Factors Influencing Recruitment of Collegiate Basketball Players in Institutions of Higher Education in the Upper Midwest

The purpose of the study was to examine the factors that influenced college basketball players to choose to attend a certain institution of higher education. The secondary purpose was to learn if the perceptions of head college basketball coaches as to reasons for student athletes to choose a college were the same as the student athletes\u27 stated reasons. The study sought to determine what factors influence athletes\u27 decisions and whether those factors differed for female and male athletes, female and male coaches, athletes from different divisions, and coaches from different divisions. The study was intended to contribute to knowledge in the area of college athletic recruiting. A survey instrument was developed by the writer and sent to head basketball coaches and their varsity athletes of ten NCAA Division I, ten NCAA Division II, and twenty-eight NAIA colleges in the upper midwest. Results of the study indicate that the top three reasons for student athletes to choose to attend a certain college were the academic reputation of the college, the athletic scholarship, and the basketball program and tradition. The top three perceptions of college coaches as to why a student athlete chooses to attend a certain college were the academic reputation of the college, the basketball program and the tradition, and the athletic scholarship. The people who most influenced the student athletes to choose a certain college were the athlete\u27s father, the athlete\u27s mother, and the head college basketball coach. The campus facilities which most impressed student athletes during their on campus visits were the athletic facilities, the academic facilities, and the campus grounds. The facts that high school senior student athletes were most unclear about when selecting a college were what is important to look for in a college, identifying their own ability in knowing what level they can play, and how financial aid and scholarships work. Recommendations based on the results of the study were made to student athletes, high school coaches and counselors, parents of student athletes, and college coaches and recruiters. In addition, recommendations for future research about recruitment of student athletes are made

Calibrating the Justice System

By surveying a pool of judges in the State of Illinois, their rationale within a hypothetical situation is analyzed against the backdrop of recent contradicting court decisions and the history of law. It is through analyzing this rationale that the factors that tip the scales of justice can be identified, so that actions can be taken to correct our legal system to ultimately uphold the standards of truth and justice it claims to support

Taking a Leadership Position In The IT Business Environment

Well-defined Industrial economics have been based upon internal, specialized, and proprietary business models.  Success in that economy has been dependent upon the ability to produce and distribute products and services faster, better, and cheaper than competitors (Economy of Scale).  The opportunity for such competition translates into executable capabilities primarily by building specialized plants, jobs, and workers that support that opportunity.  Then, and only then, an Economy of Scope will develop when those capabilities have been established.  The business value is heavily dependent upon that ability to leverage an existing business infrastructure with a launch of a new opportunity.  Job specialization, hierarchical supervision, and assembly line approaches have been techniques that have successfully leveraged a launch with an existing business structure.  Those models have had little success in the Information Age.  For example, a need has risen to leverage supply and distribution with existing business models.  Therefore, a new infrastructure must be created to develop and execute external proprietary strategies and capabilities

A Brief Summary of Teacher Recruitment and Retention in the Smallest Illinois Rural Schools

Teacher recruitment and retention factors were identified in the smallest public school districts in Illinois. Findings were compared to a previous study of Montana rural teacher recruitment and retention conducted by Davis (2002). A quantitative survey instrument was administered to teachers employed in the 24 smallest Illinois school districts. The survey consisted of Likert-type items measuring recruitment, retention, and job satisfaction factors and was based on the Boylan (1993) four spheres of influence for teacher recruitment and retention: 1) within classroom activities, 2) whole school level activities, 3) community level activities, and 4) family/personal factors. Results were similar to the Davis study with the family/personal and whole school level spheres most important to teacher recruitment and the community and within classroom spheres most important to teacher retention. Teachers were also asked to identify the recruitment and retention strategies they perceived as being most important for rural school districts and to respond to three professional satisfaction questions. The study concluded with recommendations for both educational practitioners and researchers

Synergy Of Incident Management And Real-Time Technology: The Next Step In The Evolution Of Supply Chain Management

Over the last two decades, the culture of the supply chain environment has transformed from one of mass production and distribution to one centered on pull-based demand sensing and response.  This transformation, in turn, has necessitated the use of more efficient supply chain operations.  One of the cornerstones of efficient supply chain operations is just-in-time (JIT) delivery and inventory reduction, both in-transit and in-facility (Anderson et al 2003, Simchi-Levi et al 2000).  The goal of JIT, a sub-part of a larger concept referred to as time-critical logistics (TCL), is to facilitate the delivery of materials only as they are required.  This practice, in turn, leads to improved efficiency by reducing inventory costs and idled capacity.  In addition, JIT provides increased customer orientation and responsiveness; two very critical elements in an environment of intense competition and rising fuel prices.  A vital part of JIT is the routing and scheduling of shipments.  Therefore, in order to effectively manage JIT, accurate predictions of routes and travel times are essential. (Miller et al 1999).  The JIT approach has dramatically increased the importance of reliability and efficiency throughout supply chain operations, in such areas as the sourcing of goods, transportation, manufacturing, and distribution. &nbsp

Strategic Human Resource Planning In Academia

A strategic plan guides a college in successfully meeting its mission.  Based on the strategic plan, a college can develop a human resource plan that will allow it to make management decisions in the present to support the future direction of the college.  The overall purpose of human resource management is to:ensure the organization has adequate human resources to meet it goals and operational plansallow the organization to stay apprised of the current social, economic, legislative and technological trends that affect human resources, and allow the organization to remain flexible to the dynamic changes in the environment. Human resource management identifies the future needs of the college after analyzing the college's current human resources, the external labor market, and the future human resource environment in which the college will be operating. The analysis of issues external to the college, and developing scenarios about the future, are what distinguishes human resource management from operational planning. The basic questions to be answered for strategic human resource management are:Where are we going? Given the circumstances, how will we get there? This article seeks to provide a framework for strategic human resource planning in academia

Higher Education Should Have A Role In The Workforce Development System

In order to understand the Workforce Development System, we propose to review the history of the current workforce development system, discuss models and initiatives that are evolving, and conclude with a discussion on how higher education can be involved in research, community partnership, and programmatic activities

Government Control Of Communications Technology

The internet allows for the sharing of knowledge, communications, and business transactions on a global scale. Governmental regulation of the internet varies among different countries and regions of the world.  The benefits and burdens of such regulatory policies should be considered

Embedding Security Functionality In Formal Specifications Of Requirements

The methodology in this paper will let designers specify the security properties defined through the functional families of the ISO/IEC 15408 Standard, graphic representations.  This blueprint will allow both business and technical participants, to discuss and refine a common solution.  It also serves as a roadmap, to guide the implementation process. We feel this can become a useful supporting methodology for the construction of effective security responses, because it ensures both the widest possible participation in the design process as well as the greatest degree of understanding.  The fact that the advice of the world’s experts is readily available and easy to use as a result of this process might also serve to make the mission to protect America’s information assets a little more effective

The Changing Workforce And Marketplace

The makeup of the labor force has changed dramatically in the last 25 years and will continue to change at an even faster pace. Businesses and/or organizations will achieve many benefits from including the ageing population and people with disabilities in both the workforce and marketplace.  Viewing the ageing population and people with disabilities as strategic business partners will achieve a strong, competitive advantage