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Parental perspectives on the collegiate sports recruiting process

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Parental perspectives on the collegiate sports recruiting process

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Content Parental Perspectives on the Collegiate Sports Recruiting Process
by
Kimberley Kirkwood
Rossier School of Education
University of Southern California
A dissertation submitted to the faculty
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Education
August 2022
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© Copyright by Kimberley Kirkwood 2022
All Rights Reserved
The Committee for Kimberley Kirkwood certifies the approval of this Dissertation
Briana Hinga
Alan Greene
Tracy Tambascia, Committee Chair
Rossier School of Education
University of Southern California
2022
Abstract
This study helps to uncover the voice of parents as they explore opportunities for their
student-athletes and examine the relationships among high school, college and NCAA
expectations and guidelines. In addition, this study analyzed the recruiting process from the lens
of the sports parent. Qualitative methods included semi-structured interviews with 16 football
sports parents in Southern California. This study aimed to contribute insight on the sports parent
voice in navigating collegiate sports recruiting. Ecological systems theory helped to provide a
lens for analyzing the data and answering the research questions. The findings overall supported
the research surrounding the perspectives of sports parents and how they navigated the high
school recruiting process with their student-athletes. Recommendations were provided as
potential resources and best practices for future sports parents. One of the recommendations is to
establish a solid partnership with all invested stakeholders involved in collegiate sports
recruiting.
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Dedication
To my only son, Devin Malik Kirkwood. Thank you for being my constant reminder of what
love and support can actually look like. Son, you will never truly understand how essential your
words of encouragement were for me during this entire process.
To Devin; because of you I will be the first Dr. Kirkwood in our family.
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Acknowledgements
As I look back on my educational journey and the past 3 years, I feel overwhelmed with
gratitude for all who supported me throughout this process. First, thank you to my parents,
Vanessa and Calvin Kirkwood, for always instilling the value of hard work and staying true to
yourself. Thanks for supporting me in my endeavors and allowing me the freedom to choose my
path even when it is the path not frequently traveled. I am forever grateful for supporting me
throughout my entire educational journey.
Thank you to my family. Britney, for listening to me vent my frustrations these past 3
years. Britney, thanks for also taking the time to share your thoughts and suggestions on how to
make my research more appealing to the other sports parents. Calvin, thanks for always being
supportive of me and Devin during this crazy time. I love and appreciate you both.
Sending a special thanks to my granny (Marian Howard) and my godmother (Iris
Anderson) for always supporting my vision and pushing me to achieve all of my goals. Thank
you for always listening and providing me with alternative ways to overcome any adversity
placed in my path. Thank you to my aunts and uncles that were my silent cheerleaders during the
difficulties of life and this rigorous program. Thank you to my guardian angels in heaven who
personally helped me understand the importance of self-worth, loving myself, and pouring into
my son and others.
To my pride and joy: Devin Kirkwood. Your hugs, love, crazy sayings, and words of
encouragement helped me through my stress more than you will ever know. Your work ethic
makes me strive to be my best version of self.
Thank you to all the amazing sports parents in the world. Being a sports parent
sometimes feels like it is a thankless job, but every time you see the smile on your
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student-athlete’s face, it makes all the sacrifices worthwhile. Special thank you to every sports
parent who took the time to provide me with their perspectives during their son’s actual sports
recruiting process. Your wisdom and pure honesty will help inspire and educate future sports
parents. Because of your willingness to share your experiences, many future sports parents will
not be left without insight on how to successfully navigate the sports recruiting process.
Thank you to all my friends who have been with me throughout my educational journey
from St. John the Evangelist to St. Bernard’s High School to UCLA and everything in between.
To Camisha, Kristie, Keisa, Sheri, Shellese, Felecia and Terreny, thank you for being the best
friends I could ever ask for who have been there for me through ups and downs, different
countries, living situations, brunches, and everything in between. Stephanie, Brent, Will, Kim,
Mia, Allison, Angela, Roz, my god-children, my extended family, Sands, and sorority sisters,
thank you for reassuring me that I can do this and letting me vent when I knew you would truly
understand my frustration.
To all my fellow Wednesday Cohort classmates in the USC Rossier Ed.D., who are the
only ones who can truly understand what we have been through these last few years. Special
thank you to Sonya, Tamela, Thomas, Wintor and Valencia for being the best dissertation
classmates and friends I could have asked for through this process. I am grateful for our weekday
writing collaboration sessions and our daily text messages that allowed me to vent, cry, celebrate,
and gain more than great dissertation classmates, but amazing lifelong friends and extended
family. I am so proud of us! We did that!!!
Thank you to Dr. Briana Hinga for being an amazing example of an inspiring leader from
your amazing class lectures and for being an incredibly supportive committee member amidst the
many other commitments on your plate. I am grateful for your support, inspiration, and passion
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that will continue to inspire me as a leader in higher education. Thank you to Dr. Alan Greene for
always sharing a great wealth of knowledge with your students during every class lecture. I am
extremely grateful to have the opportunity to have such a positive, supportive, and inspiring
committee member like you. I am honored to have you both on my committee and appreciate all
your support.
Last, but certainly not least, thank you, Dr. Tracy Tambascia for being a phenomenal
source of motivation and support throughout this journey. I genuinely enjoyed our weekly class
meetings and the opportunity to learn from such an inspiring leader. Our scheduled Zoom
sessions and regular emails during the pandemic, helped me to understand and appreciate your
words of encouragement. Thank you Dr. Tambascia for providing me with the space to vent, cry
and ask for clarity when I was unsure. Having you as my dissertation chair was truly an honor,
you have shown me how to believe in my true potential when I was ready to quit. Thank you so
much for not giving up on me. Thank you for believing in me and pushing me to be the best
version of me that I could be.
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Table of Contents
Abstract iv
Dedication v
Acknowledgements vi
List of Tables xii
Chapter One: Introduction 1
Statement of the Problem 3
Purpose of the Study 3
Significance of the Study 4
Limitations 5
Role of the Researcher 5
Definition of Terms 6
Conclusion 9
Chapter Two: Literature Review 11
The Role of the Parent or Legal Guardian 11
Parental Influence and Athletics 12
The Student-Athlete Experience 13
Elite Student-Athletes 14
Mental and Physical Health 15
Transitioning from High School to College 15
Eligibility 16
Role of the Guidance Counselor 18
Role of the High School Head Coach 18
Role of the College Coach/Recruiter 19
The National Collegiate Athletic Association and the Student-Athlete 19
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Proposition 48 20
Recruiting Process 21
Transitioning to Collegiate Athletics 22
Theoretical Framework 22
Microsystem 23
Mesosystem 23
Exosystem 24
Conclusion 25
Chapter Three: Methodology 26
Qualitative Research Methods 27
Population and Sample 28
Participant Selection 29
Instrumentation 30
Data Collection 31
Data Analysis 32
Credibility and Trustworthiness 33
Conclusion 34
Chapter Four: Presentation of Data and Findings 35
Participant Overview 35
Participant Profiles 37
Research Question 1 45
Research Question 2 56
Conclusion 59
Chapter Five: Discussion and Recommendations 60
Connections and Contributions to Existing Literature 61
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Clarifying the Roles of all Invested Stakeholders 61
Research Questions 68
Access to Resources 72
Challenges of this Study 75
Recommendations for Practice 75
Future Research 80
Conclusion 80
References 82
Appendix A: Screener Survey 92
Appendix B: Interview Protocol 93
Appendix C: Sports Parents Interview Questions 94
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List of Tables
Table 1: Participants’ Demographics 36
Table 2: Participants’ Student-Athletes’ Post-High-School Plans and Recruitment Options 45
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1
Chapter One: Introduction
Decisions about attending college may be difficult for many high school seniors but may
be more challenging for high performing student-athletes. Parents’ thoughts and impressions on
potential college or university selections can directly influence the recruiting process and in
selecting the right university for their student-athlete (Richter, 2009). Richter (2009) noted that
parents need to evaluate and provide an accurate assessment of each college, degree programs
offered, recruiting coach, and athletic situations, and it is important that parents remain involved
in the overall success of their student-athlete as they transition into the world of collegiate sports
(Rosen, 2000).
This study examined the role of parental involvement in the student-athlete’s decisions
during collegiate sports recruitment and examined parents’ various experiences as they go
through the process with their student-athletes, coaches, counselors, and college recruiters.
Interviewing parents of both high school seniors and current college student-athletes helped
provide an understanding of different experiences during student-athletes’ transition into
collegiate sports.
Student-athletes are full-time students and athletes (Davies, 2017; McCormick, 2006) and
often face mental health and physical concerns due to the continuous demands of participating in
sports. An important aspect of personal development with student-athletes is the ability to
recognize and manage stress. For student-athletes who play football between the ages of 16 and
22, the march toward adulthood, with its academic and social expectations, is further
complicated by athletic expectations to perform even when tired, overwhelmed, or down
(Barnhouse, 2019; Constantinou, 2019). According to the NCAA Clearinghouse (2020),
student-athletes must balance the requirements of athletics and academics, which can help them
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appreciate their dedication and involvement in extra-curricular activities (Davies, 2017). Other
researchers also found that greater involvement by all stakeholders can help student-athletes
navigate the various challenges posed by the recruitment process, as it is not a one-stop event,
but a continuous development that covers many personal and academic aspects (Goldman, 1994;
Rosen, 2000).
Nearly eight million students participate in high school athletics in the United States
every year, but only 495,000 will be eligible to compete in NCAA programs (NCAA, 2020]).
Student-athletes from urban areas qualify for only 34% of the NCAA athletic scholarships
available each year. Sharing this key information at the start of high school provides a different
perspective on how important it is to be scholar-athletes and establish positive relationships with
teachers, coaches, and counselors (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020). The information must be
accurate, fair, and provide insight to parents and young people making important decisions for
college-bound athletes (Richter, 2009).
Misasi (2016) maintained that the high school counselor has a unique role in the college
recruiting process as they can become the coordinator of the athletic triangle between the coach,
athlete, and parent. The school counselor needs to have a close relationship with the parents, as
he/she can provide them with important information. Goldberg and Chandler (1995)
recommended that counselors provide workshops for parents to inform them of the importance
of realistic academic and athletic goals, among other topics. Counselors become knowledgeable
figures to whom parents feel they can come during the recruiting process.
The counselor’s relationship with the coaches can also be important (Goldberg &
Chandler, 1995). Many high school athletic coaches believe that their main responsibility is to
create and maintain positive relationships with all stakeholders who have direct contact with
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their student-athletes (Rosen, 2000). Establishing and maintaining positive relationships with all
stakeholders helps to ensure that the majority of the student-athletes are successful in their
academics and athletics.
Statement of the Problem
Despite their longstanding commitment to being supportive and involved, parents do not
have sufficient access to the resources required to properly explore, guide, and inform their
student-athlete as they begin the college sports recruiting process (Goldberg & Chandler, 1995).
In addition, most school officials do not receive training for assisting them because their
application process is specialized (Broughton & Neyer, 2001). Therefore, high school and
collegiate student-athletes may not be able to rely on their school officials for information and
assistance in their college preparation and must rely on parental guidance for support.
Student-athletes may face challenges in obtaining this information, resulting in lost opportunities
to play college sports (Miller & Wooten, 1995).
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of parents of both high school
and college student-athletes during the collegiate athletic recruiting process. There is a lack of
research considering the perspectives of sports parents and how they navigate the recruiting
process. This study sought these parents’ voices as they explored opportunities for their
student-athletes and examined the relationship between the high school, college, and NCAA
expectations and guidelines. In addition, this study analyzed the recruiting process from the
parents’ perspectives. Parents had the opportunity to express their concerns about recruitment,
academics, and test scores. Two research questions guided this study:
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1. How do parents explore future opportunities for their student-athletes as they
transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
2. How does the interaction and relationship that student-athletes’ parents have with
school staff play a role in the future opportunities available to their student-athlete as
they transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
This study used ecological systems theory to examine the environment and relationships
that guide student-athletes’ development. Bronfenbrenner’s (1994) ecological systems theory
describes our environments’ different layers. Each layer directly affects individuals’
development (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The relationships and interactions that the student-athlete
has with his or her family, community environment, and society help define his or her overall
development and level of maturity (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). Sudden change or exposure to
conflict during any development phase can directly impact the other developmental layers
(Bronfenbrenner, 1994), which explains why the sports recruiting process varies (S.Altenberg,
personal communication, May 23, 2019).
