Division II can benefit immensely by understanding how our current service-based economy has produced a public need for community. We need to demonstrate that the opportunity is NOW and that there are numerous potential gains to be made. We need to tie the community need to the already existing resources of a university or college environment.
- Why should a Division II school do this?
There is a need for community involvement because now our individual/service-based economy no longer financially supports the context for community. Local colleges and universities have the resources and assets needed to extend the local community. Division II schools should serve as the “new” town square, and athletics events should be a place where family and friends can gather.
- How can the athletics department assist?
More community people come to the university to watch sports than for any other reason. We are not talking about doing something new. We are talking about getting more value out of what our Division II institutions are already doing by taking advantage of intercollegiate athletics events and other campus activities.
- What roles do the president or chancellor play?
The president or chancellor should see how community engagement fits the mission and goals of his/her institution and how it integrates many functions and leverages current strengths. Through the president’s or chancellor’s direction, the director of athletics—the one most likely to be held accountable in the athletics department—has to see clearly, concretely and objectively, and in a short period of time, how this program adds more value to the intercollegiate athletics program without adding substantially more work.
- What is the distinction between classic community service activities and this community engagement initiative?
While community service, like reading to grade school students or visiting hospitals, is an important activity that serves specific community needs, the initiative being launched by the Presidents Council is more about “being community.” The initiative’s goal is to look for ways that a campus might use athletics to help build stronger and more mutually beneficial community relationships. Community service is an important component of the Division II student-athlete’s development, but it should not be viewed as creating the same connectedness that occurs during events where there is a “sense of community.”
- What if my Division II institution is already successful in engaging in our community?
The advisory group understands that there are several entities within a school that might already be engaged with the local community.
There should be something that will benefit every Division II school as a result of this initiative.
- If a school involves the athletics department and is already fully engaged in a community strategy, the objective is to promote and communicate these successes on the national stage to enhance the division’s identity and to also share good ideas with other member schools.
- If a campus is looking for ways to integrate athletics into its community strategy, it should be able to tap into some of the interactive Division II tools (e.g., ideas that work) on the community Web site.
- If a campus is looking to enhance or develop a community engagement strategy, it can use some of the process recommendations and assessment documents on the community Web site as a resource.
This initiative is not designed for athletics to take over or control a campus’ community engagement activities; rather, these are merely suggestions for how to provide additional value to what Division II campuses are already doing. This cannot work in isolation.
So as not to ‘ruffle any feathers’ on campus, the first activity should be to discuss the Division II community engagement strategy with the president/chancellor to:
Determine if community engagement is already being done. If it is, ask if the athletics department can be better partners in these school-wide community efforts.
If it is not being done, determine if the president/chancellor would support the efforts to develop a campus community engagement strategy that athletics can assist with. Determine the entities and individuals on campus who should be involved and, through presidential leadership, develop a coordinated effort with those entities and individuals.
- What groups on campus might be a part of a community engagement initiative?
The activities outside athletics include service work, development, student recruiting and more. On most campuses, these activities are isolated programs and experiences that are developed and run from the perspective of the school’s opportunities, resources, calendar and needs. Also, in most cases, the programs of the college or university are not coordinated into an integrated community package. This community engagement goal is a coordinated effort throughout the school so the efforts of one group support and advance the efforts of other groups.
Few schools have done a community-needs analysis to identify the “community connectedness” kinds of activities that are lacking for general or specific sectors of the community and linking them to the resources and assets of the school. This Division II community engagement strategy will provide that analyses, where it has not been done, and give the results and opportunities to the appropriate units in the school so that they can enjoy more fulfilling engagement with the community.
The key distinction between this strategy and what most schools are already doing is our goal to meet the engagement needs of the community, as defined by the community and to involve intercollegiate athletics to help meet these needs.
- Is there an example of a community engagement activity involving a Division II athletics department that has occurred recently?
Yes, there is a recent example of how an athletics department can help the university organize an event that engages the community to create a spirit of connectedness. Inspired by the vision of Division II’s community-engagement initiative, Coker College’s athletics director, Tim Griggs, conceived and then pulled off "A Taste of Coker," an evening of food, entertainment and social interaction staged on a crisp autumn evening under the lights directly on top of Coker’s soccer field.
The plan involved recruiting 20 friends of the university to serve as guest chefs. Tickets, priced at $20 each, were sold throughout the community of Hartsville, South Carolina. The chefs’ stations were set up around the perimeter of the field, with a coach assigned to each station. Many of the celebrity chefs were institutional staff members, including the president of Coker.
The bleachers were moved to the middle of the field, where members of the Coker student-athlete advisory committee and other student-athletes played with children, most of them less than 10 years old. Throughout the evening, a student-athlete entertained with singing and a guitar, the cheerleaders cheered and the Coker Dancers danced, even coaxing the school’s president and vice presidents into a line dance. In all, 200 tickets were sold. Counting the participating athletes, staff, chefs and a few comps, about 300 people got a Taste of Coker.
The event was a fun evening for the community; it created a town gathering place at an athletics facility; and the evening involved many staff and students who had the opportunity to build meaningful relationships with key people in the community.
- Will the Division II community engagement initiative have a significant impact on time demands for Division II student-athletes?
No. Remember that this initiative is very different than community service or community outreach initiatives that many student-athletes are currently involved with. The purpose of this initiative is for the institution, hopefully involving the athletics department, to be engaged with the community in a way where the campus is answering a need identified by the community, a place for the community to gather and interact. The solution should be simple, and many of the solutions would not involve student-athletes at all––for example, an arts festival held on the concourse before a basketball game or a farmers’ market held by the football stadium before the Saturday afternoon game.
- Why is this such an important initiative for the Division II Presidents Council?
Division II member institutions have a great deal of pride regarding their campuses and their communities. There are hundreds of success stories that are important to showcase to help people understand the values and key attributes of the division. What the Presidents Council is doing is taking the great work occurring at the local level, illuminating those stories to a national stage and, through that, helping to add value to Division II membership affiliation.
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