Black Male Intercollegiate Athletic Administrators: Ascending the Career Ladder A Qualitative Analysis and a Case Study

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the underrepresentation of Black men in intercollegiate athletic leadership positions at the NCAA Division I level at predominantly White institutions of higher education (PWIHEs). This was accomplished through an analysis of how Black men advance to leadership positions in a setting and profession dominated by White men. Second, the study sought to understand and determine what personal, social, and institutional factors influenced the careers of Black men and what strategies they utilized to limit actual and/or perceived barriers that impact their career success. The participants were eight Black male intercollegiate athletic administrators and two college presidents from major NCAA Division I level PWIHEs from around the country. The research method was a qualitative study and a qualitative case study. The primary data sources were telephone and face-to-face semi-structured interviews with the participants, phone follow-up conversations, on-site observations at participants' universities, media releases, and institutional documents. The data were analyzed using open coding and constant and comparative analysis in which four themes emerged from the analysis. These themes were: (1) mentoring, (2) networking, (3) institutional commitment to diversity and inclusion, and (4) institutional racism.