Significance of the Study
This study is important for a number of reasons. The study sought to increase
understanding of the collegiate athletic recruitment process from parents’ perspectives and
uncover their areas of knowledge and concerns. The study also aimed to discover participants’
personal views and experiences with this process (Miller, 1995). This study may benefit parents
whose high-school-age children are considering receiving a college athletic scholarship
(Goldman, 1994) and may increase understanding of the importance of parents’ understanding of
the sports recruitment exercise. Direct parental engagement may also improve student
achievement, behavior, and proper sporting conduct (Goldman, 1994). Lastly, understanding how
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recruitment works will help restore parents’ confidence in the process and help them understand
their children's sporting activities (Rosen, 2000).
Limitations
The study used a qualitative approach, with interviews of 16 parents of high school or
college student-athletes from a high school travel football program. This homogeneous sample
consisted of people with similar experiences and backgrounds (Creswell, 2013). Using
homogenous sampling brought limitations in collecting data. First, the parents may not have
willingly completed the data due to their familiarity with me. They may not have wanted to share
information openly with me (Rosen, 2000), which may have hindered understanding their
perspectives. Another limitation may be that interviewees did not share their true experiences or
thoughts.
Role of the Researcher
As a researcher, I had to define my role in this study in relation to the participants and
separate personal views and assumptions. I have a personal bias due to my experiences with high
school sports recruiting as a parent of a male scholar-athlete. I also have experience as a
public-school educator, working with inner-city high school males who struggled to balance their
participation in school sports with their academics. During this study, I identified personal bias
based on my understanding of the problems associated with this research. I reflected on how my
biases, values, and background shaped my overall interpretations of the results.
Creswell and Creswell (2017) maintained that it is important to identify and reflect on the
roles of personal bias, values, and background in shaping a study. Another ethical issue is to keep
the conversation between the researcher and the interviewee confidential. At the end of each
interview, I ensured the conversation was properly documented to accurately reflect the
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interviewee’s perspective. Proper documentation helped tell the sequence and narrative for all
decisions undertaken and how the interviewees’ responded. Lastly, the documentation helped to
outline the recommendations, goals, and issues that arose from the interviews.
Definition of Terms
Counselors are certified by their state department of education and work in the 9–12
grade schools to provide academic, career, and personal/social guidance to students (Miller &
Wooten, 1993).
Full athletic scholarships cover tuition and fees, room, board, and course-related books.
Most student-athletes who receive athletics scholarships receive an amount covering a portion of
these costs. The average athletic scholarship is about $10,400 per year, or $8,700, which does not
account for the more generous scholarships usually reserved for men’s football and basketball
players. (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020)
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that
regulates student-athletes from 1,268 North American institutions and conferences (Goldman,
1994). The NCAA is dedicated to the well-being and lifelong success of all college athletes
(NCAA, 2019).
Parents or Legal Guardians: are defined as any invested stakeholder (mother, father,
grandparent, aunt, uncle, family member, etc.) who is willing to take on the role as the primary
caregiver and financial supporter of the student athlete during the sports recruiting process.
Prospective student-athlete: A prospective student-athlete is the title given to a
student-athlete when they enter ninth grade (NCSA, 2019).
National letter of intent is a written commitment between the high school graduating
student-athlete and the university. This contract secures an athletic scholarship (NCSA, 2020;
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Winters, 2020). The national letter of intent signing period only occurs twice every year, during
December for early signing and April for the regular signing period.
Prospective college student-athlete is considered a recruited athlete if the college
provides the prospect with an official visit, has off-campus contact with the prospect or his/her
parents, offers the prospect a national letter of intent or an athletic scholarship agreement, or
initiates a telephone conversation with the prospect or his or her parents more than once
(Sanderson & Siegfried, 2015).
NCAA Division I schools generally have the largest student bodies, manage the largest
athletics budgets and offer the most scholarships. Schools that are members of Division I commit
to maintaining high academic standards and a wide range of opportunities for athletics
participation. With 350 colleges and university members, Division I fields more than 6,000
teams, providing opportunities for more than 170,000 student-athletes to compete each year
(NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020).
NCAA Division II is a collection of more than 300 NCAA colleges and universities that
provide thousands of student-athletes the opportunity to compete in high-level athletics while
excelling in the classroom and fully engaging in the broader campus experience. This balance, in
which student-athletes are recognized for their academic success, athletics contributions, and
campus/community involvement, is at the heart of the Division II philosophy (NCAA
Clearinghouse, 2020). Division II student-athletes are as competitive and, in many cases, as
skilled as their Division I counterparts, but institutions in Division II do not have the financial
resources to devote to their athletics programs or choose not to place such a heavy financial
emphasis on them. Enrollments at Division II schools range from more than 25,000 to less than
2,500, though about 87% of the division’s member schools have fewer than 8,000 students.
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Division II offers a partial-scholarship model for financial aid in which most student-athletes’
college experiences are funded through a mix of athletics scholarships, academic aid, need-based
grants, and employment earnings (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020).
NCAA Division III is the largest division in terms of the number of institutions. The
NCAA helps to ensure that over 195,000 students at 446 institutions representing 44 conferences
can further their athletic careers while earning a degree (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020). Division
III is unique in not awarding athletic scholarships due to its commitment to academics. The
opportunity to play sports in college is a privilege and a choice. When high school seniors decide
to be Division III student-athletes, their choice represents selecting both sport and education.
Division III student-athletes compete not for financial reward but for the love of the game
(NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020).
Official visit to a university occurs when a prospective student-athlete visits a college
campus at the expense of the college (Davies, 2017). The college can pay for transportation to
and from the college, room, three meals per day while visiting, and reasonable entertainment
expenses, including three complimentary tickets to a home athletics contest. Official visits are
limited to five per student-athlete (NCSA, 2019).
Partial athletic scholarship is a scholarship model often used in Division II and III
recruitment where the student athlete’s college tuition is funded through a mix of athletics
scholarships, academic aid, financial aid, need-based grants, and employment earnings (NCSA,
2019).
Recruitment is the process of actively seeking out, finding, and selecting candidates for a
specific position or job (Maloney & McCormick, 1993).
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Redshirt student-athlete practices but does not compete during his or her freshman year.
Once a student-athlete has redshirted, he or she retains 4 full years of eligibility and the
opportunity to be granted a hardship waiver if an incapacitating injury or illness occurs during
the season. The initial-eligibility standards for NCAA Division I college-bound student-athletes
are changing (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020, para.1).
Sports recruitment is how college coaches add prospective student-athletes to their roster
each off-season (Richter, 2009). This process typically culminates in a coach extending an
athletic scholarship offer to a player who is about to be a high school junior or senior.
Unofficial visit is a visit to a university at the student-athlete’s expense (NCAA
Clearinghouse, 2020). The college cannot pay for transportation to and from the college, room,
or meals. The college can provide up to three complimentary tickets to an athletic contest. There
is no limit on unofficial visits (NCSA, 2019).
Urban relates to the community in which many under-represented parents and
student-athletes reside. The underserved population includes low-income, under-represented
racial and ethnic minorities and first-generation students. Many of these under-represented
neighborhoods do not have resources like sports training, academic tutoring, sports recruitment
information, and academic counseling services for student-athletes to succeed in their sport as
they transition to collegiate athletics (Richter, 2009).
Verbal commitment describes a college-bound student-athlete’s commitment to a
university before he or she can sign a national letter of intent (NCSA, 2019).
Walk-on player is listed on the official athletic roster for their sport but does not receive
an athletic scholarship during their freshman year (Dumond, 2008). A recruited or preferred
walk-on is not offered an athletic scholarship for freshman year (Brown, 2013).
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Conclusion
Parental involvement and understanding of sports recruitment are essential in a child’s
college sporting journey. Past research on high school sports recruiting found that classroom
learning affects recruitment, outlined how well-informed student-athletes were about their
post-secondary options, and helped guide the initial research for this study. However, prior
research revealed gaps in what is known about high school sports recruiting. Little research has
examined the parents’ perspective. Chapter Two will provide an overview of the literature on the
different layers of the sports recruiting process through the lens of the student athlete’s parent.
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Chapter Two: Literature Review
Sports have long been part of the culture in the United States. This chapter will provide
an overview of the relationship between the parents of high school student-athletes and collegiate
sports recruitment. This chapter will also discuss the role and influence that parents or legal
guardians play in student-athletes’ lives.
Following this introduction is a brief discussion on the different components of high
school sports recruitment, including the transition from high school sports into college-level
sports. With the help of ecological systems theory (EST), the theoretical framework for this
study, the chapter will discuss the literature on how all stakeholders can directly impact the
recruiting process and discuss how key stakeholders shape student-athletes’ and parents’ next
steps.
The Role of the Parent or Legal Guardian
During the transition to college, student-athletes balance their sports engagements,
academic performance, and social lives. These youth find it challenging to reap the desired
achievements, especially in the absence of guidance or mentorship. For this reason, parents’
involvement is vital in developing their children’s sports talent and academic performance. In
this regard, Jaiswal (2017) noted that parents are responsible for guiding their children’s overall
development. With similar reasoning, the NCAA (2015) added that consistent parental
involvement in children’s sports career development enhances students’ ability to participate in
high school sports.
This involvement may yield positive results depending on how the parent interacts or
associates with the children. Effective communication in a friendly and motivating manner helps
children make appropriate decisions or life choices and prepares them to solve problems
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maturely (Cullaty, 2011). Given parents’ significant contributions, Heinrich (2014) encouraged
parents to spend quality time and pay attention to their children regularly. Notably, this is
because parents’ association with their children determines the youths’ social behavior with
others at school. Besides, Cullaty (2011) noted that children learn how to act in society by
emulating their parents' actions and behaviors. In this regard, parents’ sharing specific
experiences with their children helps develop their sports personalities and become confident
about making decisions without relying on others’ opinions. Typically, this exposes a need for
parents to interact with their children for moral development (Holt & Knight, 2014). To impart
good ethics, parents often encourage their children to embrace attitudes and characters that are
socially (Rosen, 2000).
Parental Influence and Athletics
Parental influence must be carefully examined when studying student-athletes. Parents
are often the main reason children start participating in sports (Welk et al., 2020). Although
many parents may not benefit from their children’s involvement in sports, they create a
fundamental environment where children can develop their skills, make new friends, and enjoy
the game (Holt & Knight, 2014). Bhalla and Weiss (2010) found that parental support and
encouragement can mean that the child will participate in that sport in adulthood, especially
among girls, whose decisions to participate in any sport are influenced by their parents' support
and positive attitude.
Although parental involvement contributes to youth's performance in sports, it can also
be problematic (Gardner, 2018). Some parents pressure their children to win at all costs or
perform at a high level in a sport. At times, they may overindulge in their children's sports
affairs, which can intensify pressure on the youth. For this reason, Gardner (2018) encouraged
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parents to limit their involvement in children's sports affairs to allow the student to develop a
cordial relationship with coaches and other stakeholders and give the children an opportunity to
act independently. Such autonomous development allows student-athletes to become responsible
for their own lives and futures.
Discussions about sports parents are due to the recent changes in youth and high school
sports (Holt & Knight, 2014), making youth sports increasingly adult-organized (Coakley, 2015).
Moreover, parents are also indirectly forced to invest in their child's athletics since they are often
judged by their peers based on their children's overall athletic success or failure (Davies, 2017).
Furthermore, many parents become more actively involved in their children’s sports activities
due to intense training, time commitments, and potential for injuries (Myer et al., 2016). Their
presence often enhances the effectiveness of rigorous and high-volume training and coaching
sessions (Lumpkin, 2012). In turn, their presence encourages many student-athletes to aim for
personal achievement and performance on and off the field (Rankin et al., 2016).
To ensure coaches do not exploit student-athletes, trainers and parents take a more active
and informed role in their children’s journey toward securing college scholarships (Coakley,
2015). Parents with strong relationships with guidance counselors and high school and club
coaches lay the groundwork for the role that each will play in their student-athlete’s life and
recruitment (Kovic, 2009).
