Louis Harrison

Diamonds in the Rough: Examining a Case of Successful Black Male Student Athletes in College Sport.

Ailing academic performances of Black male student athletes have been an impetus for a search of recourse by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Amid the volume of these academic underperformances, particularly in revenue-generating sports, there are Black male student athletes who achieve a level of success in the classroom that rivals their athletic prowess. The present case study investigated the self-perceptions and behaviors contributing to seven Black male student athletes’ success in managing their dual roles as students and athletes while navigating their college experience. The theoretical framework of Critical Race Theory was used to ground this research. Findings from this study are represented by the following themes: Complex Identities, Community, and Liberation. The implications of this study support fostering meaningful opportunities to develop healthy Black male student athlete identities and academic achievement.

Race and Gender Differences in Sport Participation as a Function of Self-Schema:

The present investigation studied the influence of race and gender on sport and physical activity choices by regarding specific sport and physical activities as appropriate for participation or self-defining for race and gender groups. The study was designed to confirm the existence of self-schemata for sport and physical activities. A computer-generated instrument was employed to assess the existence and strength of self-schemata. Results of logistic regression analysis suggest that self-schemata for particular sport and physical activities indeed exist and certain schemata differ by race and/or gender. Understanding the dynamics of the development of selfschemata development and the influences of race and gender holds potential for a more comprehensive explanation of the disparity in sport and physical activity participation and performance.

Brown in black and white-then and now: A question of educating or sporting African American males in America

The U.S. Supreme Courts decision in the Brown v. Board of Education case was used as a point of reference to elaborate on the often divergent realities in education and sport for Black and White Americans. The impetus to integrate sport and the movement to integrate educational institutions in America were two separate yet often paralleled phenomena. It is typically argued that efforts to integrate educational institutions were about ensuring equitable access and opportunity. Less so, due to moral principles, integration in sports was more about winning and generating revenue. Still today, race-related divergences are reflected in education and sport. The intent of this article is to reflect on Americas education and sport histories (then) and highlight some present-day realities (now) as associated with the social construct of race, particularly for Black male students and athletes.

Living the dream or awakening from the nightmare: race and athletic identity

Education is often viewed as the door that leads out of poverty for many students of color. But for many African American boys and young men, the dream of becoming a professional athlete is a door that appears to be wide open. Considering the over‐representation of African American athletes in revenue‐producing sports in colleges, universities and at the professional ranks, it is no surprise that many African American male youth develop aspirations for, and identify with the athletic role. These aspirations may become even more focused and intense if they ascend to the level of division I college athletes. The identification with the athlete role is likely to intensify as they get closer to the goal of professional sport. Most individuals occupy multiple identities or roles in life such as sibling, student, spouse, employee, athlete, etc. Identity salience and strength depends on the importance of that role. Athletic identity has been defined as the degree to which an individual identifies with the athletic role. Few studies have examined the impact and influences of race on athletic role identification. This study explores the relationship between race and athletic identity. Division I‐A African American and Caucasian American football student–athletes’ responses to the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale were analyzed (Brewer, Raalte, and Linder 1993). Results indicated that African American football student–athletes have a stronger athletic identity compared to their Caucasian American counterparts. Differences in specific items on the scale indicated that African American student–athletes were more internally focused on their sport, felt that others perceive them only as athletes, and see sport as the focal point in their lives. Differences in these items and implications of these results suggest that there is a potential impact on academic achievement and the student–athlete’s aspirations.

Contemporary Issues of Social Justice: A Focus on Race and Physical Education in the United States

Ongoing events in the United States show the continual need to address issues of social justice in every social context. Of particular note in this article, the contemporary national focus on race has thrust social justice issues into the forefront of the countrys conscious. Although legal segregation has ran its course, schools and many neighborhoods remain, to a large degree, culturally, ethnically, linguistically, economically, and racially segregated and unequal (Orfield & Lee, 2005). Even though an African American president presently occupies the White House, the idea of a postracial America remains an unrealized ideal. Though social justice and racial discussions are firmly entrenched in educational research, investigations that focus on race are scant in physical education literature. Here, we attempt to develop an understanding of social justice in physical education with a focus on racial concerns. We purposely confine the examination to the U.S. context to avoid the dilution of the importance of these issues, while recognizing other international landscapes may differ significantly. To accomplish this goal, we hope to explicate the undergirding theoretical tenants of critical race theory and culturally relevant pedagogy in relation to social justice in physical education. Finally, we make observations of social justice in the physical education and physical education teacher education realms to address and illuminate areas of concern.

