ABSTRACT: The study examines how the Greater El Paso Football Showcase (GEPFS) aims to help Latinx high school football players get exposure to college athletic programs. Using archival and publicly available data, we analyzed websites, online newspapers, and archival resources. Our themes included: Development of the Greater El Paso Football Showcase (GEPFS), the GEPFS Structure, and The Steven Montez Story. Through this study, the authors offer implications for academic and athletic stakeholders working with Latinx students in high school and higher education.
ABSTRACT: To date, no research has explored how high school athletes leverage social media while they are recruits, investigating which platforms these athletes use and possible gender differences. As a result, this mixed methods content analysis engaged with major recruitment rankings systems across six major sports (fall sports: football, women’s volleyball), (winter sports: men’s and women’s basketball) and spring sports (men’s baseball and women’s softball) to explore how each sport’s top ten recruits use social media. To identify this study’s sample, we engaged with several authoritative recruit rankings systems (ESPN, etc.) to determine the top ten recruits in the Class of 2024 in each sport, ensuring gender equity by including both men’s and women’s recruits. Results suggest Twitter (X) and Instagram were the most popular platforms across all genders and sports, with men athletes using these platforms at a higher rate and enjoying higher levels of engagement than women. Contradicting prior social media research, this study also finds that highly ranked high school athletes did not use YouTube and TikTok nearly as much as broader market research would suggest, possibly highlighting the differences between Generation Z social media consumption and creation. Implications for research, policy, practice, and youth advocacy are addressed.
ABSTRACT: Since the passing of Title IX as a component of the Education Amendments of 1972, opportunities for girls and women to participate in athletics have increased. In fact, among interscholastic athletics participants in the United States, girls comprise nearly 45% of total participants. Among coaching and administrative positions, however, interscholastic athletics remains a distinctly male-dominated institutional setting. Within this setting, aspiring female interscholastic athletic directors (FIADs) face numerous challenges and barriers navigating the male-dominated field. Such challenges inherently question the role of women in interscholastic athletics leadership while marginalizing their capabilities and qualifications as compared to their male counterparts. Seeking to enable and embolden women in interscholastic athletics leadership, this study sought to examine the perceptions of FIADs currently serving in positions of leadership in interscholastic athletics. Thirteen ( n = 13) FIADs shared their experiences and discussed how they overcame the male-dominated and insulated setting of interscholastic athletics administration to achieve the leadership positions they currently hold.
ABSTRACT: During high school, many adolescents experience various academic, behavioral, and social-emotional challenges, which may all contribute to student dropout rates. To address this growing concern, research suggests dropout prevention efforts should target alterable classroom-level variables such as student engagement. One of the most efficient and effective methods for improving student engagement is the implementation of evidence-based classroom management practices, such as increasing students’ opportunities to respond (OTR). Using a single-case, multiple baseline design across two teacher participants, we investigated the effects of multilevel professional development and coaching support provided by a school-based coach on two high school teachers’ implementation of OTR during teacher-directed instruction. Results showed teachers improved implementation fidelity but failed to achieve the required rates of OTR. Additionally, when teachers improved implementation fidelity, students also demonstrated increases in active student responding.
