Little change has occurred in ethnic minority representation in athletics administration according to the NCAA's most recent race demographics research.

Data from the 2003-04 Race and Gender Demographics of Member Institutions' Athletics Personnel, which is completed every two years, shows minimal gains and even some losses since 1995, when the report was first compiled

Although the percentage of Blacks in overall athletics administration, including coaches, is down slightly from 2001 (historically black colleges and universities excluded), the percentage of Blacks in administrative posts increased from 5.1 percent in 1995 to 6.6 in 2003. Those gains, however, are not reflected at decision-making levels such as athletics director, associate athletics director or assistant athletics director positions. Rather, the largest increase for black men was realized in the positions of equipment manager, ticket manager and intern. For black women, advances were made at the senior woman administrator, academic advisor, promotions/marketing graduate assistant and intern positions. The largest increases since 1995 have come in the positions of senior woman administrator and academic advisor, with each rising by 1.7 percentage points.

The latest report shows a minimal increase from 2.7 to 3.0 percent in black athletics directors since 1995, though that percentage was below the 3.7 percent reached in 2001. By division, only Division III showed an increase in black athletics directors (from 2.1 percent to 3.2 percent) since the 1995 report, and the Divisions I and II percentages dipped slightly during the same period.

There has been no significant movement for black head coaches since 1995, with less than 1 percent increases for black coaches of men's teams and women's teams, respectively. In comparisons to 2001, the percentages in the latest data held relatively steady at 5.1 for head coaches of men's teams and at 5.0 for head coaches of women's teams. Division I managed the largest increase among the divisions since 1995 with a 2.8 percent jump. The percentage of black men's head coaches was down to 3.4 percent from 5.2 percent in Division II, which also showed a slight decline in the percentage of black head coaches of women's teams during the same period.

The percentages of black assistant men's and women's coaches also have remained virtually unchanged since 1995. For assistant coaches of men's teams, the percentage increased from 12.6 to 13.1, with the biggest gain among the divisions seen in Division I (from 15.5 to 18.2 percent). Those increases were assisted by small gains in football and men's basketball.

Division II also showed a small increase overall for men's and women's teams. Specifically, there was a gain in black assistant football coaches both overall and since 2001, but there was virtually no change in men's basketball. In Division III, the percentage of black assistants of men's teams has remained static, and the figure for women's teams has decreased by nearly a percentage point since 2001.

Eugene Marshall, director of athletics at Ramapo College and outgoing chair of the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee (MOIC), said he was disappointed with the latest findings.

"I think the NCAA, the MOIC and the Committee on Women's Athletics have done a great job in putting programs together for diversity education and professional development for ethnic minorities and women," he said. "But I am disappointed that NCAA member institutions are not following through and hiring minorities and females, especially in football, women's basketball and at the athletics director position.

"Starting in September we have more than $5 million devoted to diversity education and professional development programs. Those programs work. But it takes someone to sit down and say, 'I'm going to hire this person.' "

The one positive Marshall found in the 2003 report was in the numbers of assistant coaches and administrators.

"There are coaches and administrators out there in the wings. So no one can say they can't find any or there aren't any because the numbers show they are out there," he said.

The 2003 study is based on the Institution Staff Demographic Form, which is voluntarily completed by NCAA member institutions' athletics personnel. The response rate for the study was about 88 percent overall, a decrease from nearly 97 percent from 1995, but up from the 2001 overall response rate of 85 percent.

The study also was compiled in 1997, 1999 and 2001, but 1995 data are used as baseline information for the purposes of the 2003 report. The NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee, established in 1991, has been using the data since 1995 to track broad changes over time.

The 2003-04 Race and Gender Demographics report will be available online at www.ncaa.org later this fall.

Historically Black

* Baseline year of the study
** All athletics administrative