| Crisis
on Our Playing Fields
“At the heart of these problems (in sports) is a profound
change in the American culture of sports itself. At one time, that
culture was defined by colleges, high schools, summer leagues, and
countless community recreational programs. Amateurism was a cherished
ideal. In such a context, it made sense to regard athletics as an
educational undertaking. Young people were taught values ranging
from fitness, cooperation, teamwork, and perseverance to sportsmanship
as moral endeavor. All of that seems somehow archaic and quaint
today.”
The Knight Commission, A Call to Action, 2001
An exerpt from Svare, B. 2004, "Crisis on
Our Playing Fields: What Everyone Should Know About Our Out of Control
Sports Culture and What We Can Do to Change It", Sports Reform
Press.
There is a crisis brewing on our nation’s playing fields
and it is fueled in part by the unprecedented popularity of sports
in our country. Look at the nationwide figures today regarding sports
participation and you will see some staggering numbers. Roughly
22 million 6-18 year olds participate in youth sports programs such
as Little League baseball and Pop Warner football; approximately
16 million athletes are involved in intramural or interscholastic
sports; 2 million are involved in club or fee based programs; 332,000
are involved in intercollegiate athletics. These numbers, which
represent dramatic increases over what they were 10 and 20 years
ago, clearly indicate the rising popularity of sports in our country.
[Read the complete exerpt] |
|  The
National Institute for Sports Reform (NISR) supports a biannual
conference in which participants from around the country gather
to discuss sports reform issues of national importance and to develop
an agenda for advocacy and implementation.The first conference will
be held at the historic Sagamore Hotel in Bolton Landing, New York,
November 7-9, 2003. Leading figures in sports governing bodies and
the media have been invited to participate in important discussions
facilitated by expert panelists. [Learn
more about the Conference]
|
|  NISR
Biannual Awards
At the November, 2003 meeting of the National Institute for Sports
Reform in Bolton Landing, Lake George, New York, two individuals
were recognized for their contributions to the field of sports reform.
The first NISR honorees were the founder of the Drake Group, Dr
Jon Ericson, and author and New York Times columnist
Robert Lipsyte. [Read
about the award winners] |
| The NISR
Interview Series
NISR will be posting frequent interviews with leading sports reformers.
A new interview will be posted every two weeks. The first interview
was with Jon Ericson, Professor Emeritus, and former provost at
Drake University in Iowa. The interview was conducted on March 3rd,
2003. [Read the Complete Interview]
|
 A
report by
The National Institute for Sports Reform has been released called
the 2004 NCAA DIVISION I MEN'S AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL COACHES'
ACADEMIC DEGREE ATTAINMENT SURVEY. [Read
the entire report as an Adobe Acrobat PDF file.]
|
NISR's
“One Community at a Time” program is designed educate
the public about the many problems of our present sports culture.
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