I would like to see more african american males hired in College Sports: Coaching and Administration

I would like to see more minority females working in administration (other then academic services)and not just coaching. Different area include: sponsorship, marketing, promotions, sports information - the list can go on

Racial diversity will be increased in intercollegiate athletics when employers apply similar strategies to recruit QUALITY coaches and administrators that are obviously effective for coaches in their recruitment of QUALITY student-athletes.

Employers should look beyond the exterior and see the real person and all of his or her qualities.

Gender diversity will be increased only when the "good 'ol boy" mentality is conquered by a "who can get the job done best" mentality. Like men, women are VERY talented beings.

Broaden the scope.

I would like to see more African-American women outside of compliance at major universities as associate athletic directors or athletic directors positions.

I would love to see more African-American women in the athletic administration levels of collegiate sports... not just Division II HBCUs.

What about increasing the number of scholarship slots for international athletes in Division Schools? Division tow schools are doing it already.I think we should make Division I more competitive by given atleast one more slot for an international athlete, rather than the usual four slots

It is long overdue for minority males and females to be hired in major decision making roles i.e., upper administration. You see many of us hired to do far less than we are qualified. Why is that? Is that we are not qualified or have the intellectual capability as our counterparts? That has always been odd to me in my young career. However, I believe that we are able to create a desire to do more than coach if we promote the vast opportunities, not only in word, but our actions. It is only accurate that as students of color will increase their awareness and desire to be in this field, if they continue to see people who look like them at the top. As Obama stated, we have a chance for change. In order to do our part, we must continue to command and expect nothing but excellence. We must work together and have support from each institution???s administration. I am excited to move forward!

There needs to be a change in intercollegiate athletics. There are many minorites men/women who are qualified, but not given the opportunity because of the color of skin. Like yesterday, it is time for change. You would figure NCAA would understand the importance of diversity and the need to have a diverse administration especaially when there clientel are student-athletes who come from diverese backgrounds. I personally have been at a member institution and there were no minority coaches or administrators. That is sad.

i would like to see more female coaches given the opportunity and chance to coach women teams. I believe there are not enough women coaches that are given the opportunity to lead women teams.

How about just giving the job to the best possible candidate, regardless of race, gender, proclivity, shoe size, whatever?

This is an insulting headliner for the NCAA web site. I don't remember a fawning post-election story on here before.

Allocate $500,000 to the Black Women In Sports Foundation over the next 5 to 10 years

This is a ridiculous connection the NCAA is making. Always looking for an angle...

The NCAA should not be entering the political arena. If Barack Obama was not elected because he is black. He was elected because 62 million people believe he is best qualified. Making it a racial issue is ridiculous!

The NCAA didn't enter the political debate at all. They didn't advocate for a specific candidate or look to influence the political discussion. There are papers, blogs and Web sites all over the world talking about the impact Barack Obama's candidacy has on the African-American community. Pointing out that the intercollegiate athletics community should use the opportunity this dialogue presents to look at their hiring practices makes sense.

Over the years I have worked at the mid-major and D3 level.

Many athletic departments state in their business plan that they strive for diversity. Yeah right. Go to any major college athletic department website and look at the athletic department. Most if not all of the staff are primarily Caucasian males. When a qualified minority candidate is interested in a position they are passed over for someone that already is in the athletic department. I have been in sports marketing for 11+ years and in my personal opinion college athletics does a poor job in recruiting minority candidates. Many athletic departments complain that there aren???t many qualified candidates out there. That isn???t true. Qualified candidates are out there. They just need the chance to prove themselves. Yes I am angry because I look at my multiple degrees (bachelors, masters, etc.) that I have earned over the years and sometimes think that the expense of getting these degrees wasn???t worth it if I and many other minorities (I am an African American male) don???t ever get the chance to use the knowledge and experiences I have gained over the past 11+ years. Two years ago I left college sports and went into another sports field primarily because I was fed up with being passed over for major college jobs. I have friends that have worked in the college sports field and have left as well.

The sad thing about college athletics is that many D3 schools will give a minority candidate a chance while a majority of major schools wont give a qualified minority a chance. Getting a job in intercollegiate athletics isn???t about what you know but who you know.

I agree with the statement that change is possible but athletic departments and directors need to be open to this change.

This comment is going out to James & Joe......I don't think the NCAA is making this whole thing out of race. I really think it???s an issue that has been on the tip of peoples lips, and is now its being spoken on.

James says

"How about just giving the job to the best possible candidate, regardless of race, gender, proclivity, shoe size, whatever?"

Are you telling me that there are only 5 minority (where 2 have already been released of their duties for the next year) "best possible candidates" to coach teams in all of the 117 DI football team? Come on, Ty Willingham got his chance (3 yrs, 11 and 25) and so did Ron Prince (only given 2 1/2 years 16 and 18) but you have coaches like Chuck Long, San Diego State (3 yrs 8 and 25 "Not Fired"), Dan Hawkins Colorado (3 yrs, 12 and 22 "Not Fired"), Jeff Geny, Eastern Michigan (5 yrs, 15 and 41 "Not Fired), Brent Guy, Utah State (4yrs 8 and 36)...And the list can go on!

On a Side note, Talking about best possible candidates, HOW DO U FIRE A Phillip Fulmer, Tennessee (17yr 150 and 51)???? I think we really need to look into the phrase "BEST POSSIBLE CANIDATE!"

