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Note: This story appeared in the Summer 2020 September edition of CoSIDA 360 Magazine. To view the full magazine, click here.
From the President's Desk
Be the Change
by Sam Atkinson – CoSIDA president 2020-21 / Gallaudet University, Associate Athletic Director for Communications
How was your summer?
Did you go anywhere?
No? Yeah, me neither.
For many of us, this past summer will be one for our memory books. Never have we felt trapped in our homes as we stare blindly into Zoom call after Zoom call. There were days I never walked outside! I’m sure I’m not alone.
A silver lining for dealing with the coronavirus and the shutdown and cancellation of spring sports, and a non-traditional 2020-21 academic year ahead is that we are all dealing with this together.
We’re riding this real-life rollercoaster through the ups, downs, unexpected turns and loops that we couldn’t have predicted at the start of 2020.
This summer saw many of our athletic programs, conferences, coaches and student-athletes take a stand in support of social change and racial justice as nationwide protests took place to combat inequality and police brutality. All of these moments have turned into a movement.
It’s important to remind everyone, especially athletic communicators, that when there is crisis, there is opportunity.
What better time to make significant change than now?
In this issue of CoSIDA 360, we tackle these subjects and try to map out a path forward. This path has two directions, one to get us back to sports, out of our houses and back in the office, while the other path urges us to act and create positive change.
Our cover story, “Survive & Advance” by CoSIDA Executive Director
Doug Vance shares member reflections on how we’ve adapted and lessons we’ve learned during COVID-19.
Dave Walters, one of too many of our members to have their positions cut, gives us an inside look at how he’s coping with the sudden loss of his job.
Josh Cornwall of Agnes Scott gives us his personal story of dealing with the pandemic and warns of the long-term effects of cutting communications pros.
Members of the CoSIDA Advocacy and Diversity & Inclusion committee teamed to produce “Race, Sports and Athletic Communications,” to highlight some of the resources at CoSIDA.com/CoSIDAforChange that will help challenge us to move beyond being an ally of Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), and become a champion of action — not just talk about action.
Before his passing on July 17, Congressman and civil-rights leader
John Lewis urged us to answer the highest calling in our hearts and stand up for what we truly believe.
As CoSIDA’s President, I can assure our membership and the general public that CoSIDA’s Executive Board of Directors realize we need to improve our diversity within our membership ranks and we are committed to make a difference this year and years to come.
I’m encouraged to see how our membership responded this summer to our new “Critical Conversations,” a professional development initiative on Racial and Social Justice. Our first panel “The Intersection of Race and Athletic Communications” featured five esteemed colleagues including CoSIDA Second Vice President
Jessica Poole (Chicago State University),
Kenisha Rhone (Belmont University),
Scottie Rodgers (Cotton Bowl Classic),
Kyle Serba (North Carolina Central University) and
DeWayne Peevy (University of Kentucky). The response was so overwhelming that two weeks later we held an after-hours virtual gathering to dig deeper into the topic.
Be on the lookout for many more “Critical Conversations” webinars this fall and we hope you’ll join us.
This past July 26 marked the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a major milestone in our nation’s history to increase access and opportunity for people with disabilities in the workplace and communities. MIT Assistant Director of DAPER Communications, Promotions and Marketing
Mindy Brauer provides 10 things we can all do to make our athletic websites ADA-compliant.
As you can see there is an underlying theme about change and taking action.
A major change to CoSIDA took place this past June when the membership overwhelmingly voted to endorse our new governance structure that was spearheaded by Past President
Herb Vincent (Southeastern Conference) and his committee. It will take several years before CoSIDA will transition completely to this set-up. We’re taking steps now to begin this transformation for our organization. I look forward to working with our new Divisional Cabinet leaders this coming year.
We face a lot of change as we move forward. Change starts with you. If change is going to happen, it needs to happen on a personal level first. Be unafraid of what lies ahead of us. Be the change.
I hope next year you have a different answer to my opening question to this column. Until then, we have a lot of work to do virtually or in-person.