The Student-Athlete Experience
Student-athletes are full-time students and remain full-time athletes for the institution
where they are enrolled (Davies, 2017). The term “student-athlete” was coined in 1964 by Walter
Byers and created by the NCAA to encourage the idea that these young adults are students first
and then athletes (Davies, 2017). High school student-athletes are students in grades 9–12 who
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participate in school-sponsored sports activities. Nearly eight million students participate in high
school athletics in the United States every year. However, only 495,000 of them will meet the
eligibility requirements to compete in NCAA programs (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2018).
Burrow and McCormack, (2011) research on the intersectionality of school culture and
athletics found that sports participation benefits students in terms of receiving recognition,
having fun, and balancing academic demands. Positive outcomes can be seen in student-athletes
aspiring to have a high grade-point average (GPA), wanting to attend college, beginning to take
on leadership roles, and building their character (Nichols, 2009). On average, high school
students who participate in athletics perform better academically than those who do not (Rees &
Sabia, 2010). Student-athletes have many reasons for participating in school athletics. The school
can support or discourage students from using athletics to contribute to the greater school
community (Davies, 2017). In the United States, there is a wide range of sports culture in high
schools, including those that offer few or no sports and others where sports dictate school life
(Women's Sports Foundation, 2019). Some of these schools value athletic elitism, allowing
student-athletes to receive additional privileges (Fuller, 2017). Valuing athletic elitism creates
opportunities for student-athletes to enrich their overall educational experiences while ensuring
that their academic success is the highest priority (Lumpkin & Favor, 2012).
Elite Student-Athletes
An elite athlete makes a substantial physical and mental commitment to a particular sport
as a way of life by focusing on attaining the end goal of becoming a professional in that activity
(Swann et al., 2015). Usually, these elite athletes attain this by sacrificing their lives and time to
reach mental and physical toughness, not allowing outside elements to distract them from
accomplishing their goals of being professional athletes (Sorna, 2016). Many elite athletes spend
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a great deal of time perfecting their craft via training and longevity in the sport (Sorna, 2016).
This mental toughness gives elite athletes the ability to perform at their best despite pressure
from teammates, coaches, media, and supporters (Polman, 2012).
Being a student-athlete comes with additional struggles that non-athletes do not face
(Drum, 2014). Academic support services at schools and colleges can help them cope with
challenges by teaching them how to manage schoolwork, social life, and personal life
(Tashenberg, 2016). These experiences allow student-athletes to cope with stressors related to
their athletic status, including time demands, injuries, and losing playing time, which may lead to
a loss of sense of identity as an elite or star player, conflicts with their coaches, and the increased
academic demands of college.
Mental and Physical Health
Student-athletes often face mental health and physical concerns due to their continued
participation in sports (Barnhouse, 2019). A central aspect of personal development with
student-athletes is recognizing and managing stress (Sorna, 2016). For those aged 16 to 22,
academic and social expectations are further complicated by athletic expectations (Barnhouse,
2019). Constantinou (2019) noted that student-athletes need to understand that feeling lost and
unstable when dealing with daily challenges is normal. When these stressful situations become
overwhelming, they need to seek guidance on coping from their parents (Coakley, 2015).
Transitioning from High School to College
Research shows that 54% of college student-athletes are contacted by a college coach or
recruiter every year, and 37% of current college student-athletes are responsible for initiating
their college recruitment (Remillard, 2014). When student-athletes initiate recruitment, they are
responsible for contacting the college coach to express their interest in playing at that campus.
16
This contact can occur through email, filling out a recruiting questionnaire, or sending the coach
a link to their Hudl athletic highlights or game film (Remillard, 2014).
In the absence of adequate and up-to-date information regarding recruitment, many
student-athletes and parents lack good information. Next College Student Athletes (NCSA;
2019) encourages student-athletes to start their sports recruitment planning in their first year
because of its many details. These students should establish and follow a schedule to ease the
recruitment process into manageable components (NCSA, 2019). Also, not every high school has
a college guide for student-athletes, which explains why many student-athletes and their parents
are unaware of academic and testing requirements.
Student-athletes and their parents need to talk about the college recruiting process to take
advantage of opportunities. They need to research the different colleges interested in offering
them an athletic scholarship (NCSA, 2020). Then, they need to know how many other athletes
received access to the same scholarship, the student-athlete graduation rate at that campus, how
the program prepares participants for life beyond school, whether the institution offers the young
person’s intended major, and how it supports student-athletes off campus (NCSA, 2019). Hart
and Brooks (2016) encouraged student-athletes to understand the benefits they would derive
from joining colleges willing to sponsor their education. For proper decision making and
awareness, these students can seek guidance from their school counselors, athletic coaches, and
potential college coach to answer questions about recruitment (Hart & Brooks, 2016).
Eligibility
College-bound student-athletes are responsible for their eligibility, which means
planning, taking high school classes seriously, and protecting their amateur status (NCAA,
2019). To maintain their eligibility to compete in any California Interscholastic Federation (CIF)
17
sanctioned sports, they must maintain a GPA of at least 2.0 and 4.0 academic scales in all
enrolled courses (Lumpkin & Favor, 2012). Usually, student-athletes embrace the “pass to play”
philosophy where they aim for the minimum GPA or focus on passing a minimum number of
core classes every semester (Lumpkin & Favor, 2012; Zayas, 2018). Research has found a
positive relationship between students’ academic performance and athletic participation
(Lumpkin & Favor, 2012). Notably, high school student-athletes tend to have higher GPAs than
students who do not participate in sports.
Each high school has core courses approved by the NCAA. These typically include 4
years of English, 3 years of math, 2 years of science, two years of a social science course, a year
of a college preparatory elective (like a foreign language, music, psychology, or drama), and a
religion course (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020). Students seeking an athletic scholarship must pass
each of these core courses with a grade of a C or higher each semester. Failure to meet the
minimum requirements at the end of junior year complicates NCAA eligibility for an athletic
scholarship (NCAA, 2013). As a result of circumstances like the COVID-19 pandemic, the
NCAA established an athletic waiver for finalists in the graduating class of 2020 (NCAA
Clearinghouse, 2020). This waiver allows students to accept their athletic scholarships under
specific guidelines:
The NCAA said the new requirements would be considered automatic waivers for both
Divisions I and II, meaning those students meeting these criteria will be academically
eligible to receive an athletic scholarship and practice and compete in their first year.
(Schlabach, 2020, p. 23)
With sudden changes in sports recruiting, a parent must rely on knowledge from blogs, the
internet, sports groups, and sports agents. Most parents think that the guidance counselor, athletic
18
coach, and athletic director at their child’s high school are the best sources of information
(Brown, 2013), even though they may have limited information in this area.
Role of the Guidance Counselor
School counselors are certified by each state’s education department and work in
secondary schools, or high schools, to provide academic, career, and personal/social guidance to
students (Hebard & Lamberson, 2017). The high school counselor has a unique role in the
college recruiting process. They can coordinate the athletic triangle, so they should have a close
relationship with student-athletes’ parents (Hebard & Lamberson, 2017). School counselors can
help set realistic academic and athletic goals for students, and parents should communicate with
counselors during the recruitment process (Ruffalo Noel Levitz, 2017). Ruffalo Noel Levitz
(2017) added that counselors often invite parents to workshops on sports activities to develop a
cordial relationship with them. Counselors are also responsible for ensuring that the school
district and individual high schools have an updated list of NCAA-approved courses (NCAA,
2019).
Role of the High School Head Coach
The NCAA Eligibility Center relies heavily on school personnel to educate and assist
student-athletes and their parents with eligibility (NCAA, 2012). High school head coaches serve
as mentors during teenagers’ growth and development (Hinojosa, 2018). High school and other
youth sports coaches also play an important role for student-athletes. High school head coaches
can help athletic and academic life. Similar to a classroom teacher, the head coach also nurtures
and empowers athletes (NFHS, 2013) and is responsible for ensuring access to daily motivation,
support, training, academic resources, and athletic exposure. Notably, this could help secure a
college athletic scholarship.
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While executing their advisory roles, these head coaches motivate student-athletes by
reviewing films and enhancing their growth and development (Lindon, 2011). To ensure
student-athletes’ progress, high school head coaches are encouraged to initiate and remain in
contact with college coaches, respond to college questionnaires, provide additional athletic and
academic information, and counsel the athletes. Coaches provide information to students,
parents, and college coaches regarding athletes’ character, academic standing, work ethic,
receptiveness to coaching, and physical skills (Lindon, 2011). When a college coach wants to
visit a high school, it is the high school’s coach’s responsibility to make arrangements.
Role of the College Coach/Recruiter
College coaches and recruiters look for prospective student-athletes who meet
appropriate physical and academic standards to fill university sports rosters and build or
perpetuate their programs' success. When the recruiting coach presents the qualities, beliefs, and
philosophy of the program and university, it is the responsibility of the recruit to decide whether
he feels comfortable in that college environment (NCAA, 2014). The college coaches have to
sell the program's ideas and beliefs to the parents and supply them with a reliable path to success
(Hinojosa, 2018). In this increasingly professional market, intercollegiate athletics coaches
face .growing pressure to recruit a student-athlete who will yield the institution's desired result.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association and the Student-Athlete
The creation of the NCAA was significant in the evolution of intercollegiate athletics
since it reformed football, centralized sports governance, and established institutional control
over athletic competition ( Weight & Zullo, 2015). As interest in intercollegiate sports and
attendance at sporting events grew, sports governance received more attention (Weight, 2015). In
1965, the NCAA made its first effort to establish uniform eligibility requirements that would
20
supersede those of member colleges and universities by establishing the 1.6 Rule (Waller, 2003,
p. 195). Built around a complex formula for predicting whether a prospective student-athlete
could maintain a 1.6 GPA in their first year of college, Rule 1.6 was soon replaced by a simpler
process. The 2.0 Rule requires only a 2.0 high school GPA to meet athletic eligibility
requirements (Waller, 2003).
The 1980s were a time of transition for the NCAA. In response to Title IX, the NCAA
adopted an extensive plan to administer women’s athletics programs and services, including the
addition of 19 new events, many at the Division I level (Chadband, 2012). In 1972, Title IX was
signed into law, which helped to level the playing field for all student-athletes (Chadband, 2012).
Title IX prohibits federally funded educational institutions from discriminating against students
or employees based on sex. It states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be
excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under
any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance” (Dell’Antonia, 2012).
As a result of Title IX, any school that receives federal funding, nearly all schools at all levels,
must provide fair and equal treatment of the sexes in all areas (OCR, 2015).
Proposition 48
The NCAA adopted the controversial Proposition 48 in 1986 in hopes of improving
student-athletes’ graduation rates and the overall integrity of college sports (Waller, 2003).
Proposition 48 required that all student-athletes at Division I schools have a minimum 2.0 GPA
in 11 core courses and a combined score of 700 out of 1600 on the SAT SAT or a 57 out of 144
on the ACT before signing a national letter of intent (Waller, 2003). In 2010, the Knight
Commission recommended to the NCAA that college athletes should be treated as students first
and foremost, not as professionals (Knight Report, 2010). The NCAA took the steps needed to
21
quickly address the recommendations, setting specific guidelines for all colleges, universities,
and various stakeholders to follow related to how student-athletes would be recruited. Sports
parents depend on the established guidelines and policies put into place by the NCAA to ensure
that their student-athlete is successful in the classroom and in their sport.
Recruiting Process
One of the most common questions families ask is when college coaches can start
contacting athletes (NCSA, 2020). Most sports coaches can begin reaching out to athletes
starting June 15 after a sophomore or September 1 of their junior year of high school. Football
recruits are asked to attend home games of their teams to witness the game's firsthand
experience. Besides, official visits also play a vital role in any recruiting class. Official visits
show the prospective student-athletes that the university is serious about giving them a
scholarship and wanting them to be members of the team (NCSA, 2020). Recruits may also tour
the campus, meet current players, and talk extensively with the coaching staff. The reality of
recruiting is that only a small percentage of high school student-athletes are offered a scholarship
to play in one of the three NCAA divisions. Typically, this is due to strict athletic eligibility
guidelines, access to limited resources, and various challenges within their surrounding
environment (Hosick, 2017).
While college coaches might not be able to see players in person, social media has
become the new place for college coaches to contact them and review any posted sports
highlights (Palmer, 2020). COVID-19 shifted the recruiting responsibility to parents,
student-athletes, current high school coaches, and their off-season sports travel coach (NCAA
Clearinghouse, 2020; NCSA, 2020). This shift in how society functions is a reminder of how
22
important it is to build and establish positive relationships with everyone in the immediate
surrounding (Brown, 2013).
