Due to the increasing enrollment of college students in athletic programs, there was a call for college campuses all over the United States to be more inclusive with regards to their athletic programs in order to be a symbol of unity for all students. Recently, Winthrop University had the opportunity to showcase the efforts of inclusivity and diversity of our Athletic Program to the entire nation.
According to the Rock Hill Herald, Winthrop University President Daniel Mahony was invited to attend a conference by the National College Athletic Association in Orlando, Florida on Jan. 23.
The goal of the conference was to present a program called “Presidential Pledge: From Commitment to Action,” showing the efforts of expanding diversity in sports programs in colleges all over America. President Mahony told the Herald about how honored he was for Winthrop University to be recognized for diversifying their athletic department.
“To have the NCAA recognize our success and to use us as an exemplary case study is flattering, but we were more excited to use the opportunity as a means to share our success and the initiatives that got us there with our peers and colleagues, so that they too can effectively diversify their campuses and athletics departments,” said Mahony.
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Besides President Mahony, the other attendees from Winthrop were Vice President and Athletic Director Ken Halpin and Senior Associate Athletic Director Renae Myles. Myles knew about the impact of the presidential Pledge made back in 2015 by the NCAA.
“The Presidential Pledge is a document that President’s at all NCAA institutions were encouraged to sign to signify their commitment to diversity and inclusion on their respective campuses,” said Myles.
In an exclusive interview with the Johnsonian, President Mahony explained why Winthrop’s involvement in diversity in the Athletic department was selected out of thousands of colleges in the country.
“We want to be a national model and have our college be recognized on doing diversity the right way for college athletes,” said Mahony.
Before attending the NCAA conference, the invited Winthrop members organized the points they would make in their presentation on how the ways Winthrop implemented diversity in the athletic department.
“Dr. Mahony, Dr. Halpin and I met separately to discuss the points of emphasis each of us would make in regards to our theme: Leadership + Action = Results. Dr. Mahony spoke on the leadership aspect of increasing diversity and inclusion, Dr. Halpin spoke about the actions we took to increase diversity and inclusion, and I delivered the closing points on the results of the leadership and action,” said Myles.
The presentation that the Winthrop group presented at the NCAA discussed Winthrop University’s success with increasing diversity in staff and students to 25 percent, ahead of the scheduled 20 percent by 2025.
“Our presentation was full of practical ways other institutions can increase the diversity of their campuses. We provided specific examples, and the attendees were writing down most of our examples,” said Myles.
President Mahony noted that having a diverse student athlete and faculty body would not only help show an inclusive community at Winthrop, but also inspire student athletes with seeing diverse faculty members during their experience at Winthrop University.
“It helps when you have different perspective in the sports in decision making process,” said Mahony, “Having diversity in leadership gives our students role models they can aspire to.”
Myles also made the point at the conference that diversity can provide Winthrop students with a sense of pride about how the university prioritizes the students and their wellbeing in academics and sports.
“Our athletic department believes that diversity within our teams, coaches and staff, gives us a competitive advantage. When students see at Winthrop, see us celebrating diversity, it gives them something to be even more proud of. Winthrop students can say, ‘I attend a school that sees me and I matter. No matter my ethnicity, race, gender, or sexual orientation,’” said Myles.
With the end of the Conference, President Mahony and the Winthrop Athletic Department have made it their goal to continue to note and improve the diversity council and how the University can be a national example.
“It is continuing to do more with diversity training on a wider range and a diversity council on improving how we can continue to include diversity,” said Mahony.
Another big takeaway is the importance of diversity because of its ability to show what makes every individual student unique and it college students reach their potential.
“One nugget that I took away is that enhancing diversity and inclusion is not hard. People make it sound challenging, but if you are truly committed to it, you will find a way to make it happen,” said Myles.
