Success Despite the Image

Abstract

College athletics are at the forefront of higher education. Consequently, student-athletes are visible figures on campus. Given this visibility, coupled with the overwhelmingly negative characterizations of student-athletes, the objective of this paper is to examine the extent to which images (both positive and negative) affect a Black student-athlete's academic experience on campus. Utilizing Scheurich and Young's (1997) four levels of racism schema, the academic experiences of 17 successful Black student-athletes at Division I institutions on the West Coast are chronicled and analyzed. The participants were selected not only because of their success in their respective sport but more importantly, because they demonstrated success in the classroom. The primary research questions guiding the study are: How do academically successful African American male student-athletes experience and perceive their academic journey amidst negative characterizations? Can student-athletes' racialized incidences subsequently be classified according to the four levels of racism schema? While the participants were accomplished students, all had experienced attacks on their intellect from a variety of college personnel including faculty, academic counselors, classmates, and teammates; attacks they felt were consequences of the negative images of Black student-athletes and nothing they had personally created for themselves. The implications of these findings should be discussed among coaches, faculty, student affairs leaders, and others who frequently interact with student-athletes and are committed to creating more equitable educational environments for all students.