Transitioning to Collegiate Athletics
There are many reasons recent high school graduates find it challenging to transition to
collegiate athletics (Davies, 2017; Fuller, 2017). Student-athletes struggle to keep their
day-to-day life balanced and decide which one comes first: student or athlete (Constantinou,
2019; Oppenheimer, 2015). Many student-athletes are more concerned about following the
best-established path that will eventually lead them to play professionally (Melendez, 2006).
However, several also fail to play their part effectively by not fulfilling minimum requirements
(Oppenheimer, 2015), resulting in health problems, including chronic pain, injury, tiredness, and
burnout, which can affect their academic performance (Apaak & Sarpong, 2015). To ensure that
student-athletes remain eligible, colleges allow them access to tutoring and mandatory study hall
facilities to encourage them to maintain good grades, demonstrate a good work ethic, and always
display a positive self-image on and off the playing field or court (Saleem & Mushtaq, 2013).
Theoretical Framework
Bronfenbrenner’s (1994) EST states that an individual’s development and life choices are
directly affected by everything in their surrounding environment throughout their life. This
theory includes the student athlete’s surrounding environment, examined under four different
environmental systems: the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosystem, and the macrosystem
(Rosa & Tudge, 2013). Understanding why the recruiting process varies requires analyzing how
the interactions between these different environmental systems directly impact the development
and life choices made by the student-athlete and their parents (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). Benefits
are gained through sound partnerships and regular communication among student-athletes,
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parents, teachers, coaches, counselors, community, and college coaches, and each of these
individuals occupies different parts of the environmental system (Ryan, 2001).
Microsystem
The microsystem is the most powerful system because the child has direct, consistent,
and prolonged interaction with the individuals in this system (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The family
is part of the microsystem and plays a central role in human development (Blažević, 2016).
Family, friends, classmates, teachers, neighbors, coaches, and other people who interact directly
regularly with the child are part of this microsystem (Blažević, 2016). The microsystem
establishes the core of the ecological model and defines every individual's unique process of
human development (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The majority of children's developmental time is
spent at home with their family; this is where they receive shelter, safety, and emotional support.
For example, the parent interacts with the child daily and provides a safe and healthy relationship
and an environment for them to grow and prosper (Jaiswal, 2017).
Mesosystem
The second system that influences the child’s development is the mesosystem. The
mesosystem connects the first two systems (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The mesosystem consists of
connections and inter-relationships between two or more individuals in the microsystems. These
inter-relationships involve a variety of settings in which the child is immersed to connect with
others. Examples of this system are the linkages between family and peers, family and school,
and school and community (Blažević, 2016). The individuals in the microsystem have a more
direct influence on how people see themselves, especially socially, mentally, academically, and
physically. The home environment shapes how individuals interact with others outside the home
(Blažević, 2016). If a student has a traumatic home life, s/he is less likely to be motivated to
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develop positive relationships with their teachers, peers, coaches, or counselors due to past
negative experiences. This information is vital when considering the dynamics in the recruiting
process.
Exosystem
The exosystem (Bronfenbrenner, 1994) is indirect, as the child may not play an active
role in engaging what is in this system, but what takes place here can directly impact
development (Chen, 2018; Neubourg, 2018). Exosystems have an indirect effect on individuals
through career, educational background, socioeconomic status, or government. Bronfenbrenner's
theory directly implies that parents’ socioeconomic status can affect how a child views their
self-image. For instance, a parent's inability to purchase school materials, pay for specialized
training, or live in a safe home can cause some children to develop low self-esteem and are less
likely to excel in school (Evans, Brooks-Gunn, and Klebanov 2011). Although some change in
children’s lives is normal and anticipated, sudden and dramatic disruptions can be extremely
stressful and affect their feelings about security.
Children with low self-esteem are more likely to drop out of school and are more easily
influenced to lead a life of violence. A parent's educational background and career choices can
directly impact the child's overall focus at school and future aspirations (Chen, 2018). Parents
with limited knowledge of educational resources find it challenging to motivate their children to
excel academically (Darling-Hammond, 2018). Children born into poverty statistically have
lower self-esteem, are less likely to excel in school, are more likely to drop out, and are more
susceptible to violence and crime (Marcus, 2014).
In summary, Bronfenbrenner’s EST offers an important framework for understanding
how parents of student-athletes guide their children through the collegiate recruitment process.
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Through this understanding, parents acknowledge and appreciate the processes and technicalities
involved in their children’s sporting activities. The theory offers an explanation of the impact of
social influence on student-athlete experiences and development.
Conclusion
The complexity around recruitment for collegiate athletics can be overwhelming to both
student-athletes and their parents due to its many technicalities, challenges, and processes. This
study sought insight into how student-athletes and their parents must partner with the individuals
in their microsystem and highlight the relevance of a better understanding of the stakeholders’
roles. Furthermore, this study sought to discern why recruitment practices vary.
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Chapter Three: Methodology
To understand the relationship between the parent-student, athlete-coach, and
school administration, one must consider the roles that each plays in collegiate sports. For
example, children have the right to explore their education prospects and chances by building a
strong foundation for their future. Also, parents identify those sports in college remains one of
the most dynamic and educative aspects of any child’s life (Felfe et al., 2016). The purpose of
this study was to examine the perspectives of student-athletes’ parents as they explore the
resources and options to transition their students from high school to college athletics. While
recruitment encompasses various high-profile sports, this study focused on college football
players’ recruitment. The focus of this study was on the perspectives of parents whose children
are currently in the last 2 years of high school or the first 2 years of college. These participants
provided knowledge about the various obstacles and opportunities for student-athletes in their
transition into college sports. High school sports parents provide one perspective since they are
just entering the recruitment phase, so interviewing the parents of college students who have
already transitioned provided more depth to improve the study.
The conceptual framework for this study is EST (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). The theory
helps to clearly explain how various elements in the environment that shift how people network,
build relationships, decide to take risks, make life-changing decisions, and develop into positive
community members. As Karl & Cavanaugh (2018) discussed, EST relies on the idea that the
environment (ecosystem) directly impacts an individual. In the student-athlete's case, many
decisions come from the decisions and choices made at home, which explains why all
relationships between stakeholders must encourage open communication, provide opportunities
to exchange resources or information, and maintain positive interactions.
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Three research questions guided this study:
1. How do parents of current high school and college football student-athletes explore
future opportunities for their student-athletes as they transition from high school
athletics into collegiate athletics?
2. How does the interaction and relationship that student-athletes’ parents have with
school staff play a role in the future opportunities available to their student-athlete as
they transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
3. What role do the student-athlete’s community and parental involvement play in their
successful transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
This chapter elaborates on the relationship between the research methodology and the research
questions and discusses the research process, data collection methods, stakeholder involvement,
and population studied.
Qualitative Research Methods
The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the sports parent’s perspectives
on and experiences with the collegiate sports recruiting process (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The
research utilized qualitative screening surveys and interviews. The screening survey helped
ensure that potential participants met the study’s criteria. According to Merriam and Tisdell
(2016), having potential participants complete surveys is one way to collect demographic data
about them.
Once pre-screening was complete and participants were identified, I started collecting
data geared toward answering the two research questions. I used interviews to understand
participants’ thoughts, perceptions, beliefs, and feelings (Johnson & Christensen, 2014).
Interviews allowed me to capture the participants’ voices. Patton (2015) stated that a researcher
28
interviews people to find information that is not easily discernable, such as feelings, thoughts,
intentions, and previous behaviors. The interview questions were semi-structured to allow the
participant to answer some open-ended questions. Open-ended questions allow participants to
respond in their own words (Patton, 2015). The interviews took place using a video conferencing
software program.
The interviews yielded information about the participants’ personal feelings, perceptions,
and opinions. Their perspectives were the focus because their thoughts, involvement, access to
resources, or information directly affect their high school student-athletes’ overall academic
performance, individual self-esteem, and positive social interactions. The interviews allowed for
observing body language and developing a personal connection with the interviewees (Creswell
& Creswell, 2017). One of the most important strategies for collecting data is observing body
language (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Body language often gives critical feedback that does not
form part of the question-answer framework.
Population and Sample
I used purposeful sampling to identify a diverse group of interview participants. I sought
an in-depth understanding of how participants explored various resources to navigate collegiate
sports recruiting. I focused on parents of student-athletes in urban communities because of the
small percentage of under-represented student-athletes who receive college athletic scholarships
in the NCAA. At the same time, under-represented students and parents in urban communities
reflect various backgrounds, including low-income, under-represented racial and ethnic
minorities, and first-generation college students. To gain clarity on why many of these
student-athletes do not transition from high school sports to collegiate sports, one must examine
29
their parents’ perspectives on their recruitment. The participants’ lenses and voices provided a
better understanding of their experiences.
Participant Selection
Due to my previously established relationships with high school football coaches and
high school travel sports teams and the limited time to conduct research, purposive sampling and
snowball sampling were used to recruit participants. Purposive sampling allowed me to select
participants deliberately based on their experience as parents of football student-athletes during
the collegiate sports recruiting process.
I also spoke with local travel football team owners, private sports trainers, and current
high school football and college football coaches to gain access to parents of football players in
the last 2 years of high school or first 2 years of college who would be interested in completing a
survey. I placed an advertisement on different social media platforms, such as Facebook,
Instagram, and Twitter, where many high school and college sports parents are active
participants. I also reached out to the football team moms at different high schools and the player
personnel at local colleges to gain access to their parent email databases. Another approach to
securing participation was snowball sampling through referrals from other college football sports
parents. The number of participants sought was between 20 and 30. The goal was to have enough
participants to reach saturation or redundancy in the data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
I used purposive sampling (Johnson & Christensen, 2014). I sought 15 male and 15
female parents from different households and included those who identified as neither. My intent
was to secure an equal number of participants who fit the criteria of being a parent to a football
player in either the last 2 years of high school or the first 2 years of college. These participants
were more likely to be informed and focused, so they would provide an in-depth perspective on
30
their experiences with sports recruiting. The criteria ensured the data were information-rich.
Merriam and Tisdell (2016) stated that information-rich cases are those from which one can learn
a great deal about issues of vital importance. Due to the time frame of the pilot study, it will be
more convenient for me to sample the parents of the student-athletes residing in communities in
my region of the country.
Instrumentation
The first tool for data collection was an online screening survey. The survey was created
and collected using online survey software. The first few questions in the survey were
demographic, first asking about their athletic background to see if the parent played sports in
either high school or beyond. If the parent played college-level sports, their perspective might
take on a sports-informed lens. Additional demographic questions about age, gender, educational
background, and cultural background will form part of the questions asked to gather more
information on the participants and how other factors may influence their experiences in
conjunction with their sports background and knowledge. The next question asked if their
student-athlete currently played football and on what level. This question allowed me to
determine whether potential participants met the study criteria. The pre-survey ended with a
question asking if the participants would be willing to be interviewed, and all interested
participants were asked to fill out and submit their contact information.
The interview protocol was formatted to include both semi-structured and probing
questions based on the participant’s response. Merriam and Tisdell (2016) noted that less
structured formats assume that individual respondents/participants define the world in unique
ways. A semi-structured interview means that the questions used in the interview are flexible in
format and include structured and unstructured type questions. Having a flexible approach to the
31
interview allowed me to create or eliminate questions based on each participant's overall data
content. Before the interviews, I created specific target questions for each participant to answer
based on the research questions.
At the start of each interview, I gave the participants an overview of the following
information: a brief introduction about me, the purpose of the study, the information sheet, a
request to record the interview, and a reminder that they could skip any questions or end the
interview at any time. Starting the interview with this crucial information helped to create a more
comfortable interviewing environment (Maxwell, 2013). Each participant in this study completed
no more than 20 questions during their hour-long interview.
Data Collection
Before collecting data, I submitted my study to USC’s institutional review board for
approval. Once the board approved the research, I began contacting local sports travel team
owners, athletic trainers, coaches, high school counselors, local high school coaches, and college
coaches so that they could refer potential participants. After exhausting my traveling sports team
resources, I asked interviewees to refer other sports parents who met the study’s criteria.
Participants filled out an online survey via an email containing an introduction to the study, a
copy of the information sheet, the link to the survey, and my contact information. Using Google
survey forms, I sent the survey to all potential participants. After 2 weeks, I sent a reminder
email to all potential participants encouraging them to complete the survey.
