PHOENIX, August 9. PHILLIP Whitten, newly-appointed Executive Director of the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA), announced today the formation of four committees \u201cto begin the systematic defense of our sport at the collegiate level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whitten described the reasons for the CSCAA\u2019s action plan: \u201cSince 1991, more than 60 college swim teams \u2013 primarily Division I men\u2019s teams \u2013 have been cut, ostensibly for budgetary or Title IX reasons,\u201d he said, calling for college coaches at all levels to apply to serve on the four task forces and an additional three dozen committees to be announced in the near future. <\/p>\n
The four committees are:
\n1. The SOS: Save Our Sport \u2013 booklet revision committee
\n2. Crisis Team
\n3. Opportunity Team
\n4. Prospecting Team<\/p>\n
Descriptions of the missions of these four committees are included in the sidebar below.<\/p>\n
Seizing the Initiative<\/b>
\n\u201cNo longer will we just sit back and allow misguided, and often ill-informed, athletic administrators to kill off teams whose members personify the NCAA ideal of the student-athlete,\u201d Whitten said. \u201cWe intend to fight for every program.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn fact, we intend to take the initiative by taking action in several areas: producing publications, holding seminars at our and ASCA\u2019s national conventions, and making information available on our web site, as well as the web sites of our supporters, on how coaches can make their programs virtually \u2018cut-proof.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cFurther,\u201d he said, \u201cwe plan immediately to set up a legal defense network, in which attorneys with swimming backgrounds will represent threatened teams and the CSCAA.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot only that,\u201d Whitten said, \u201cbut we also plan to work with schools that have cut swimming teams in the past to bring them back and we will be proactive in helping to create new programs. This will be done for both men\u2019s and women\u2019s teams and at all levels of collegiate swimming,\u201d though he acknowledged that Div. II schools seem to offer a large number of immediate opportunities.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course,\u201d Whitten agreed, \u201cwe can\u2019t do this all by ourselves. We will need allies and supporters throughout the US swimming community \u2013 including USA Swimming, US Masters Swimming, ASCA, alumni groups and sympathetic media \u2013 and we must work in tandem with the coaches organizations of other threatened Olympic sports and such valuable organizations as the NCAA and the College Sports Council."<\/p>\n
Irony<\/b>
\n\u201cIt\u2019s ironic, Whitten remarked, \u201cthat swimming \u2013 far and away the USA\u2019s most successful sport at the modern Olympic Games since 1896 \u2013 would be earmarked for cutting so often. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe irony is compounded,\u201d he added, \u201cby the fact that at almost every college and university, swimmers almost always are among the top performing athletes in the classroom. More often than not, they rank number one among each school\u2019s athletic teams and easily out-perform the non-athletes. <\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, in July the Rutgers University web site headlined the men\u2019s and women\u2019s swim teams. Why? Both teams had earned Academic All-America team honors, the first time any Rutgers sport had achieved that distinction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe very next day, the school\u2019s Athletic Director announced he would be cutting five men\u2019s teams, including swimming, and one women\u2019s team.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo much for Rutgers\u2019 vaunted commitment to the ideal of the \u2018student-athlete.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hypocrisy goes even further,\u201d Whitten said. \u201cFirst off, the men\u2019s and women\u2019s swim teams are, arguably, the school\u2019s most successful on the playing field. Secondly, the AD announced a set of guidelines used for cutting or retaining teams. But even a cursory examination reveals that the school then proceeded to ignore its own guidelines.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot only that, but there are better solutions \u2013 in terms of both budget and Title IX – than the one with which the university came up.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the national level, the irony is even more bittersweet,\u201d Whitten noted. \u201cAt a time when this country is in the midst of a full-blown obesity pandemic \u2013 with all its potential for heart disease, diabetes and other diseases a few years down the line – schools are cutting the acknowledged best all-around sport for maintaining lifetime fitness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are they thinking?"<\/p>\n
Taking Action<\/b>
\nWhitten said the CSCAA will be making announcements over the next two months to fill all 40 newly-created committees and task forces. Coaches interested in volunteering their time, knowledge and passion should contact Whitten at: swimphil@aol.com, or (480) 628-5488<\/p>\n
The Four CSCAA \u201cSave Our Sport\u201d Committees<\/p>\n
1. The SOS: Save Our Sport Committee<\/p>\n
CSCAA members with the following expertise needed:
\na) Critique Whitten\u2019s booklet for its revision this fall
\nb) Legal
\nc) Financial\/fund-raising\/endowing
\nd) Web site<\/p>\n
2. The Crisis Team<\/p>\n
Individuals with experience in
\na) organizing,
\nb) strategizing
\nc) communication
\nd) fund-raising
\ne) an attorney to assist teams threatened with being cut on the local level <\/p>\n
3. The Opportunity Team<\/p>\n
This small group will identify, promote and assist in the creation of new collegiate swimming programs or the re-creation of former teams for both sexes. Among this committee\u2019s task will be the creation of an \u201copportunity package.\u201d <\/p>\n
4. The Prospecting Team<\/p>\n
The mission of this task force will be to identify colleges with the facilities (or potential facilities) and receptive administrations to starting new swim programs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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