How to Cultivate Academically Engaged and Successful Black Male Student-Athletes

1. How to Cultivate Academically Engaged and Successful Black Male Student-Athletes Paul C. Harris, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of Virginia

2. Overview • Your experiences • Historical perspective • Previous Research • Current Study • School Counselor Strategies • Comments/Questions

3. What has been your experience working with Black male student-athletes?

4. “…one of the most compelling themes in sports, one that the Black athlete would revisit in various problematic iterations over time [is] the use of athletics as a way out” (Rhoden, 2006, p.42-43)

5. General Impact of High School Sports Participation • Better academic performance • Better Psychosocial Adjustment • Positive Youth Development • Educational Attainment Bradley et al, 2013; Gardner et al, 2008; Holt, 2008; Renfrow et al., 2011

6. Previous Research • Sports enhance Black males’ educational attainment (e.g. Eide & Ronan, 2001) • Sports are educationally exploitive e.g. (Miller et al., 2005; Harris, 2008) • Junior varsity sports positively impacts the college enrollment of Black males (Harris, 2012) • Black male student-athletes graduate college at much lower rate than other groups (Harper et al. 2013)

7. Current Study • Participants • 1 High School • 2 successful Black male student-athletes • 2 teachers • 2 parents • 1 coach • 1 principal • 2 school counselors

8. Sample Interview Questions • What are key contributors to Black male student-athletes being academically successful? • Please describe your role in this process. • Who are the critical influences in this process?

9. Preliminary Themes

10. Voices • Principal: “You have to clue that in with the entire staff the kids are working with, beginning with the professional school counselor, and kind of trickling down to the teachers that they’re working with, um, so that there is a support network, and everybody’s on the same page with the message they’re communicating to the kids.” • Student: “One thing that my school counselor has done is they’ve gotten to know my life, sort of my schedule, my motives, and they sort of had an idea or planned out what type of future I’d be looking forward to, whether it be what kind of classes I’m gonna take, and incorporated my needs and my wants, so, to put me on the most helpful path”

11. School Counselor Strategies • Direct Student Services • Listen • Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems Theory (PVEST) • Strengths-based approach • Celebrate academic accomplishments • Indirect Student Services • Consultation & Collaboration • Facilitate empowerment of all stakeholders

12. Resistance • Types • The direct block • “Yes, but….” • Causes of Resistance • Habit strength • Too much work • Philosophical belief conflicts • Psychological deficits • Lack of skills/self-efficacy

13. Overcoming Resistance • Reducing the threat • Establish a clear plan • Stay with the plan • Measure and celebrate EVERY success

14. Questions/Comments