Responses were kept confidential; email addresses and names were only collected if the
individual responded with their name and email for future contacts and participation. Participants
were not compensated for completing the survey. Before the interview, the participant was
allowed to select a time and date most convenient for them to be interviewed via Zoom.
32
Participants had the opportunity to use an alternative name to maintain confidentiality. Prior to
the interview, I provided the interviewee with all the interview logistics and asked for permission
to record and take notes of their conversation to ensure complete accuracy. Note-taking allowed
for recording significant quotes, pacing the interview, and recording my reactions to the
responses (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). At the end of the interview, I downloaded all material onto
a safe and confidential data file protected by a passcode.
Data Analysis
Data collection and analysis took place simultaneously. Data analysis is a complicated
procedure that involves moving back and forth between descriptive and interpretive data
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Creswell and Creswell (2017) stated that a researcher should report
information about who participated in the study. Prior to coding, all interviews were transcribed
using an online program and double-checked for accuracy.
Next, I used Harding’s (2013) four-step coding process. After all the interviews were
transcribed, I started reviewing the transcriptions, reflecting on the overall outcome of the first
interview (Saldaña, 2013). After each interview, I captured the participant’s body language,
facial expressions, and tone. After analyzing the transcriptions, I identified common themes.
Based on the prevalent themes, I coded the data. Coding in a qualitative research study is often a
word or short phrase shared between more than one data source (Saldaña, 2013). By
disaggregating the data, I created common themes. The next stage in data analysis was to
develop a codebook of the most common themes in the data (Hennink et al., 2020). During the
final analysis stage, I analyzed whether the findings addressed the research questions.
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Credibility and Trustworthiness
Credibility and trustworthiness play a critical role in research integrity. Besides giving the
research a high scholarly level, credibility and reliability establish a respectful relationship with
other researchers and readers. Data triangulation ensured this study’s credibility and
trustworthiness. Triangulation tools used were data and environmental triangulation. Through
data triangulation, I identified the different stakeholders in this study: the sports parents, coaches,
and off-campus coaches. In-depth interviews were conducted with parents to gain insight into
their perspectives on program outcomes.
The environmental triangulation part of this study allowed me to compare the different
interview responses. Environmental triangulation presented how the stakeholder’s exposure to
certain environments can directly influence their overall perspective of the sports recruiting
process. During the analysis stage, I compared their feedback to determine areas of agreement as
and divergence
Merriam and Tisdell (2016) emphasized using each observation of participants during the
interviewing to triangulate emerging findings, meaning they are used in conjunction with
interviewing and document analysis to substantiate the research findings (Hennink et al., 2020).
The benefits of triangulation include “increasing confidence in the research data, revealing
unique findings, and providing a clearer understanding of the problem” (Thurmond, 2001, p.
254). I compared all collected results from the interviews, initial screening survey, and sports
parent surveys. Through analysis, I coded for patterns and identified themes. Patton (2015) stated
that the data’s trustworthiness is tied directly to the trustworthiness of those who collect and
analyze them. Creswell (2017) noted that it is important to engage in ethical practices and
anticipate ethical issues that may arise during interviews or observations.
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Conclusion
This chapter provided an overview of the methods utilized in this study, including data
collection procedures, protocols, sample population, and participants’ rights, confidentiality, and
sampling criteria. I discussed the diverse types of data collected, analyzed, and coded. Chapter
Four will detail the results of the data analysis.
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Chapter Four: Presentation of Data and Findings
The purpose of this study was to examine parents’ perspectives of the college football
recruiting process. Interviews with seven fathers and nine mothers provided insight into their
perspectives on distinct aspects of this process. The parents discussed everything from how their
student-athlete started playing football, the importance of being involved in the recruiting
process, connecting student-athletes with the right coaches in high school and during the
off-season, how important it is to have a strong village guiding during this process, and how
important it was for their student-athlete to have above-average grades. The data were used to
answer two research questions:
1. How do parents explore future opportunities for their student-athletes as they transition
from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
2. How does the interaction and relationship that student-athletes’ parents have with school
staff play a role in the future opportunities available to their student-athlete as they
transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
This chapter presents the study’s results. All participants were parents from either the Sports
Unlimited High School Football or Sports Mom Network social media groups on Facebook and
Instagram. In the following section, a descriptive profile of each participant provides context and
background information.
Participant Overview
I sent a screener survey to the following sports parents' social media platforms: Sports
Mom Unlimited, High School Sports Unlimited, and College Parents Unlimited. The purpose of
this survey was to identify potential study participants. The screener survey reached over 1,000
sports parents, and 100 completed the screener survey. After reviewing the responses, 16
36
individuals met the study’s criteria. Participants’ ages ranged from 35 to 65. Table 1 provides
background information for each participant related to their age, gender, household status the
type of high school their student-athlete attended.
Table 1
Participants’ Demographics
Participant Age Gender High school
attended
Household status Student athlete’s
grade
Jessica 49 Female Private Married Senior H.S.
Team Mom 47 Female Private Married Junior H.S.
Cherie 42 Female Private Single Senior H.S.
Regina 46 Female Public Single Senior H.S.
Jason 50 Male Public Married First year college
Charles 65 Male Public Married Senior H.S.
Lisa 40 Female Public Single Senior H.S.
Donald 43 Male Private Married Senior H.S.
Victor 45 Male Public Single Senior H.S.
Shawna 42 Female Private Single First year college
Patricia 35 Female Public Single Junior H.S.
William 56 Male Private Divorced Senior H.S.
Eric 47 Male Public Single Junior H.S.
Tam 56 Female Private Married Senior H.S.
Greg 48 Male Private Married Junior H.S.
Tina 46 Female Public Single Senior H.S.
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Participant Profiles
All participants either self-selected or were assigned a pseudonym to protect their
identities and confidentiality. Brief participant profiles are presented based on the high schools
their student-athletes attended. As student-athletes transition from middle to high school, parents
have the task of selecting the right school to prepare them for college. Eight of the interviewees
decided that it was in their student-athletes’ best interest to attend one of the elite, small private
schools in Los Angeles so that these schools could expose and market their children to college
football programs. Five of these parents stated that they based their selection on the schools’
offerings: access to financial support, small class sizes, campus environment, and football
program’s overall ranking. The remaining eight parents sent their children to their local public
school. Three of them felt that it was important for their sons to attend the same high school they
attended and felt that public school education exposes children to the real world.
Private High School
Jessica is a Black woman who has three children. Two of her children are in high school.
Jessica and her husband are college graduates. Her oldest daughter is also a college graduate.
Jessica is a community college professor. Their oldest son is the first in their family to pursue
playing college football. Jessica and her husband decided that their sons should attend a small
private school that could market them to local college football programs. Jessica felt it was
important to select the right high school and join a well-established off-season football club. Her
oldest son did not receive a full athletics scholarship but received the opportunity to try out for
the college football team as a preferred walk-on.
Team Mom (TM) is a Black sports mom with two children. Her oldest son is an aspiring
photographer. Her youngest son is a high school student-athlete. TM is a college graduate, and
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her husband joined the armed services at a young age. Their youngest son is the first in their
family to play college-level football. TM and her husband decided their sons should attend a
school that could market them to college football programs. Since middle school, the youngest
son was connected to a well-established off-season football club. Her son is scheduled to
graduate early from high school and attend his dream college on a full athletic scholarship.
Cherie is a Black sports mom with two children. Her oldest daughter is scheduled to
graduate from college in June 2022. Her youngest son is a high school student-athlete. Cherie
attended college and works two jobs. Her youngest son is the first in their family to pursue
playing college-level football. Cherie first placed her son in a public school, but after his
freshman year, the family opted to place him at a small private school that would market him to
local college football programs. Cherie felt her son did not secure an athletic scholarship due to
the global pandemic, which caused the 2021 football season to be shortened. As a result of the
shortened season, many high school athletes were unable to showcase their athletic talents to
college recruiters. After high school, Cherie’s son had to enroll at a community college to pursue
his dream of playing collegiate football.
Donald is a Black sports dad with three children. His oldest son currently plays Division
1 football and attended a small private high school. The middle son is a student-athlete who
attended a small private school for the first three years of his high school career. In his senior
year, he transferred to a public school for a different educational experience. The middle son
earned a scholarship to play college football at a PAC-12 university. The youngest son is a
freshman at a different small private high school. Donald stated that he decided not to place his
youngest in the same school as the two other siblings because the youngest son did not want to
live in his older brothers’ athletic shadows. Donald and his wife are college graduates, and
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Donald was recruited to play college football. He stated that navigating the recruiting process as
a parent was challenging for the entire family. Each son’s recruitment was different since each
plays various positions. Donald and his wife decided to send all three of their sons to a school
that could market them to local college football programs.
Shawna is a Black sports mom with three children. Her oldest daughter is an aspiring
market director. Her middle daughter is a student-athlete who graduated from a small private
high school. Shawna is a college graduate working in social work. Her youngest son is the first
in their family to play college-level football. Since middle school, the youngest son was
connected to a well-established off-season football club. Her son secured a full athletic
scholarship at his dream college. Her son’s recruitment was not too stressful since she
established a supporting village.
William is a Black sports dad with two children. His oldest daughter is a former
student-athlete who attended a private high school. She recently graduated from college with a
BA. His youngest son is a high school student-athlete. William is a retired military veteran and
college graduate, and his ex-wife works in education. Their youngest child is the first in their
family to play college-level football. William has been an active parent volunteer at his
children’s high school. William stated that his son was not highly recruited during his high
school years. Many football players opted not to get the COVID-19 vaccination, which opened
potential scholarship opportunities for a few incoming student-athletes. William’s son benefited
from the vaccination mandate because he was offered a partial athletic scholarship before the
start of summer football training when another player refused to be vaccinated.
Tam is a Black sports mom with three children. Her oldest son is an aspiring real estate
agent. Her middle child is a girl who decided to attend a public high school. The middle child
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graduated from college with a BA and did not play college sports. The youngest son is a
student-athlete at a small private high school. Tam and her husband are both college graduates.
Their youngest son is the first in their family to pursue playing college-level football. Tam and
her husband chose for their son to attend a small private school during his final 2 years of high
school, especially after having homeschooled him for 6 years. Tam stated that they selected a
school that could market him to local Division 1 college football programs.
Greg is a Black sports dad whose son attends a small private school. Greg is a college
graduate, works at an all-boys group home, and was the first in his family to pursue playing
college football. Since his collegiate sports experience was over 20 years ago, he sought
guidance from other sports parents as he started preparing his son for the recruiting process. He
expressed how important it was for him to ensure that his son’s recruiting experience was
positive and memorable. Greg’s son is currently a junior at a small private high school. Greg
stated that he works hard to provide his son with the opportunity to attend a top high school.
Since middle school, Greg’s son has been connected to a well-established off-season football
club.
Public High School
Jason is a Black sports dad with three children. Two of his children are high school
student-athletes. Jason is a former pop-warner football coach and well-established entrepreneur.
Jason’s wife is a registered nurse. One of his two high school student-athletes is in 11th grade,
and the other is a current freshman softball player. Jason’s oldest son is starting his first year of
college football at an out-of-state community college after going to two different public high
schools during high school. Jason stated that his son transferred high schools to better his
chances of getting more playing time and quality game film during the football season. Jason’s
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oldest son has played football for the past 12 years and played on one of the top seven-on-seven
football teams. Jason felt his oldest son was denied an athletic scholarship due to his height, size,
and the fact that he did not actively participate in more than one sport during high school.
Regina is a Black sports mom with two children. Her oldest daughter is an aspiring model
and fashion designer. Her youngest son is a student-athlete at a public high school. Regina is a
college graduate who currently works in the healthcare field. She sent both of her children to
their public high school because it was known for preparing all students for college and offered a
top-tiered sports program. Regina’s oldest daughter also played sports in high school, but during
her final year, she decided that she was no longer passionate about playing. Regina’s youngest
son has played football for the past 11 years and ran track at his high school while
simultaneously playing on two of the top seven-on-seven football teams during the off-season.
Regina’s son has received over 10 football athletic scholarships and will sign his athletic
scholarship in the upcoming months.
