletics?  What would I like to learn about how race, gender, sexuality and religion affect the athletic climate?

Sexuality Race Gender Religion Common Ground Finding the Sweet Spot

CONTEXT Family Background Sociocultural Conditions Current Experiences Career Decisions and Life Planning CORE Personal Attributes Personal Characteristics Personal Identity Model of Multiple Dimensions of Identity

 Policy  Education and Awareness  Example Be Proactive, Avoid Reactive Crisis Management Mode

Parents, Students/Athletes, Teachers/Coaches  Department and School Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policies  Team Specific Policies (PDAs,Team Prayer, Language Use, Hotel Room Assignments, Inter-Group Conflict)

 Diversity Training and Discussion with Team, Coaches, Physical Education Colleagues  Team Orientation Activities: Make Policies and Expectations Clear to All  Team Building Activities ◦ Getting to Know You Activities and Games ◦ Group Problem Solving Activities and Games ◦ Work/Team Social Activities

 What Athletic Administrators Say and Do  What the Teachers/Coaches Say and Do  What the Team Captains Say and Do

What Teachers/Coaches Say and Do!!!

 Gather in a small group  Choose one or two scenarios you would like to discuss  Use the questions with the scenarios to guide your discussion

 Respect and affirm differences in race, gender, religion, sexuality  Learn about different perspectives  Identify common interests and values

 What policies do your school and athletic department have?  What team specific policies do you have?  What team orientation activities do you plan?  What team building activities do you lead?  How do you set an example for your team?  How do you prepare team captains to be examples?

“When the score is tied and there are two seconds left in the game, you don’t care if your teammate is Black or White, Jew or Christian, gay or straight. You just want her to make the shot.” - Martina Navratilova