National Collegiate Athletic Association |
The NCAA News - News and FeaturesMarch 2, 1998
CHAMPS/Life Skills conference focuses on development
BY KIMBERLY A. DICKSON ATLANTA --Two hundred CHAMPS/Life Skills coordinators and athletics administrators gathered in Atlanta February 14-17 to focus on student-athlete development issues. About 62 percent of the schools that have a CHAMPS/Life Skills program participated in the annual CHAMPS/Life Skills Continuing Education Conference -- the largest percentage of participating institutions in the history of the conference. The continuing-education conference is primarily for institutions with CHAMPS/Life Skills programs, although representatives from the Atlantic Coast, Southeastern and Big 12 Conferences and the National Junior College Athletic Association also attended. The seminar provided an opportunity for school CHAMPS/Life Skills coordinators to share strategies for assisting student-athletes who are participating in their CHAMPS/Life Skills programs. Time also was spent discussing current issues that face student-athletes on their campuses and in their communities. The conference opened with a panel of four student-athletes discussing their experiences at last May's NCAA Foundation Leadership Conference. The panel discussion was a preamble to the 1998 student-athlete leadership conference, which will be an opportunity for student-athlete leaders to identify and build relationships with each other and to renew their commitments to their sports, campuses and communities. The 1997 student-athlete participants talked during the panel discussion about what they were able to bring back to their schools from the conference and how the CHAMPS/Life Skills coordinators could assist the 1998 class of participants in preparing for the 1998 NCAA Foundation Leadership Conference. The 1998 conference is being presented by Entergy Corporation and will be May 25-28 at the Coronado Springs Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. In another session at the Atlanta continuing-education conference, Don McPherson from the Center for Sport in Society presented a breakout session on the Mentors in Violence Prevention Program (MVP). The program was developed in 1993 to encourage greater male participation in campus-based efforts to prevent rape, battering and other forms of men's violence against women. Because that type of violence is traditionally considered a "women's issue," the program is being employed on campuses to encourage men to become more involved in educational and preventative efforts. "The MVP Program seeks to educate men (and women) about their role and responsibilities, and to inspire them to take active leadership on these critical issues," McPherson said. In addition, representatives from Cornell University presented a general session for the coordinators that addressed various ways to implement a violence-prevention program for student-athletes on campus. Other resources that were presented to CHAMPS/Life Skills coordinators included:
The development of CHAMPS/Life Skills classes for university credit and sports wagering issues also were discussed.
Applications for the 1999 CHAMPS/Life Skills class will be available to NCAA membership in April. More information about the program can be obtained from Lori A. Hendricks, NCAA education outreach program coordinator, at 913/339-1906.
New programsThe following are new participants in the CHAMPS/Life Skills Program for 1998-99: Division I-A Big East Conference: Villanova University. Big Ten Conference: Michigan State University; University of Michigan; Northwestern University; University of Wisconsin, Madison Big West Conference: Long Beach State University. Conference USA: University of Louisville, Tulane University. Mid-American Conference: University of Toledo. Pacific-10 Conference: Stanford University. Patriot League: U.S. Military Academy. Southeastern Conference: University of South Carolina, Columbia. Western Athletic Conference: Brigham Young University; University of Hawaii, Manoa; University of Texas at El Paso. Division I-AA America East: University of Maine, Orono; Northeastern University. Big Sky Conference: Weber State University. Ivy Group: Brown University, Harvard University. Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference: Siena College. Missouri Valley Conference: University of Evansville. Patriot League: Colgate University. Southland Conference: Stephen F. Austin State University. Southwestern Athletic Conference: Mississippi Valley State University. Division I-AAA Big South Conference: Coastal Carolina University. Colonial Athletic Conference: University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Midwestern Collegiate Conference: Cleveland State University. West Coast Conference: University of Portland. Division II Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association: Emporia State University. Pacific West Conference: Humbolt State University. Peach Belt Conference: Kennesaw State University. Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference: Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, West Chester University of Pennsylvania. Other: Oakland University. Division III Centennial Conference: Washington College (Maryland). Empire Athletic Association: Ithaca College. Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference: Bridgewater State College (Massachusetts). Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association: Albion College. Presidents' Athletic Conference: Cabrini College. State University of New York Athletic Conference: State University of New York at Cortland. Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.
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