Lisa is a Black sports mom with only one child. Her son is scheduled to graduate from
high school in June 2022. Her son is a student-athlete at a public high school. Lisa attended
college and currently works two jobs. Lisa has been supportive of her son’s dreams, especially
since she has also dedicated all of her free time to serving as a volunteer team mom for every
football team her son played on. Her son is the first in their family to pursue playing
college-level football and has dedicated the past 12 years to playing football. He also played on
one of the top seven-on-seven football teams. Lisa felt that what prevented her son from
obtaining an athletic scholarship was the position he played in high school, his height, and not
participating in more than one sport in high school. Lisa also felt that her son’s coaches and
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private trainers did not effectively communicate the information she needed to make informed
decisions. Instead, she felt they told her what they thought she wanted to hear.
Charles is a Black sports dad with three children. Charles stated that navigating the
recruiting process is challenging for the entire family. Each of his children’s recruitment was
different because each plays different sports. Charles and his wife decided that all three of their
student-athletes would attend a public school that would help market them to college sports
programs. Charles' oldest son is currently a senior, has played football since age 7, and ran track
in high school while simultaneously playing on two of the top seven-on-seven football teams
during the football off-season. Charles's younger children are female student-athletes who
currently participate in the youth track circuit. Charles stated that his oldest son's recruitment
process was slow, and he is not sure what steps his family must take to increase his chances of
being recruited by a top-tier college football program.
Victor is a Black sports dad with two children. His oldest son is a student-athlete at a
public high school. Victor graduated from college and works in law enforcement. His oldest son
is the first in their family to pursue playing college-level football. Victor first placed his son in a
small private school, but after his freshman year, the family opted for a public school that woulc
market him to college football programs. Victor’s son did not secure an athletic scholarship.
Victor felt like his son’s collegiate opportunities were hindered by the global pandemic. Victor
stated that the global pandemic caused his son’s 2021 football season to be shortened, which
meant he did not have quality game film to help with his recruitment. The oldest son attends a
community college in hopes of securing an athletic scholarship after 2 years. Victor’s youngest
child is in middle school and will start high school in the fall. Victor’s youngest son plays both
football and baseball.
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Patricia is a Black sports mom with two children. Her oldest son is a student-athlete at a
public high school. Patricia graduated from college and works in finance. Her oldest son will be
the first in their family to pursue playing college-level football. Patricia’s son attended three
public schools during his last 3 years of high school. Patricia hopes that he will graduate from his
current school in June 2022. Patricia stated there were many reasons she continued to change her
son’s high school every year, but one of the most important reasons was to ensure he was safe at
school. The global pandemic caused the 2021 football season to be shortened, which limited her
son’s marketability during his junior year. As a result of this shortened football season, Patricia
and her son decided to remain at the current school for his senior year. Patricia also stated that
she would begin researching potential seven-on-seven football programs to provide her with the
resources to get her son’s name out to potential collegiate football coaches. Patricia’s youngest
child is an aspiring softball player currently in ninth grade. Her oldest son has decided to walk on
at his future college.
Eric is a Black sports dad with two children. His oldest child is a female former
student-athlete who attended a private high school. She is in her second year of college. His son
is a student-athlete at a public high school. Eric is a college graduate and works for the Los
Angeles County Probation Office. His youngest is the first in the family to pursue playing
college-level football. Eric chose his high school alma mater for his son because it has one of the
top-tier high school football programs in Los Angeles County. As a result, Eric’s son missed
playing football during his sophomore year due to inconsistent academic grades.
Eric stated that he felt his son was not highly recruited because the coach did not
effectively market him to college football coaches. Eric expressed his concerns to the head
football coach, who explained that he was unable to market his son to top-tier Division I
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programs due to his academic struggles. The coach encouraged Eric to reach out to his son’s
guidance counselor to improve his son’s grades. Eric’s son decided to attend one of the Cal State
universities with a football program and requested an opportunity to try out for the practice
squad.
Tina is a 3 Black sports mom with one son. Her son is a senior student-athlete at a public
high school. Tina attended a community college and currently works in cosmetology. She stated
that her son’s father was the first in his family to pursue playing college-level football. Tina
depended on her son’s father to help properly guide them through their son’s sports recruiting
process. Tina stated that she works to provide her son with the opportunity to participate in sports
activities at his school. Since ninth grade, Tina’s son has been connected to a well-established
off-season football club. Her son has not received any leads to potential athletic scholarships,
which Tina found discouraging, but she encouraged her son to start contacting the head football
coach and position coaches at the colleges he is considering. Table 2 provides information on the
student-athletes’ post-high-school plans and athletic scholarship status as reported by the parents.
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Table 2
Participants’ Student-Athletes’ Post-High-School Plans and Recruitment Options
Participant Student’s athlete High school
attended
Athletic
scholarship
Post high school
plans
Jessica Senior H.S. Private Preferred walk-on Division 1
Team Mom Junior H.S. Private Full-athletic
scholarship
Division 1
Cherie Senior H.S. Private No scholarship Junior College
Regina Senior H.S. Public Full-athletic
scholarship
Division 1
Jason First year college Public No scholarship Junior College
Charles Senior H.S. Public No scholarship Division 2
Lisa Senior H.S. Public Partial athletic
scholarship
Division 1
Donald Senior H.S. Private Full-athletic
scholarship
Division 1
Victor Senior H.S. Public No scholarship Junior college
Shawna First year college Private Full-athletic
scholarship
Division 1
Patricia Senior H.S. Public No scholarship Division 2
William Senior H.S. Private Partial athletic
scholarship
Division 2
Eric Senior H.S. Public No scholarship Division 2
Tam Senior H.S. Private Preferred walk-on Division 1
Greg Junior H.S. Private Preferred walk-on Division 1
Tina Senior H.S. Public No scholarship Division 1
Research Question 1
The interviews shed light on the recruiting experiences of 16 student-athletes and their
sports parents. The parents reflected on their experiences during recruitment and shared their
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voices with future sports parents. All interviewees provided responses about their journey and
experiences exploring and navigating collegiate opportunities for their student-athletes.
The participants’ perceptions and beliefs regarding how they explore future collegiate
opportunities were categorized into six key themes: (a) clarifying roles, (b) choosing the village,
(c) creating stronger relationships and trust, (d) impact of social media on sports recruiting, (e)
the skills acquired from playing football, and (f) impact of parental involvement during the
sports recruitment process. These six key themes are all centered around the parents overall
concerns regarding how to properly explore future collegiate opportunities for their
student-athlete, when their overall access to sports recruiting resources is difficult to obtain. This
chapter interprets these themes and the findings by answering the following two research
questions. In this chapter we will discuss the specific limitations of the study, implications for
practice, and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Exploring Future Collegiate Opportunities
Most of the interviewees have basic information about the college recruiting process. As
a result of limited information, many are scared to make a mistake and sign up for every
program, training, camp, or marketing tool advertised to help their student-athletes receive
scholarships. Most of them explored opportunities by using the few resources and advice they
receive from the head coach, other sports parents, various online recruiting service providers,
colleges’ sports websites, and emails from colleges.
Thirteen participants are experiencing the college football recruiting process for the first
time. All interviewees have children who participated in high school football. Nine reported that
their student-athletes ran track as well. They felt that being a multi-sport athlete would increase
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their chances of receiving an athletic scholarship and felt that running track during the off-season
would keep them in shape.
Greg and a few others believed that running track helps football players stay in shape
during the postseason. According to Greg, “running track is encouraged for football players
because it helps them develop well-rounded athletic skills.” Donald stated that track helps
football players learn how to regulate the energy they put out to know when to increase or
decrease their speed and explosiveness. Many coaches advocate for their athletes to run track to
improve their form, among many other advantages.
All the parents reported positive and negative experiences, and their perceptions about
the overall process varied greatly. They all stated that their student-athlete has been playing
football for at least 12 years and that they play the sport for the love of the game. Thirteen
expressed mixed feelings concerning their overall experiences during the sports recruiting
process.
Clarifying Roles
TM said that, at times, high school football and the recruiting process became
overwhelming for student-athletes and their families, and Jason felt that they had “made many
bad decisions along the way.” TM stated it was overwhelming because of misconceptions about
whose job it was to get their student-athletes recruited. Eight interviewees believed it was the
high school’s responsibility to ensure that they were in the right position to get their
student-athlete a collegiate scholarship for football.
Tam and her husband decided that it was in their child’s best interest to be at a specific
private high school so that he could receive access to college preparatory courses, tutoring,
athletic training, and additional resources to prepare for college. Tam stated that they selected a
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high school based on his father’s experience at the same high school. Tam’s husband was
familiar with how well connected this school was in terms of placing their student-athletes in
front of high-profile collegiate sports programs. The interviewees’ focus was on ensuring that
their student-athletes had access to the proper collegiate platform to highlight their football skills
and secure a scholarship.
With this mindset, many participants enrolled their student-athletes in various Division I
high school football programs, according to Cherie, “with the hopes that their student-athletes
would get recruited to play college-level football after graduating from that particular Division I
high school.” Based on the participants’ responses, there is an expectation of every Division I
high school football program to market and advocate for every student-athlete. If the program
was unable to accomplish this goal, the head coach was often seen as not having their
student-athletes best interest in mind.
Lisa stated, “I felt that my son’s head football coach did not provide my son with the
opportunity to showcase his football skills during the football season, which, as a result, he did
not have enough game film to send out to potential college recruiters.” Quality game film that
showcases athletic talents and skills is central to recruitment, but TM stated that she made sure
that her student-athlete’s grades were always above a 3.5 GPA: “It's one thing to be a top athlete
on the field, but to be a top student-athlete in the classroom speaks volumes in the sports
recruiting world.” Shawna stated that the more her student-athlete succeeded in the classroom,
the easier it was for him to get recruited by top collegiate sports programs. Many sports parents
saw the school as only a small piece of the puzzle of college football recruitment. This belief was
often an oversight by many sports parents, especially if their student-athletes were struggling
academically.
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Choosing the Village
Recruitment is a long journey spanning more than 10 years for most interviewees. Their
children have played football for a major part of their lives with their support system and village
at their side. The village consists of individuals committed to taking an unpredictable journey
with the student-athletes. Donald stated their village included parents, coaches, guidance
counselors, community, and everyone else in their support system. These people help
student-athletes get ready for college holistically. Anyone who contributes to the child’s mental
or physical journey is part of the village. Shawna stressed, “it takes a whole village to raise a
child,” referring to guiding and supporting top scholar-athletes in securing athletic scholarships.
Seven participants expressed that when they were considering high schools, they selected
schools based on information they received from their immediate village. Jessica and her
husband first asked their family, friends, and pop warner coaches for their input on which high
school would be the best fit. Jessica also stated that because of the conflicting advice and having
to change her son’s high schools twice, she strongly encourages other sports parents to “complete
their own research on what high school would be the best fit.” Seven interviewees stated that if
they could start over, they would have selected a school that was a better fit and would have
monitored grades closely. Jessica stated that she should not have allowed outside influences to
persuade high school decisions for her two sons. William felt he should have given his son more
of a voice in selecting a high school instead of forcing him to attend the same private school as
his sister.
Additionally, interviewees discussed their children’s school choices with them to find the
best options. Victor mentioned that “compatibility with the school is just as important as the
offers that the student gets.” If students find many of the school’s characteristics incompatible
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with what they want, they will suffer in the end. Donald stated, “It is essential that we as parents
continue to provide our student-athletes with additional input regarding the pros and cons
surrounding each school that they are considering during the recruitment process.”
Creating Stronger Relationships and Trust
While there were differences among the parents in their perceptions of exploring
opportunities for their student-athletes, four interviewees articulated how much they genuinely
enjoyed being able to strengthen their relationships with their children. Donald stated that he
gained a better understanding of his son’s goals outside of football. Shawna expressed that as
they navigated recruitment, she observed her son mature into the young man she had always
dreamed that he would become. Thirteen of the sports parents had invested a lot of their time and
money over the years exploring different opportunities so that their children could secure a full
scholarship to play college football. Charles stated that he spent a lot of money every year on
football registration, cleats, football camps, post-season travel football, private trainers,
seven-on-seven tournaments, plane tickets, hotel registration, and physical therapy.
