“Athletics’ Initiative to Promote Character”

I am sure you have heard athletes referred to as role models or you may confess to having a favorite athlete or team and avidly follow their exploits.  As a former teacher and coach on the high school level, then as a collegiate volleyball coach, and associate athletics director who supervised athletics teams, I wondered if we were adequately educating our teams on what responsibilities came with that title, “role model”.  This idea was a retrospective one that occurred after a long career in athletics, but also after the death of our precious daughter.  In trying to regain some normalcy in life, I realized that the lessons I had learned and taught in athletics gave me inner strength.  I realized that as a public figure, others would watch to see how I handled this tragedy in my life. Athletics had made me a public persona whether I chose that role or not.  Because I was looking for a second career after retirement and a way to heal a broken heart, an idea was then born that shaped a passion.

If we want to market student-athletes as role models, don’t we then have a moral responsibility to nurture their character?  I say yes!  The theme of the program I developed to tackle that issue is called Be a T.I.G.E.R!  It came to me as I read about a football player who signed a NLI to play at Clemson and he stated: “I’ve always wanted to be a Tiger!” The phrase stuck in my head and led me to think about what does it mean to be a Tiger?  In also knowing that our state’s core curriculum was requiring character education I wondered if we could create a framework that all of athletics could use in their interactions with the community.  We do a tremendous job of treating injuries, giving academic guidance, career guidance, physical training for their sports, the best equipment and coaching techniques, but the one facet of their education that was not being addressed was their moral responsibility to give back to the university, their coaches and teammates, and their community.  Oh yes, I admit to hearing my Grandmother say “to whom much is given…..” and it rang true.

By using the acronym for Tiger as Teamwork, Integrity, Gratitude, Education and Respect, I came up with definitions to fit our athletics program.  Basically, I developed a lesson plan that student-athletes could use in any setting or with any group.  This meant that we were defining ourselves as student-athletes and our message would be more powerful if we all were talking about the same traits.  Next came a 12 page Be a T.I.G.E.R! Newspaper that is available to elementary schools free of charge.  It is written entirely by student-athletes and given after an appearance to reinforce our message. Our corporate partner, Eagle Media in Seneca, SC prints 10,000 copies. I do not know of another Division I university that has a publication such as ours.

Saturday, April 13^th, we held our 10^th annual field day in which 1,500 children from the community registered and enjoyed learning activities related to each trait and received free gifts.  The field day is totally organized and run by our athletes and a way for them to give back to the community that supports them. Even though we had many athletic contests that day, over 80 student-athletes showed up to work the event and interact with kids. The planning took 6 months and many hours devoted to organization to insure that our athletics program and university were represented in a positive way.

  

Additional Be a T.I.G.E.R!  Character Initiatives have been added each year based on needs expressed by our community. Each program is directed and run by student-athletes who then have opportunities to interact with educators, directors of foster care facilities, After-School centers and other community entities. They include our T.I.G.E.R! Read, T.I.G.E.R! Pals, and T.I.G.E.R! Talk.  I am including a link to Building Character that fully explains each program.

The take away from this new career path for me has been the enthusiasm with which the student-athletes have embraced the concept. We developed the Solid Orange Squad and organized ourselves to fill the requests for service that come into our office.  Last year alone, the student-athletes logged over 7,000 hours of service in over 120 different events. 484 athletes participated in at least one event with nearly 100 athletes completing over 20+ hours.  I see a sense of pride when they think about how they represent Clemson. Many find they have a gift of serving others and will use it when they leave this university. Most realize they do have a powerful voice and must use it for good.  I am proud that we are the only Division I Athletics program to have its own character education initiative. I am more proud that I have given our athletes a vehicle to grow as good citizens, to realize their potential and yes, to embrace their responsibilities as ROLE MODELS.

I would love to hear your feedback on our unique program.  Please visit our website to see what we have been up to!

Linda White, Director of Community Relations

Clemson Athletics

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