Professional and college teams lag in gender and minority hiring

Crisis, The, Jul/Aug 2003

Sports

The average number of women and minorities hired in professional and collegiate sports has declined according to the 2003 Racial and Gender Report Card, a study released in April by the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida. The study assesses the racial and gender makeup of teams, coaches and front office employees in professional sports organizations and college sports departments. The report found that all the professional sports leagues had lower averages in gender hiring. Major League Soccer, however, received an "F" in gender hiring, the first ever failing grade for a professional league in the report's 12-year history. The leagues did a little better in hiring people of color. Three leagues - the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League - improved their minority hiring. The National Football League, which had significant declines in race and gender hiring in all positions, had the lowest combined grade of all the leagues. The NBA had the best record for diversity in men's professional leagues, with women and minorities represented in all positions. The biggest gains were in college sports, which improved in both race and gender hiring. But colleges received a grade of "F" for the lack of female and minority athletic directors.