From Where We Were to Where We Should Be
A presentation by Tonia Walker, Associate Director of Athletics/SWA, Winston-Salem State University at the NACWAA 25th Anniversary Fall Forum

November 16, 2004

Seated from Left to Right: Joni Cormstock, NACWAA Board Member, Panalists: Cary Groth, Director of Athletics, University of Nevada-Reno; Lynda Tealer, Associate Athletic Director/SWA, University of Florida; and Tonia Walker, Associate Director of Athletics/SWA, Winston-Salem State University.

I am humbled to have this opportunity to share my career experiences, goals, challenges and choices for the future in my short tenure as an athletic administrator. It is especially of interest to me to share the focus of the minority female in the profession and enlighten the membership of NACWAA on some of our concerns and challenges. I will also share the perspective of the female working in the HBCU arena.

I’ve have been an athlete all of my life. It is no surprise to many that I pursued a career in athletics administration. I attended college on a full athletic scholarship. Graduated with honors with a degree in speech pathology. It wasn’t until I “got lucky” with a summer job at the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association that I found my niche! I returned to school for my masters in Sports Administration. I worked for the CIAA for 7 years, working up the ranks from an intern up to the Director of Public Relations & Event Planning. While I enjoyed my job, I felt the need to be on a college campus where I could have an impact and work closer with the athletes. I had a passion to work directly with the student-athletes on a daily basis. I felt it was on the University level that I had more to share and where I could give more of myself. I was offered an Asst. AD/SWA position at WSSU, but there was just one thing that came along with the role on the Div II level…I HAD TO COACH VOLLEYBALL. At the time I wasn’t particularly thrilled and contemplated the opportunity, not having played volleyball in quite some time. But I asked myself again…Why not me? Someone is seeing the potential in me, why am I not recognizing it within my self. In short, I accepted the position, coached 3 years and was later promoted to my current position as Associate AD/SWA with no coaching responsibilities. Now I look back and am very pleased to have had the opportunity to coach and gain a perspective from the coaching standpoint. Now I am able to take those lessons and apply them to an administrative frame of reference as an Associate AD. My point…learn all you can from everyone you can where ever you are! In this field you really never know where you will end up. Don’t limit yourself to the scope of your primary job! When asked to oversee additional tasks and responsibilities instead of asking WHY ME??? Ask yourself…WHY NOT ME??? See it as another opportunity to aid in establishing your identity within your career.

Shaw's Dianthia Ford-Kee (seated second from left) was also a panelist at the Forum

I will be applying for an NCAA Fellowship this year, as I continue to enhance and sharpen my skills for Athletic Administration. I have established a 5-year plan to pursue my Ph.D. my way to becoming an Athletic Director one day.

I was raised in the HBCU arena, having gone to Hampton University… went to grad school at Old Dominion University… returned to an HBCU conference…and currently am working at a Historically Black Institution. I could not envision a better atmosphere to learn much of what there is to know about athletic administration than at an HBCU. Many persons have not a clue of the challenges and the political culture that must be navigated at HBCU institutions. There are definitely benefits of a close-knit family like environment. I am fortunate, unlike some, to be in a position that is not just by title. I am respected as the SWA on my campus and my opinion and input is valuable in the success of our program. Realistically, the HBCU environment has afforded me the opportunity of EXPERIENCE. I have gained knowledge and experience in many areas of athletics: game day operations, sports information, fundraising, student-athlete welfare, budgets, equipment, event management, compliance and the list goes on….and on…and on…

Certainly I have faced my share of challenges in the past 12 years in this field and have grown through mistakes that I have made along the way. There have been many life lessons learned as a minority female working in collegiate athletic administration. While I could probably list quite a number of obstacles that I, as well as my minority colleagues, have encountered, there were a few that seemed to have been consistent from the feedback that I received

• Minority females do not always get the respect they deserve from administrators at majority institutions.
• Lack of focus to develop minority females
• Lack of Networking done by minority females.

I attended my son’s football practice the other week and my mind quickly drifted back to my days as an athlete. Each of those little boys was attentive and depending on their coaches to help them sharpen skills and techniques. They asked questions and the coaches answered and continued to challenge them explaining their assignments and routes. These little boys believed in their coaches and knew that if they listened and did what the coaches were asking them to do that success was sure to come. They trusted their coaches to the end. They were willing to learn… willing to follow…and willing to believe in their coaches! The coaches motivated and shaped these little boys into solid football players and displayed a confidence in knowing they were making an impression on these little boys lives!