Ability Beliefs, Task Value, and Performance as a Function of Race in a Dart-Throwing Task

In the sport and physical activity literature, there has been a recent burgeoning of interest in the relation between individuals’ motivational beliefs and achievement outcomes, particularly concerning the predictive strength of motivational constructs on achievement (Wigfield & Eccles, 1992, 1994; Wigfield, Eccles, & Rodriguez, 1998). Duda and Allison (1990) pointed out that cultural or racial elements should be included in the study of motivation in sports and physical activity. Graham (1994) further stressed the importance of identifying the influential role of race and cultural variables on motivation. Considering that achievement motivation and outcomes vary as a function of one’s racial and cultural background, researchers have suggested conducting comparative studies in students’ motivation and physical performance based on race (Harrison, 1999, 2001). Although historically there has been limited research on achievement motivation and behavioral determinants between African American students and White American students (Graham, 1994), racial differences in sport, physical activity, and physical activity motivational beliefs (i.e., competence beliefs, self-schemata) are routinely reported (Goldsmith, 2003, 2004; Harrison, 1999, 2001; Harrison, Lee, & Belcher, 1999). Generally, these differences depend on how African Americans and White Americans perceive the sports or activities. In basketball, for example, racial differences tend to favor African American students, because basketball is viewed as a stereotypically African American sport (Harrison, 1999). These racial stereotypes also have an effect on activity choices. For example, many physical educators express feelings of exasperation when their African American students, particularly male students, express their desire to engage exclusively in basketball (Harrison & Belcher, 2006).

Changes in K-12 Physical Education Programs from 2001 to 2006.

In this study, we investigated the changes in physical education programs from 2001 to 2006 based on an analysis of data reported in The Shape of the Nation Report: Status of Physical Education in the USA (National Association for Sport and Physical Education, 2006). Means and standard deviations for numeric variables in the reports were computed, and percentages were calculated for the categorical variables. The data indicated a significant increase from 2001 to 2006 in establishing state physical education standards. Mandated class size at all educational levels and required physical education units for high school graduation remained the same. The requirement for physical education assessment and mandated fitness testing did not increase significantly. Furthermore, there was no significant improvement in state regulations.

Not Just an Athlete: The Impact of High School Coaches on the Educational Pursuit of First-year African American College Football Players

Elite high school football players face a barrage of pressures from their external environment that determine where they attend college as well as what factors, whether academic or athletic, they consider in a school. This study aims to analyze the relationship between African American high school football players, who go on to play intercollegiate football, and their high school football coaches. African American freshmen football players at a predominantly white institution in the Southwest United States were interviewed. The responses were compared and analyzed using two tenants of critical race theory (CRT): the centrality of experiential knowledge and the challenge to the dominant ideology. In an educational context, CRT utilizes storytelling and the experiences of people of color to highlight their experiences against the dominant culture in order to transform the educational environment for the benefit of marginalized people. After analyzing the interview transcriptions, the researchers found that these athletes were positively influenced by their high school coaches to perform well academically in high school, as well as to consider academics as a major point of emphasis in choosing to attend a university. Athletes developed positive relationships with their coaches, regardless of the sport in which they coached, that encouraged them to perform well academically and see college as a means to attain a degree as opposed to an avenue to professional athletics. This positive relationship contrasted some previous literature about college students that suggested that college coach–athlete relationship could be a major source of exploitation and stress for the athletes. Overall, the research found that these coaches were a source of positive influence on these student–athletes lives athletically, personally, and academically.

Editorial Board Position Statement Regarding the Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) Recommendations With Respect to Journal Impact Factors

Editorial Board Position Statement Regarding the Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) Recommendations With Respect to Journal Impact Factors Gregory Welk, Mark G. Fischman, Christy Greenleaf, Louis Harrison, Lynda Ransdell, Hans van der Mars & Weimo Zhu a Chair, Iowa State University b Auburn University c University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee d The University of Texas at Austin e Montana State University f Arizona State University g Editor-in-Chief, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Published online: 20 Nov 2014.

The Misintegration of the Negro: A Historical Analysis of Black Male Habitus in Sport and Schooling.

Drawing from the lenses of critical race theory (CRT) and Pierre Bourdieu’s notion of habitus, this article compares the Jackie Robinson story with the Brown versus Board of Education narrative. This juxtaposition illustrates the similarities of these narratives and how interests converged racially. By comparing these historical narratives, we show that there are significant racial contingencies African Americans must internalize to integrate into society. In this sense, we argue that the Jackie Robinson story serves as a powerful and problematic pedagogy for Black males to be part of mainstream society—what we call “expected racial habitus.”