Universities can hire and fire anybody they want. Quotas and mandating that minorities and women are hired is wrong. I wonder if SWAs around the country have considered that they most likely got the job because of their gender and not qualifications? The best qualified should get the job. PERIOD!

The low number of minorities and females in leadership positions in Division I intercollegiate athletics is disgraceful and inexcusable.

Many decades ago our campuses were integrated. Thirty five years ago title ix went into effect.
The results have been an incredible influx of minorities and female student-athletes.

Yet, when it comes to growing these folks into leaders within our profession we have failed miserably.

This is why it's important to have a diverse workplace: I look around the country and I see only five women in athletics director positions at FBS schools. I think: Institutions don't seem willing to hire many qualified female candidates. I know there are many, because when women's departments were separate, they were generally run by women. If aspiring to the highest position in college athletics is a foolish and pointless exercise, why should I even enter the field? Our female student-athletes need role models to give them the confidence to pursue careers in college athletics.

This comment is in response to James and his SWA reference. It appears that James does not understand that the Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) is not a job, but rather a designation recognizing the highest ranking female on the athletics department staff. Job titles might include Associate Athletics Director, Deputy Director, Senior Associate Director, Assistant Director, etc and responsibilities are commensurate with the job title as they are for males who hold those jobs. There are no quotas. Individuals are hired for the jobs based on their qualifications and if they are the highest ranking female in the department, that individual would be designated as the Senior Woman Administrator. Sadly there are many athletics departments that do not have any female administrators thus they would not have a Senior Woman Administrator, resulting in the loss of female perspective, experience, skills and voice, and the lack of a role model for female student-athletes.

I am all for the most qualified person getting the job! The issue comes down to the integrity and commitment of those doing the hiring.
I question if women coaches, that are as or more qualified than their male counter parts, are extended a, ???best person for the job??? philosophy? I think we can look at the landscape of men coaching women vs. women coaching men and see there is an obvious bias. You can't say that men are able to coach young women, but women are not able to coach young men.
Everyone wants a fair chance to grow and advance in their career regardless of race, gender, sexuality or age. The unfortunate reality is discrimination is alive and well in intercollegiate athletics and hiring practices continue to display that the most sought after person for the job is white and male.
Fair hiring requires looking past personal prejudices and/or simply making the easy choice, to making the best choice.Student athletes deserve to have a variety of role models to assist in preparing them for the real world.

First, I would like to give you a little background information about myself. I am a 27 year old African American female. I have a master's degree in sports administration. I've been around sports all my life, including playing in college. I had an opportunity to receive an internship at a prestigious institution. While on this internship, I worked extremely hard and did as I was told to do. I found myself asking different administrators how did they become interested in this position. After hearing what one had to say, I had to ask myself why am I having such a hard time finding my dream career. Many of the administrators were put in that position because of who they knew, a position needed to be filled, and etc. Most of the administrators didn't have the qualifications that I possessed, nor did they have the experience at the time they were hired. It is quite frustrating because myself and other minorities work extremely hard, and we are not given a chance to prove what we could bring to the university, as our counterparts are. I have applied to literarily hundreds of universities, and I have still yet to be granted to my first interview. I am hopeful, and I will persevere because I know that someone will see something in me. However, maybe the NCAA should hold the colleges and universities accountable for hiring. The NCAA should take a closer look, and compile data that looks at exactly how many minorities are applying for positions. Until then, I will continue to work hard, believe, and remain prayerful.

I concur with Andrea'. . .more than qualified for many positions that I've applied for; I've watched institutions actually lower the qualifications and re-post the openings.

Here is the problem. Many athletic departments are trying to diversify their staff. But where many look to do this is with entry and low level employees. This poses a problem though for young white males trying to break into this industry, they are essentially paying for the sins of the father and being passed over for jobs so the all-white senior administrators can inject some diversity into their staff with minority entry level employees. That's why if you look at an athletic dept staff most administrators over the age of 45 are white males, and the younger staff is more diverse. It will probably take another 20-30 years before the good old boy network, including all these ex-coaches who 'stepped down'(or were forced)into administration retire before we have truly diverse NCAA athletic departments with career administrators.

Athletics has shaped me into the person I am today. I have had a passion for athletics and education since I began participating in athletics in middle school.
I am former mid-major division I African American female student athlete. I would say one downfall in my experience as a student-athlete was the lack of African-American administrators and coaches.

I have been actively seeking and planning for an opportunity to take a leadership role in college athletics since. I find it sad when I tell people my goal of being an Athletic Director at a Major Division I Institution and I get that look of disbelief not because I am not capable but because the odds are against me.

I was inspired that Barak Obama is our nation's first African American President Elect but does that mean that I now have a better chance as a Black Female? I believe that I do! His leadership to fight and stand for change may allow for the NCAA to follow.

The NCAA has been addressing these issues and is actively trying to promote diversity within the NCAA through many of their initiatives. It is apparent that strides are being made when I look to those who have made it and are currently African American female athletic directors at Division I institutions; its refreshing to know that it can happen.

I am optimistic and believe that the NCAA will be an agent of change and will hire qualified minorities into leadership roles. This initiative will not only improve the diversity issues within athletic departments??? staffs but it will be good for the welfare of many of our minority student-athletes across the country.