I quickly paralleled the coaches in this story to the more seasoned, polished administrators of NACWAA. While the young athletes represent up and coming administrators of this organization…who need and depend on you… and look to you to help shape us into sound leaders for the future.

Sound simple, right? Well, as minorities we have experienced the lack of majority administrators reaching back to help minorities pave way as we seek to move up the ranks in our careers. We do not always gain the respect from our administrators in majority institutions. We ask that you challenge yourself to identify other women outside of your network as a source or resource and assist in shaping them into a solid administrator.

The same select few names of minority females are tossed around for recognition and are allowed to enter the preexisting circles among majority women in the profession. We must support one another if we expect others to support us as women. Reflecting on a quote from Micaville…. Until all of us have made it, none of us have made it.” We’ve come to remind you women of NACWAA that we are skillful, resourceful, talented, creative, intelligent, strong, willing, tenacious, and capable of carrying out the responsibilities that come along with collegiate athletic administration. Just give us a chance! And we challenge you… the membership of NACWAA, to play an active role in the success and development of up and coming minority female college athletic administrators.

We have talked many times in the past about the critical importance of ensuring that gender issues are fully mainstreamed into all aspects of collegiate athletics. We have also talked about the need to increase the minority population in our hiring practices. But it’s not often that we specifically address the minority female as it relates to college athletic administration and how we go about enhancing the role of this population within our profession.

Many of the programs initiated by the NCAA in the past 20 years have done a lot to advance white females and to some extent, minority men, but none of the programs have targeted assisting women of color, in particular. The lack of minority female representation within the Women and Ethnic Scholarship Programs, the internship programs, the Leadership Development Fellows Program, the Ethnic Institute for Minority Males, and NACWAA/Hers alumni all illustrate this point.

The NCAA Demographics Manual reports that the number of minority SWA’s in the profession has remained stagnant over the years. 9.1% of minority females held the position across all NCAA Institutions when studies were initiated in 1995. Shockingly, statistics reveal that only 9.6% of all SWAs are minority females today. That’s a .5% increase in almost a decade!!!

Minority colleagues, we can’t allow this to discourage us. At this 25 th year celebration we’ve had more participation from minorities in attendance on panels and displaying talents! We could sit around and complain… dispute the rights and wrongs…try figure out what’s just and unjust …accept our current circumstances…or wonder why we are faced with the challenges we encounter. But Ladies I come today to challenge you to stop trying to decipher the challenges, and instead RESPOND TO THE THEM, as I responded to the call to stand before you today!

The value of NETWORKING is mighty! And that responsibility lies on us as minority females in this profession. It’s time to step out of the box ladies! Get out of your comfort zones and be willing to accept new challenges! We are guilty of fellowshipping and mingling with only those that are like us. While there’s nothing wrong with that, don’t limit yourself to a select few. Remember…if we keep on doing what we’ve always done, we’ll keep on getting what we all ways got!

Get active! Work to enlarge your network base so that decision makers will know who we are. Join committees and organizations. Diversify your support system to include varied ethnic backgrounds, genders, and cultures! The circles in intercollegiate athletics are very small. You never know who may know who. Get out of your office. A multitude of opportunities exist outside the office. Make sure that your superiors understand your career goals. They may be able to assist you in attaining them. Stay current on trends in athletics and business. Be able to show how outside campus activity effect student-athletes. Read and educate yourself in the profession so that you become proactive instead of reactive. Be a big picture thinker!!!

Finally, learn how to encourage yourself and believe in self. Continue to go through personal development seminars and workshops and display an attitude of confidence. Find your passion… believe in yourself and never let anyone steal your joy! Your endurance, integrity, faith, love and willingness to grow is what makes you successful.

Although some attempt has been made to offer minorities greater opportunities in athletic administration, we are still not where we need to be in assuring that minorities are in key decision-making roles. My hope is that no matter what race or gender you may be that all people will be given the same and fair opportunity to succeed and progress in the field of athletics. And that we are not just diverse culture but an inclusive one.

I would like to leave you with this short poem that was written by my brother.

My Struggles
By Tommy Glymph, Jr.

If my struggles can make me stronger
Then my struggles are not in vain
And my struggles are not unique
For you have struggled just the same.
So how did you handle your struggles
From a survivors point of view,
Show me the way to clear my path
So I too can make it through!

THANK YOU.