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NCAA News Archive - 2006
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Widener University
Coaches often recite an axiom that says, "Adversity doesn’t develop character, it reveals it." As the character of student-athletes both on and off the field has come under greater scrutiny by the public, colleges and universities have been openly criticized for their lack of control over athletes making bad decisions that reflect poorly on themselves and the institutions they represent.
Too often these unfortunate events reveal a troubling question: Is there an inherent disconnect between high academic quality, civic engagement and responsibility, and athletics success? At first glance, it might be tempting to agree. However, having served as the president of two distinctly different institutions that sponsor Division III athletics programs, I have witnessed an inverse correlation between the number of negative "incidents" a team is involved in and the number of hours a particular athletics squad commits to its local community.
The civic mission of a college or university and its responsibility to its local community is as old as American higher education itself. However, in the latter half of the 20th century, many people started questioning whether colleges and universities had forgotten their civic mission. Local communities, facing tremendous issues, began to feel abandoned by their neighboring college or university. To address these concerns, many institutions attempted to develop within their students a greater sense of civic responsibility through active engagement in local communities.
Research defends the developmental significance of civic engagement during late adolescence and emerging adulthood, showing that youth engaged in meaningful community-based learning experiences demonstrate deeper levels of civic engagement, heightened self-confidence, and a stronger commitment to social responsibility. The demonstrated impact community-based learning has on the development of young people, coupled with the growing need of communities for greater support from and interaction with their local college or university, appears to provide fertile ground for college athletics programs to play a central role in advancing the civic mission of the academy.
At Widener, we have strongly encouraged our athletics teams to become directly engaged in the community, and the impact has been significant. Over the past few years, student-athletes at Widener have logged thousands of hours of service to our local community, Chester, Pennsylvania.
Chester is the Commonwealth’s oldest city as well as one of the most economically depressed cities in the United States. For example, more than 25 percent of the population lives in poverty and the school district is one of only three under state receivership. As the oldest institution in the city of Chester and as one of the biggest employers, Widener has not been immune to the problems facing the community. In response to urban pressures, the university took measures to secure its campus and was viewed by many in the community as turning its back on some of the major problems facing Chester.
Believing there might be a better way to help address these issues, the university met with local citizens to discuss concerns. Community leaders expressed a strong interest in having greater access to our campus, particularly our athletics facilities, and a desire to have our students more engaged in addressing some of Chester’s most pressing problems. Out of these discussions developed a new commitment by Widener to the importance of community relationships and civic engagement.
To help meet the needs of the community, the athletics department created an expectation for all student-athletes to find some meaningful way to be involved in the community. By doing so, it has become a leader in helping the university fulfill its civic engagement mission. For example, last spring the athletics department sponsored the Special Olympics and 170 Widener student athletes hosted 365 local children with special needs.
Last year 42 student-athletes volunteered for an entire year as part of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America, and this year the number tops 60.
Other examples of community involvement by student-athletes include tutoring local school children, volunteering at the local food bank and participating in the Children’s Miracle Network telethon. In addition, the athletics department opened its facilities to the public for special events and hosted events for local schools for the first time in years.
While our initial goal was to foster a greater sense of civic responsibility among our student-athletes, other benefits include their growing sense of belonging to the city of Chester and stronger town-gown relations.
In fact, the university and the programs it sponsors through athletics have become a point of recognition and pride for both Widener and the citizens of Chester.
Too often, we are willing to allow a few bad incidents to cloud our convictions that student-athletes can be powerfully positive role models. In fact, they can be catalysts for societal change and in doing so reveal the true character of the institutions they represent.
James T. Harris III is president at Widener University.
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