Life Experiences of Black Student-Athletes in Revenue-Producing Sports: A Descriptive Empirical Analysis

Recent NCAA reform (Propositions 48 and 42) have made imperative a better understanding of the social and psychological factor affecting black student-athletes in revenue-producing sports. This study focused on the college experience of black student-athletes at 42 NCAA Division I schools in comparison to white student-athletes and other black college students in four areas: demographic and academic background; college life experience; mental health; and social support. Black student-athletes differed from both comparison groups across all four topic areas. Results of the comparison were discissed, and policy recommendations were presented. The present study examined data from a national representative sample of full-time undergraduate student-athletes at Division I institutions commissioned by the Presidents Commission of the NCAA. Forty-two of the 291 Division I institutions for 1987-1988 were randomly selected to participate. lnstitutions were relatively evenly distributed across the NCAA's geographic districts and regions and were representative on a variety of indicators of institutional and student body characteristics, as well as sports history and involvement. A total of 5123 student-athletes and students was sampled. This study focused on three subgroups within the sample: black student-athletes participating in revenue-producing sports n=847); white student-athletes participating in revenue-producing sports (n=1161); and a random sample of black students who were not members of an athletic team (n=511). The participants' informed consent was obtained. Questionnaires were administered in group of four or five students, with at least one data collector present. They had four categories: demographic and academic background, college life experiences, mental health status, and social support. Results suggested that black student-athletes enter the university with very different educational and socio-cultural backgrounds than both white student-athletes and other black students. Black student-athletes have significantly lower family income and less educated parents. Greater differences erre found when comparing black student-athletes with other black students than with white student-athletes. Black and white student-athletes do not differ in the importance they ascribe to earning a degree, their satisfaction in their relationship with coaches, and their overall satisfaction with life

Infusing Community Psychology Practice Competencies into Doctoral Training

Since 2008, the Georgia State University doctoral training program in Community Psychology has made several modifications to coursework requirements, qualifying examinations, community practicum requirements, and advisement processes. Recognizing that graduates pursue trajectories ranging from independent consulting practice to academia, the primary goal was to provide greater flexibility in shaping training to match the types of careers that students envision. Accordingly, the Community Psychology Practice Competencies and the closely aligned Community Psychology Value Proposition provide a useful framework for helping guide students and advisors in selecting relevant coursework and field experiences that match the students’ training goals. In this paper, we focus on two specific areas in which we have infused the Competencies. The first area is practicum field-work, for which we have created a process built around the Value Proposition: students identify a potential field experience, work with community contacts to develop a statement of work focused on building experience and expertise in as many as four competency areas, and negotiate relevant deliverables. The second is advisement: Students are asked in their year-end progress reports to reflect on the extent to which they have gained experience with each competency during the year, and to identify a subset of focal competencies to gain experience and expertise in the coming year. With their advisors, students can then use this information to map out and modify their training plans. The paper describes the materials we have developed and provides preliminary quantitative and qualitative information about how the use of the Competencies is beginning to benefit students, advisors, and community partners. We describe successes and challenges we are encountering and conclude with the next steps we anticipate in the evolution of our training program

Reduction in Drinking Days and Binge Drinking Days among Patients Receiving Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment Services during an Emergency Department Visit: Six-month Results

Alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) is effective in many health-care settings. Previous research has shown significant decreases in harmful drinking due to SBI, but many studies, particularly in emergency/trauma settings, did not use a control group. Thus, it is unclear if observed decreases in harmful drinking are due to the intervention or other factors such as the hospital visit, the substance use assessment, or simply regression to the mean. This project assessed the effectiveness of an SBI program implemented at an urban hospital in the US state of Georgia

