Joyce Olushola

Email: joyce.olushola@gmail.com

Jackie Joyner-Kerese. Althea Gibson. Wilma Rudolph. A thorough compilation of U.S. sport history would be remiss if these women were not included. The feats of African–American female athletes color the fabric of sport history as they challenged the racial ideologies that oppressed their communities and the gender ideologies that suppressed their ability to play.  While the accomplishments of African-American women are noteworthy, the success of these individuals seems to eclipse the overwhelming lack of sport participation among African-American females. More African–American women have been provided the opportunity to continue in these women’s footsteps, yet less African-American girls are participating in sport than ever before.  Sport participation for these girls has been linked to increased prosocial behaviors, educational achievement, positive health outcomes, and civic engagement. Organizations, like the Black Women in Sport Foundation, have continued to promote awareness for the need for more programs tailored to increasing sport participation for these girls. Knowing why, the question is, how?

In answering that call, my work in the Sport and Life Quality Lab collects the voices of African-American female sport participants to understand: 1) how these women continue to overcome the racial and gender barriers to sport participation, 2) what they believe sport can do to assist them in living a higher quality of life and 3) how do we design sport programs to help them do so. My research has shown that African-American girls seek programs that incorporate their development as a player into their overall development as women. The increased aberrant behavior (e.g., fighting, risky sexual behavior, criminal acts) seen among these girls may not be rebellion against structure but as a reaction to a lack of it. These girls benefit from programs that enforce discipline as they create a mental toughness that promotes perseverance on the court and in the classroom. The girls also enjoy the recognition they receive from their participation as it not only made them accountable for their behavior but it also increases their belief in themselves to achieve academically and athletically. A sense of family is key in providing the context for their sport participation as it made them feel comfortable knowing that when they succeed they would be praised and, when they made mistakes, they would be corrected with love. Adult leadership is vital to creating this environment as they serve as role models and motivators of constructive behavior.

Sport’s ability to assist girls in reaching personal and academic goals stems from the ability of coaches, parents, and other sport administrators to tailor the structural components of sport to meet the needs of its participants. This suggests that sport interventions do not have to be limited to a specific sport but should provide meaningful activities with low barriers to entry (e.g. no or low fees, transportation available, no previous skill required), choose elements which engage the participants (e.g., peer-to-peer mentoring, student led practices, community service), create a context which supports meaningful and authentic interactions with others (including adults and mentors- study halls, socials), and assure opportunities for them to progress toward stated goals. Overall, these participants highlighted that sport programs wishing to help them need to provide them with the resources to overcome barriers (e.g., financial, physical, emotional) to living a higher quality of life but also the mindset that they can.

Further research is needed to understand what sport program components are necessary in providing educational, social, and health benefits for these girls and in turn, how we can use those benefits the recruitment and retention of African-American girls in sport programs. My next step is to locate current sport programs in the Austin area geared towards African-American girls and assist them with evaluating their current structure and identifying what can be done to create sustainable benefits for these girls. Implications from this, implementation of sport programs designed to assist these girls develop, and assist school administrators in creating sustainable sport programs. Assistance includes cultivating sustainable funding sources, increasing efficiency recruitment and retention methods, fostering participant-centered curriculum, adult leadership training, developing methods for consistent behavior and academic success, and increasing parent and community involvement.

For more information, please feel free to contact me at Joyce.Olushola@mail.utexas.edu or at (512) 471- 1273.