Idaho State University Professor Hartman publishes essay ‘The Most Evil Thing About College Sports’ in International Journal of Sport Communication

Assistant Professor Karen L. Hartman of Idaho State University’s Department of Communication, Media, and Persuasion published an essay, “The Most Evil Thing About College Sports: The 1-Year Scholarship and a Former NCAA Athlete’s Personal Narrative,” in this December’s issue of the International Journal of Sport Communication.

The article analyzes media coverage of the NCAA and how its emphasis on paying athletes ignores more practical desires sought by student-athletes such as multi-year scholarships.

Hartman, a sport communication scholar who played Division I basketball from 1996-1999, writes about her own experience of having a scholarship revoked just prior to her senior year, eliminating the opportunity to transfer, and the ensuing battle to continue her education by having it reinstated.

While the Pac-12 Conference recently announced it would provide multi-year scholarships, the NCAA does not prohibit coaches from taking away scholarships due to injury or performance on an annual basis. Hartman suggests this power is arbitrary, unregulated and violates the rights of student-athletes, who constantly worry about having their scholarships renewed each year.

She offers a series of recommendations to address the concerns of student-athletes, including changing the deadline for when schools must notify athletes of nonrenewal and encouraging students to join associations that support their rights.

“The standard of offering one-year scholarships is unethical,” said Hartman, who earned a Ph.D. at Louisiana State University in 2008. “Recent trends to offer multi-year scholarships are gaining traction but all NCAA schools should feel pressure to offer them and to treat student-athletes fairly.”

To view the article, visit: http://journals.humankinetics.com/ijsc-current-issue.