My 140 word comment on RushMoreDrive.com to Donna White's piece:
MWPR ( Less than 1 minute ago)You are missing a significant piece to this puzzle, the parents. Has any research included stats on how many parents of Black athletes, who didn't graduate, played a role in that decision versus White athletes and their parents? Unfortunately, economic challenges influence the decision to stay/study or leave/cash-in on talent. And, that is normally the case for Black athletes more than Whites. Thus, the parents view their talented child as a ticket out/up. So, the pressure to leave is greater.
Donna's piece:
Since the election of President Obama, much has been written about the positive shift in attitude among some Black men who have traditionally survived on the fringe of their communities. Many young men (and not so young men) have cited the election of Obama as a turning point for doing better as Black men – being better sons, fathers and law-abiding citizens.
There is a collective sense that Mr. Obama is the representative of Black men, therefore, they have to positively ‘rep’ the race and him. If having a Black president can do what grandmas and mothers have been trying to do for a generation, then I am all for it. I hope that it extends to the classroom as well, finally abandoning the idea that doing well academically is “acting white” or makes you a sellout.
Again, as President Obama demonstrates, you can ball (basketball in his case) AND be academically competitive.Yet, some athletes are still not getting the message. National Signing Day – the day that high school football players sign their letters of intent to play for a college – was held on Wednesday, February 4. Naturally, the most prominent conferences - the Southeastern Conference (SEC), Pac-10, Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) - were the big winners in recruiting the nation’s top talent. Most athletes want to play for schools whose games are televised, send the most players to the NFL and have the big name coaches. If I were a star athlete, I probably would want to do the same.
However, I wish more parents and athletes would also look for a program that graduates a majority of its athletes to show their prowess on the field and in the classroom. How many really considered the graduation rate at their chosen school along with the times they would be on SportsCenter? The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida released a report in December that shows that Black football players are graduating at a much lower rate than their white counterparts. Though the graduation rate among Black athletes has increased, only 59% are graduating compared to 76% of white players. Some may say a rate over 50% is good. But a closer examination of the report shows that 19 of the 68 teams that played in recent bowl games graduated fewer than half of the Black students whereas only one (1) school graduated fewer than half of its white football athletes according to Richard E. Lapchick, director of The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport.
If Black athletes want to do better, they need to start selecting schools not just for the potential of getting to the NFL but also for preparing them for life in spite of the NFL.
Myron Rolle, a DB at Florida State, is headed to Oxford. Grant Hill graduated from Duke and still enjoys a prominent career in the NBA. It is possible for athletes to be serious students while dominating on the field instead of being athletes who just happen to attend class between practices. If we really want to do better, Black athletes need to step up their game in the classroom.
Black Student Athletes: Change We Can Believe In Donna White Opinions, Sports + Entertainment and more at RushmoreDrive
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