DIY History | Transcribe | Campus Culture | University of Iowa black football players boycott newspaper articles, 1968-1969 | 1969-05-03 Daily Iowan Article: "Report Stresses Needs of Blacks"

Transcribe
Translate

University of Iowa black football players boycott newspaper articles, 1968-1969

1969-05-03 Daily Iowan Article: "Report Stresses Needs of Blacks"

[DIBS EMILY LOHMAN ?]

[handwritten]
DI May 3, 1969

Report Stresses Needs of Blacks 
by Tim Bross

A report on athletics counseling to be implemented by the Department of Athletics was termed "pretty good" by a black athlete who attended Monday's Board in Control of Athletics meeting, where the report was presented. 
Mike Phillips, A3, Evanston, Ill., one of the 16 players dismissed from the football squad recently for boycotting practice, said Friday that he had only read the report hastily but that it was an improvement over the present counseling system. 
Phillips was the only black athlete who had seen the report by Friday. 
"The report offers more counselors and better counselors, and not just general counselor," Phillips said. 
The 16 black football players who boycotted the first spring football practice April 18, and "dismissed themselves" from the squad, according to Coach Ray Nagel, have cited counseling more relevant to their needs, as one of their five demand to the athletic department. 
Although the specifics of the report on athletic counseling have not been released to the public, the general outline of the report has been made availably by Art Small, G. Hills, who prepared the report, and Sa Fahr, professor of law and chairman of the Board in Control of Athletics.
Small, who often tutors athletes and was commissioned by Athletic Director Forest Evashecski to prepare the report, indicated Wednesday by his comments that the report considered a change in the entire concept of athletic counseling at Iowa. 
"There is not only a need for counseling services, but the academic problems must be looked at more closely," said Small. 
"We've got to consider that a lot of blacks come from ghetto areas where an almost entirely different dialect of English is spoken."
Small said that Howard University, a predominantly black school in Washington, D.C., was experimenting in new methods of teaching English, and that the University should investigate them. 
Fahr said Tuesday that the athletic department had been working on new ideas in the area of athletic counseling for over two years.
 He said the three basic thrusts of the report were:
-To make better use of the existing University facilities.
-To follow up and try to ascertain if the athletes are taking advantage of the program. 
-To determine during orientation which athletes will probably have academic trouble and to help them beforehand. 
To make better use of existing facilities, Fahr said that the University could place advisers for athletes in the University counseling service, the Liberal Arts Advisory Office and the office of the University Equal Opportunity Program. 
Small emphasized the problems athletes, especially blacks face at the University. 
"An athlete who plays Big 10 football has a tough job, considering the amount of time he has to put in for football," said Small, "and when a person comes from a place like Gary, Ind. instead of a place like Davenport, the adjustment becomes more difficult. The black athlete is under more pressure than the regular athlete." 
The athletic department, Small said, has been considering a series of reports on athletic counseling. Small, John O. Crites, director of counseling and psychology; Phil Jones, director of the University Equal Opportunity Program; Hugh Kelso, professor of political science, and James Sandrock, assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts and chairman of the Department of German, have all offered ideas to the athletic department on providing more adequate counseling to athletes. 
Small emphasized that the problem of athletic counseling did not have simple solutions. 
"we can't point to specific points and give specific answers," Small sad. "There must be University-wide coordination in a number of departments."

Saving...

[DIBS EMILY LOHMAN ?] [handwritten] DI May 3, 1969 Report Stresses Needs of Blacks by Tim Bross A report on athletics counseling to be implemented by the Department of Athletics was termed "pretty good" by a black athlete who attended Monday's Board in Control of Athletics meeting, where the report was presented. Mike Phillips, A3, Evanston, Ill., one of the 16 players dismissed from the football squad recently for boycotting practice, said Friday that he had only read the report hastily but that it was an improvement over the present counseling system. Phillips was the only black athlete who had seen the report by Friday. "The report offers more counselors and better counselors, and not just general counselor," Phillips said. The 16 black football players who boycotted the first spring football practice April 18, and "dismissed themselves" from the squad, according to Coach Ray Nagel, have cited counseling more relevant to their needs, as one of their five demand to the athletic department. Although the specifics of the report on athletic counseling have not been released to the public, the general outline of the report has been made availably by Art Small, G. Hills, who prepared the report, and Sa Fahr, professor of law and chairman of the Board in Control of Athletics. Small, who often tutors athletes and was commissioned by Athletic Director Forest Evashecski to prepare the report, indicated Wednesday by his comments that the report considered a change in the entire concept of athletic counseling at Iowa. "There is not only a need for counseling services, but the academic problems must be looked at more closely," said Small. "We've got to consider that a lot of blacks come from ghetto areas where an almost entirely different dialect of English is spoken." Small said that Howard University, a predominantly black school in Washington, D.C., was experimenting in new methods of teaching English, and that the University should investigate them. Fahr said Tuesday that the athletic department had been working on new ideas in the area of athletic counseling for over two years. He said the three basic thrusts of the report were: -To make better use of the existing University facilities. -To follow up and try to ascertain if the athletes are taking advantage of the program. -To determine during orientation which athletes will probably have academic trouble and to help them beforehand. To make better use of existing facilities, Fahr said that the University could place advisers for athletes in the University counseling service, the Liberal Arts Advisory Office and the office of the University Equal Opportunity Program. Small emphasized the problems athletes, especially blacks face at the University. "An athlete who plays Big 10 football has a tough job, considering the amount of time he has to put in for football," said Small, "and when a person comes from a place like Gary, Ind. instead of a place like Davenport, the adjustment becomes more difficult. The black athlete is under more pressure than the regular athlete." The athletic department, Small said, has been considering a series of reports on athletic counseling. Small, John O. Crites, director of counseling and psychology; Phil Jones, director of the University Equal Opportunity Program; Hugh Kelso, professor of political science, and James Sandrock, assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts and chairman of the Department of German, have all offered ideas to the athletic department on providing more adequate counseling to athletes. Small emphasized that the problem of athletic counseling did not have simple solutions. "we can't point to specific points and give specific answers," Small sad. "There must be University-wide coordination in a number of departments."