Collective uplift: the impact of a holistic development support program on black male former college athletes’ experiences and outcomes

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a holistic development support program at Division I historically White institution (HWI) on Black male former college athletes’ pre- and post-graduation experiences and outcomes. Previous research has documented the myriad of challenges facing Black male college athletes at Division I HWIs including exposure to exploitive athletic sub-cultures, stigmatizing campus climates, and a general lack of support for their psychosocial, personal, and professional development. In response to these disconcerting trends, culturally relevant support programs have been created to address the unique needs of this sub-group. This qualitative case study involved 14 semi-structured individual interviews with seven Black male former college athletes who participated in a culturally relevant holistic development (CRHD) support program. Using the strategic responsiveness to interest convergence (SRIC) theory and the excellence beyond athletics (EBA) framework, key findings revealed participants’ involvement resulted in a range of personal and professional benefits both during and after college. Implications for policies and practices are discussed.

Keywords:

• Black male college athletes
• holistic development
• strategic responsiveness to interest convergence
• mentorship
• culturally relevant support

Notes

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 The terms Black and African American will be used interchangeably based on the cited source.

2 For the purposes of this study, a historically White institution (HWI) was defined as institution of higher education in the U.S. that historically excluded and/or limited large numbers of Black students from enrollment prior to 1964 and whose current student population is at least 50% White.

3 This purpose statement was co-constructed by the founding student members of the group and the founding faculty member. The group was designed for Black college athletes as a research of the founding faculty members’ research, but the members wanted to make sure the group remained inclusive in its purpose statement.

4 Parenthetical ethnicities add up to more than the number of analysts (6) because individuals identified with multiple ethnicities.