Infusing Community Psychology Practice Competencies into Doctoral Training

Since 2008, the Georgia State University doctoral training program in Community Psychology has made several modifications to coursework requirements, qualifying examinations, community practicum requirements, and advisement processes. Recognizing that graduates pursue trajectories ranging from independent consulting practice to academia, the primary goal was to provide greater flexibility in shaping training to match the types of careers that students envision. Accordingly, the Community Psychology Practice Competencies and the closely aligned Community Psychology Value Proposition provide a useful framework for helping guide students and advisors in selecting relevant coursework and field experiences that match the students’ training goals. In this paper, we focus on two specific areas in which we have infused the Competencies. The first area is practicum field-work, for which we have created a process built around the Value Proposition: students identify a potential field experience, work with community contacts to develop a statement of work focused on building experience and expertise in as many as four competency areas, and negotiate relevant deliverables. The second is advisement: Students are asked in their year-end progress reports to reflect on the extent to which they have gained experience with each competency during the year, and to identify a subset of focal competencies to gain experience and expertise in the coming year. With their advisors, students can then use this information to map out and modify their training plans. The paper describes the materials we have developed and provides preliminary quantitative and qualitative information about how the use of the Competencies is beginning to benefit students, advisors, and community partners. We describe successes and challenges we are encountering and conclude with the next steps we anticipate in the evolution of our training program

The College Life Experiences of African American Women Athletes

The present study provides a descriptive analysis of four areas of African American women student athletes' college life experiences: academic performance; alienation and abuse; perceived social advantage as the result of athletics; and life satisfaction. Multivariate comparisons were made between the four areas of college life experiences of 154 African American women student athletes and 793 White women student athletes, 250 African American women nonathletes, and 628 African American men student athletes from a national sample of 39 NCAA Division I universities. Overall, African American women student athletes are performing adequately academically, integrating socially within the university, perceiving some social advantage as the result of being athletes, and are fairly satisfied with their life. Their experiences seem most consistent with African American women nonathletes. Results are discussed in the context of potential policy recommendations as well as the need for more research on this particular population.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44046/1/10464_2004_Article_423285.pd

From Theory to Practice: Forging a Collaborative Evaluation Strategy for a Culturally-Informed Domestic Violence Initiative

Community programs for domestic violence (DV) in the U.S. have historically focused on White populations. Few programs exist to meet the needs of racial/ethnic minority populations, including Latinx women, who encounter greater barriers to access services than their non-Hispanic White counterparts. Casa de Esperanza is one of the few organizations in the U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of Latinx survivors of DV. In particular, their Family Advocacy Initiative (FAI) seeks to support Latinx communities impacted by DV by facilitating a variety of services including a 24-hour hotline, shelter, community advocacy, and transitional housing support network. This program utilizes Casa de Esperanza’s Latina Advocacy Framework, which was developed to address the unique risks, considerations, and needs of Latinx communities, but has yet to be empirically evaluated. As part of a graduate community psychology course on assessment, consultation, and evaluation, a university-community partnership was established to explore the process of defining, designing, and planning an evaluation of Casa de Esperanza’s FAI. This paper describes the university team’s process in learning about Casa de Esperanza and the FAI and collaboratively developing an evaluation plan. We briefly summarize the program’s theory of change, review its logic model, and present results from a focus group conducted with program staff. Based on this information we discuss the evaluation and recommendations for implementing it. Throughout the paper, we highlight the need for culturally sensitive programs for survivors of DV and the importance and benefits of collaborative community partnerships and evidence-based evaluative learning

From Theory to Practice: Forging a Collaborative Evaluation Strategy for a Culturally-Informed Domestic Violence Initiative

Community programs for domestic violence (DV) in the U.S. have historically focused on White populations. Few programs exist to meet the needs of racial/ethnic minority populations, including Latinx women, who encounter greater barriers to access services than their non-Hispanic White counterparts. Casa de Esperanza is one of the few organizations in the U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of Latinx survivors of DV. In particular, their Family Advocacy Initiative (FAI) seeks to support Latinx communities impacted by DV by facilitating a variety of services including a 24-hour hotline, shelter, community advocacy, and transitional housing support network. This program utilizes Casa de Esperanza’s Latina Advocacy Framework, which was developed to address the unique risks, considerations, and needs of Latinx communities, but has yet to be empirically evaluated. As part of a graduate community psychology course on assessment, consultation, and evaluation, a university-community partnership was established to explore the process of defining, designing, and planning an evaluation of Casa de Esperanza’s FAI. This paper describes the university team’s process in learning about Casa de Esperanza and the FAI and collaboratively developing an evaluation plan. We briefly summarize the program’s theory of change, review its logic model, and present results from a focus group conducted with program staff. Based on this information we discuss the evaluation and recommendations for implementing it. Throughout the paper, we highlight the need for culturally sensitive programs for survivors of DV and the importance and benefits of collaborative community partnerships and evidence-based evaluative learning