Ten parents expressed that they felt that the money they invested in trainers,
seven-on-seven travel football, or various football camps was a direct investment into their
children’s future and helped their child to successfully secure an athletic scholarship. Through
participating in these post-season activities many of the parents expressed how it helped them
create a small post-season parent support group, where they began sharing resources with one
another. As a result of this newly established sports parent support group they were able to help
each other navigate the sports recruiting process. On the other hand a few parents expressed a
different outlook on their post-season investments. Eric stated that, at times during his son’s post
season training, he was lead to believe that they only way that his son was going to secure a
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college level athletic scholarship was by completing the following post-season tasks; seven on
seven football tournaments, personalized skilled training or registering his son to attend various
football camps. What Eric finally realized during his son’s senior year is that all the money he
had invested over the years did not guarantee his son an athletic scholarship. Instead his
investment allowed his son the opportunity to perfect his football skills, teach him how to
network in the world of sports and provided them the opportunity to spend quality time with each
other before he graduated from high school. Eric and William stated that the reason for their
mixed feelings about their financial investment, was because they felt they were being taken
advantage of by many post-season football trainers and seven on seven coaches. The things that
they both enjoyed most during the post-season training was building a sense of community with
the other sports parents on their seven on seven team and lastly watching their sons football skills
improve.
Donald said that based on his experiences with his three sons, he realized that
“everyone’s experience during this intense recruiting process is going to be completely
different.” Which as a result forced him to place higher value on the personal experiences that he
and his son had during the recruiting process, as opposed to comparing their experiences with
someone else’s. Donald realized that during this process it sometimes can be extremely hard to
network with other sports parents, because the reality is that every student-athlete and sports
parent is trying to secure the same opportunity to play collegiate sports, and no one wants to give
someone an advantage over them. Every sports parent wants to surround themselves with an
amazing support system when going through this recruiting process. Many of the sports parents
stated its extremely difficult for them to openly share their experiences with other sports parents,
because they are afraid of the unknown.
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Tina noted that “you want to trust that everyone in your surrounding village has your
student-athletes’ best interest in mind, but as you navigate this college recruiting process with
your son, one quickly learns to not trust everyone around you.” Tam stated that during her son’s
recruitment process, she went through good and bad experiences. Tam did not allow her negative
experiences overshadow how they successfully navigated her son’s recruiting process, instead it
encouraged her to expand her networking efforts. Tam encouraged her son to start training with
more than one coach during the off-season, which helped increase his ability to be marketed to
other potential college coaches. Lisa and a few of the other interviewees stated that, because of
their negative experiences with various personal trainers, seven-on-seven coaches, and college
recruiters, it became difficult for them to “trust the word of every person in this high school
football circuit.” As a result of the negative experiences that Tina and Lisa faced during the
sports recruiting process with their son’s, they decided to establish their own small sports parent
group where they can share helpful resources with each other and other sports parents that
needed additional support. This small sports parent group eventually transitioned into a sports
parents support group and podcast for future high school sports parents to use as they navigate
the world of sports recruiting..
Impact of Social Media on Sports Recruiting
Seven participants expressed that, at times, social media posts were misleading. Eric
stated, “not every student-athlete was getting the special invites to the elite camps, showcases,
specialized highlight reels, or unofficial college offers they can post on Instagram.” Seven
parents reported that they felt social media made their children’s recruitment difficult because
every night, they had to explain why they were not receiving the same attention as others.
Charles stated that instead of enjoying the entire recruitment process with his son, he constantly
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explained the difference between his recruitment and his teammates: “As a parent, it’s hard
watching your child struggle with understanding the politics that go along with the sports
recruitment process.”
Tina discovered that many of her son’s teammates and their parents used different social
media platforms to increase their son’s access and exposure to college coaches. Donald found
that many sports parents in his circle showcased their children more on social media, leading to
additional college scholarship offers. Tina expressed that, at times, various social media
platforms encouraged many student-athletes to seek or desire athletic scholarship offers from
colleges for which they were not athletically eligible or tried to keep up with everyone else’s
recruiting journey. These social media platforms presented false realities and hopes for both the
student-athlete and their families.
Eric expressed how easy it was for him and his child to lose focus on overall goals for the
sports recruiting process. Eric stated that he constantly compared their journey as a family to
other families. As a result, he made their process difficult. As the recruitment window closed,
they were forced to reflect on the politics of college recruiting and “chasing the wrong college
scholarship offers or opportunities” to prove to the rest of the world that his child made it or was
a high-profile student-athlete.” Eric and his son realized that going to any college on an athletic
scholarship is a blessing and that they needed to stop focusing on whether it is a Division I or II
college. Eric stated that due to this experience, he learned to focus on his son’s opportunity to
continue to play a sport he loves at the college level.
Twelve parents finally realized how important it was to make sure that the recruitment
process met their children’s overall needs and not meet everyone else's. TM stated her child felt
valued when he received over 20 scholarship offers from various top college sports programs,
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but he realized he could only select one program. Her son felt valued because many top college
football programs highly recruited him, and all his friends congratulated him on social media for
all his accomplishments. IN the end, only one of the colleges made him feel like he could bring
value to their program.
Skills Student-Athletes Acquired From Playing Football
Every interviewee expressed sentiments about the skills they expected their children to
gain from playing football. Patricia talked about the importance of networking skills:
“Networking with teammates and coaches is an essential tool that teaches student-athletes how to
properly communicate with one another on and off the field.” Regina emphasized that the
friendships and strong bonds they develop with their teammates will grow into the networks they
will need in the future, whether all their teammates play professionally or not. “Sportsmanship is
the common surface level skill that the athletes learn,” Shawna said. Tam found that many
student-athletes develop a lifelong habit of keeping fit after getting used to their activity levels:
“It is easy for them to stay in shape as they draw on the lessons they learn during training and
games.: Lisa articulated that learning transferable skills while playing football can help advance
one’s career. Cherie and William stated that those exposed to public speaking through football
become adept at this skill at an early age, which can help them get ahead in fields like journalism
and politics.
Additionally, actively participating in football helps in personal development. Shawna
stated that learning how to deal with conflict is a skill that all student-athletes must have because
tension, emotions, and stress tend to run high during games and practice. Thus, these young
people must learn to deal with unpredictable life experiences. Tina stated that de-escalation
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techniques help students become more diplomatic in their relations with other members of
society.
Impact of Parental Involvement During the Sports Recruitment Process
Parents were asked to comment on the support they gave to their children concerning the
sport. Most parents gave a uniform answer: they do their best to be involved as much as possible.
Their involvement varies, though, despite the common answer. While the end goal is the same,
some of the methods for involvement differ. Lisa stated that she and other sports moms often
took their student-athletes to various tournaments and camps out of state, while other parents
were only present at local games. Due to the high demand of his career, Victor was only able to
support his child financially and depended on his off-season coaches to provide motivation and
guidance to his son during his out-of-state competitions. Other parents help their children with
paperwork. Charles is one of 10 other interviewees who researched potential coaches and
training programs for the off-season.
Lisa was concerned with the children’s holistic growth and maturity: “Having this type of
focus directly ties into how important it is for many sports parents to remain actively involved in
their student-athletes recruiting process because they are not just athletes.” To her, the student
part of student-athlete is just as important. TM stated that all student-athletes “need to always
keep their grades up” to remain competitive for the schools in which they are interested and
ensure that they are academically eligible to accept an athletic scholarship. Charles instilled in
his children that academics were just as important as football and more important in some cases.
William reminded the young men he mentored that a strong educational foundation is essential
and explained that it provides the opportunity to create a fallback plan. Eric shared that having a
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strong educational foundation can be especially useful even in the sports industry. There are
many ways in which academics matter to students, and most of them are not just at face value.
TM stated that “writing essays, for example, helps them develop the ability to have
well-constructed arguments.” Class presentations help students become more articulate and
confident in front of an audience. Shawna constantly preached to her student-athletes that
“having access to a college education is important for all high school graduates to take advantage
of. What ensures that they are successful in college is based on having a good academic
foundation in high school.” Tam’s husband found it beneficial for his student-athlete to be
actively involved in his academic and athletic experiences. Tam’s husband stated that he made
sure that his student-athlete’s counselor communicated with them regularly.
Regina found out from other sports parents that when the counselor, student-athlete, and
parent were not on the same page regarding academic and behavior expectations, the
student-athlete did not qualify for an athletic scholarship. Knowing this information encouraged
Lisa and many other sports parents to closely monitor their children’s academic and behavioral
progress. TM said her way of remaining involved in her student-athlete’s academics was by
keeping in touch with teachers: “knowing about their class behavior and participation helps keep
the athletes on their toes and helps them perform, not just on the field.”
In the same vein of holistic growth, one of the questions posed to the parents asked about
the preparation that the school provides for their children. There are classes that students need to
take to graduate or be eligible for certain university courses, and the student needs to be aware of
this. Eric found it beneficial when the school’s academic counselor took an active interest in his
student-athlete’s goals, discussed the student’s schedule with them, and aligned it to the course or
field in which his son expressed interest. However, eight participants reported varying degrees of
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responsibility among the school officials and often had to pick up the slack. This means that they
must start researching things like potential colleges of interest and learn how to navigate the
NCAA Clearinghouse, which supports the verification of athletic eligibility.
While some schools and facilities offer the necessary academic support, students need to
do more to graduate on time. This means that the student-athlete and parent should set up
appointments with their counselors and maintain a professional relationship with them, not just
when they need help selecting courses. Eventually, they will help the student-athlete choose the
school that would be the best fit for them.
These meetings and talks between the student-athlete, their parents, and the counselor
would provide the counselor with the information to make appropriate recommendations
specifically tailored to the student's needs and interests. Cherie and a few other parents noted that
they could not get on the same page when they had “inconsistent communication with the
counselor” and the student’s teachers. Cherie said that it was that there was always some form of
miscommunication until all key stakeholders established a similar common ground of focus.
When there was a breakdown in communication between Cherie and the school counselor and
teachers, her student-athlete got away with not turning in assignments and skipping classes.
Once Cherie, the school counselor, teacher, and coach got on the same page, they were
able to get her child back on track. Cherie was not the only sports parent who experienced
academic and attendance issues with their student-athlete during high school because of the
common communication disconnect between school and the home. Tam stated that the
disconnect persists at many high schools because not every parent sees value in building or
establishing a positive relationship with the school.
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Research Question 2
The relationship between parents and school staff is vital for the athlete's success. Greg
found it important for him and other parents to establish and maintain constant communication
with the school’s academic advisors and football coaching. Regina said that the only time she
spoke with the school counselor was during the recruiting process because her son was taught at
an early age that academics were central to securing an athletic scholarship. All interviewees
explained that the only time they made it a point to talk with the school counselor or school staff
was right before senior year to ensure they were on track to graduate or to remind them to send
out their student-athlete's transcripts to the NCAA Clearinghouse for athletic eligibility
clearance.
TM stated she found that many of today’s student-athletes are only motivated to remain
in high school football because of wanting to please their parents or because playing relieves
daily stress. It may be the only platform where they experience continued success, they may
want to play in college or professionally, or they have outside sources of motivation as opposed
to being self-motivated. William stated that playing football helped keep his son motivated and
focused on his academics. Athletics can serve as an academic motivator for all athletes,
especially those not otherwise inclined to perform to the best of their ability in the classroom.
Many students see school as secondary to athletics, but coaches and families often require
minimum academic performance to play. This teaches athletes to value their classes and earn the
privilege of playing sports. More than 10 of the interviewees confirmed that when football
season was in session, their student-athletes made sure to stay engaged in their academics and
often communicated with their current teachers and other school staff. During the football
season, Lisa stated that she often found it helpful for herself and student-athlete to regularly visit
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the high school campus and establish a relationship with the staff. Regina stated that she felt it
was unnecessary for her to communicate or interact with the school officials unless there was a
situation that her student-athlete could not handle on his own. William said that during his son’s
recruitment process, he monitored his performance on and off the field. Tina said that she
received regular feedback about her son’s overall academic and athletic progress because of her
remaining involved in his journey.
This study’s participants did not all agree on whether their students' academics or athletic
ability was more important. In some instances, they expressed that they were more interested in
athletics than academics. Patricia said, “I think that academics for some student-athletes is a
necessary evil, especially if it is a possibility that your student-athlete may not end up making it
to the NFL.” In contrast, Jason promoted academics to make sure his student-athlete was eligible
to play football when the football season started. Shawna, Regina, and TM did not have to worry
about their student-athletes’ academic performance, and their only concern was ensuring they
were building and maintaining the correct positive connections with the key stakeholders to
direct them to a scholarship.
Tam tried to encourage other sports parents to form positive relationships with the
teachers and football coaching staff. She also explained how beneficial it was for her
student-athlete to form positive connections with teachers and sports advisors. Eric felt that
positive connections with school staff and coaches taught student-athletes how to utilize
resources properly. Instead of being given a one-size-fits-all answer to a question, the teacher can
give direct feedback to fit individual needs and life goals.
Donald found that college recruiters only sent out special invites to nationally recruited
elite student-athletes to attend specialized recruiting events, junior recruiting days, official
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campus visits, home collegiate football games, or specialty football camps. Through these
special events, college recruiters established positive relationships with student-athletes and their
families. TM and Shawna expressed that it was important to maintain a positive connection
among their student-athlete, college recruiters, and school staff. This positive connection allows
all key stakeholders to establish the trust needed to ensure these key stakeholders ensure their
best interests.
The relationship between the student-athlete and the high school football coach is also a
vital component of the recruiting process. For many participants, it was important for the college
recruiter to hear the perspective of the head high school football coach. The information shared
by the head high school coach about the overall growth and development of the student-athlete
helps to persuade the college recruiter to offer an athletic scholarship. Charles found it beneficial
to have the support of the high school football coach to ensure that the student-athlete receives
access to the right college recruiters and off-season football training camps.
Conclusion
The interviews shed light on several factors that may be unknown to parents. They
expressed the importance of the community. Victor concluded that parents must surround
themselves with people committed to seeing their family and student-athletes succeed. The
recruitment process is an often vague concept with no blueprint for success. The parents shared
their points of view because of their interest and involvement in their children’s lives. The
common point was that the student-athletes can perform well only when they have a complete
support system.
Thus, it is important for everyone involved to work together for the athlete's success in
their move from high school to college. Resources, both school-provided and otherwise, increase
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the possibility of success. It is up to the parents, coaches, and students to seek and take full
advantage of resources. Even if cost is a significant obstacle, working with those who went
before and succeeded will yield the best results. Lisa stated that all must be willing to share their
experiences. The information on navigating the recruiting process should be shared with all
sports parents and their rising student-athletes.
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Chapter Five: Discussion and Recommendations
This study aimed to examine the parents’ perspectives on the collegiate sports recruiting
process in high school football. Interviews with seven fathers and nine mothers provided insight
into their perspectives about distinct aspects. The parents discussed everything from how their
student-athlete started playing football, became involved in the recruiting process, connected
with the right coaches in high school and during the off-season, having a village, and the
importance of above-average grades. The following two research questions guided this study:
1. How do parents explore future opportunities for their student-athletes as they
transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
2. How does the interaction and relationship that student-athletes’ parents have with
school staff play a role in the future opportunities available to their student-athlete as
they transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
The interview participants offered similar responses. The only differences in some of the
responses were that not every student-athlete participated in more than one sport, played similar
positions, participated in seven-on-seven during the off-season, and their grades differed. A
thorough analysis of the responses yielded six themes outlined in Chapter Four: (a) Exploring
Future Collegiate Opportunities, (b) Clarifying Roles, (c) Choosing the Village, (d) Creating
Stronger Relationships and Trust, (e) Skills Student-Athletes Acquired From Playing Football,
and (f) Impact of Parental Involvement During the Sports Recruitment Process. This chapter will
first compare the findings in this study to the existing literature on topics related to the collegiate
sports recruiting process from the lens of the sports parent. Next, this chapter will elaborate on
findings to address both research questions. Finally, this chapter will provide recommendations
for practice and future research given the limitations of this study.
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Connections and Contributions to Existing Literature
Parents’ thoughts and impressions on potential college or university selections can
directly influence the recruiting process and selecting the right university for their student-athlete
(Richter, 2009). Richter (2009) also noted that parents need to evaluate and provide an accurate
assessment of each college, degree programs offered, recruiting coach, and athletic situations,
and it is important that parents remain involved in the overall success of their student-athletes as
they transition into the world of collegiate sports (Rosen, 2000).
This study examined the role of parental involvement in the decisions made by the
student-athlete and examined the various experiences of parents as they go through the process
with their student-athletes, coaches, counselors, and college sports recruiter. Many researchers
found that greater involvement by all stakeholders can help the student-athlete navigate various
challenges and that the recruitment process is not a one-stop event, but a continuous ongoing
development that covers many aspects of a student-athlete’s life and academic journey
(Goldman, 1994; Rosen, 2000).
Clarifying the Roles of all Invested Stakeholders
Findings from this study support existing literature about the importance of clarifying the
roles and responsibilities of all invested stakeholders during the sports recruiting process. The
ecological systems theory helps to closely examine the environment and relationships that guide
the development of student-athletes. The relationships and interactions that the student-athlete
has with his invested stakeholders (family, community environment, school leaders, and society)
help to define his overall development as a student-athlete (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). For example,
some student-athletes have invested stakeholders in their life that fulfill the role of a dedicated
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support system (Bronfenbrenner, 1994). When student-athletes are surrounded by stakeholders
focused mainly on their success, the transition from high school to college is smoother.
How the role of each invested stakeholder is defined in the eyes of the student-athlete
will directly determine who is involved in the recruiting process of the student-athlete. Some
have a support system that is rather large and includes both parents, mentors, community leaders,
and school staff, whereas others’ support systems only consist of a few key members. How a
student-athlete learns to deal with conflict or adversity during the distinct stages of life
development can directly impact how they handle disappointment, conflict, or adversity during
the football season and the sports recruiting process. During an informational meeting, Coach
Altenberg noted that every student-athlete must experience some struggle or adversity during
their journey because it “builds grit and character”. The life lessons that the student-athlete and
invested stakeholders learn during his transition from high school to collegiate sports make every
sport recruiting process a unique experience (S.Altenberg, personal conversation, May 23, 2019).
Positive, realistic, and productive relationships with all stakeholders facilitate realistic
next steps. When all stakeholders effectively communicate with one another in a friendly and
motivating manner, it plays a significant role in helping student-athletes make appropriate
decisions or life choices and prepares them to solve problems maturely (Cullaty, 2011). A
breakdown in communication among stakeholders creates confusion. This study affirms how
important it is for sports parents to establish and maintain a positive collaboration with all
invested stakeholders at their student-athlete’s school site. When sports parents do not contact or
collaborate with counselors or academic advisors on the requirements for their student-athlete to
graduate from high school and attend the college of interest, they create unnecessary confusion.
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Many participants expressed a desire to collaborate with counselors and head coaches
regularly. The high school counselor can become the coordinator of the athletic triangle between
the coach, athlete, and parent. For this reason, school counselors should have a close relationship
with the parents (Hebard & Lamberson, 2017). School counselors can set realistic academic and
athletic goals, and parents should maintain regular communication with the counselors to ensure
they address all potential opportunities (Ruffalo Noel Levitz, 2017).
High school and other sports coaches play a central role in student-athletes’ lives.
(Hinojosa, 2018). Many of the study participants stated that the head coaches helped their
student-athletes develop into mature, outspoken, and academically focused young men due to
being active participants on the varsity football team. High school coaches can serve as a link
between athletic and academic life. Similar to a classroom teacher, the high school coach also
nurtures and empowers athletes (NFHS, 2013) and is responsible for ensuring access to daily
motivation, support, training, academic resources, and athletic exposure. The high school coach
and athletic director also collaborate with the guidance counselor regarding which colleges have
expressed interest in offering scholarships. (S.Altenberg, personal conversation, May 23, 2019).
stated that this collaboration with the guidance counselor allows the prospective college access to
academic files and game films.
The Surrounding Village
Data from this study found that having the support of other sports parents who have
already gone through the sports recruiting process allows first-time sports parents to learn from
their mistakes and often makes navigating this recruitment process easier. It is always beneficial
to surround yourself with individuals with similar interests and goals, which helps create a
supportive village of resources and knowledge. In the literature researched in this study, EST
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emphasizes the importance of being a part of a community. Teachers, parents, coaches, and
community members are all impacting the development of student-athletes daily. Bronfenbrenner
felt that it was more beneficial for all invested stakeholders to work together as much as possible
to help all children or student-athletes succeed.
Many participants found it more beneficial to their student-athletes’ recruiting process to
establish a solid connection with their student-athletes' school site stakeholders and establish a
strong support system with other football sports parents. Shawna stated that during her son’s first
year in high school, she made it her job to make friends with other football sports parents with
similar interests and aspirations for their student-athletes. As a result of her willingness to seek
out other football parents, she was able to ask them questions about their experiences during the
recruiting process. Will stated that he had been around the process with his nephew and
personally witnessed it with other football players, making it easier for him to establish a strong
village around his son during his recruiting process. Establishing a strong village of sports
parents is not a common practice found in the literature.
TM said that, unfortunately, her son’s high school did not provide the parents with many
sports-related workshops, so she created a small support village with other moms of students
who played football at different schools. Through these small support communities, she shared
her experiences and learned how to navigate her son’s recruitment. Research has found that
student-athletes and their parents must surround themselves with community members who will
provide the support they need to assist them with reaching goals. Eric and a few other sports dads
decided to create their own males' support group using social media, and this group was called
“Coaches Corner.” The Coaches Corner was designated for the sports dads, so Eric informed me
that he decided to start a high school sports group on social media where all sports parents can
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share their experiences. Eric and Victor stated that the information shared by different sports
parents was not always helpful or positive but ultimately served as an outlet for some sports
parents to vent their frustrations or ask for assistance from other sports parents who have
successfully navigated through the sports recruiting process.
This study pointed out how each sports parent's experience captured the individualized
needs of every athlete and family. The results of everyone's experience may not have led to a full
athletic scholarship, but it helped create a specialized path for the sports family to follow.
Currently, there is no prior research or literature to support the experiences and perspectives
expressed by the sports parents in this study on the sports recruiting process. The voice or the
perspective of the sports parent during the sports recruiting process has not been the focus of any
research.
Recruiting Process
Most research on sports recruiting focuses on its impact on the relationships among the
student-athlete, high school support staff, and their college. Currently, there is no research on the
impact on the relationship between the parent and student-athlete when navigating this process
with limited resources and information. When it comes to recruitment, most of the parents
reported it as a confusing and lengthy process. They were not aware of how difficult it is for
many student-athletes to secure an athletic scholarship. These scholarships are non-guaranteed
financial aid agreements between an athlete and their university. Leccesi (2017) reported,
College coaches award these scholarships to athletes based on the coach’s perception of
their athletic ability. Most scholarships are one-year agreements that must be renewed
each year. Scholarships are offered to student-athletes in the form of being either a partial
or full scholarship (Rubin, 2014, p. 56)
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In this study, both the study participants that much of the literature promises that the
student-athlete received just a verbal promise by the college recruiter to remain in contact with
them and their family during the actual recruiting process. These circumstances were often the
focus of conversation in these newly created villages.
The literature also confirmed this information and experiences. The literature confirms
that college recruiters often extend more scholarship offers to student-athletes than they have
available. Dellenger (2019) stated, some colleges use offers as marketing ploys, offering players
they have no chance to land or aren’t serious about just so their college is linked to the player on
internet searches, recruiting web pages, and social media. Jessica stated that it is unfortunate that
many sports parents and their student-athletes are not aware that many of these scholarship offers
are early promises that the college recruiter will stay connected with them.
Patricia and a few other sports parents found out a month before the last official signing
day for football that their student-athletes’ football scholarships were no longer available due to
another recruit signing his letter of intent to enroll at that college, the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on college sports, or the NCAA allowing current college athletes the opportunity to
gain an additional year of eligibility, which decreased the number of athletic scholarships for the
first-year class. With the support and guidance of Patricia’s village, she pursued other potential
athletic sports opportunities on behalf of her son.
Lisa shared that she did not know how to navigate the process with her student-athlete.
She was unfamiliar with what protocols to follow regarding contacting potential colleges and
coaches to help her child secure an athletic scholarship. Lisa became frustrated due to not having
a manual or blueprint for navigating college recruitment and applications for student-athletes.
Lisa relied on advice she received from her village to create a plan. William and many other
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sports parents confirmed that every recruitment process is different and uniquely meets the needs
of the student-athlete they are interested in recruiting, which does not leave room for others to
receive a scholarship. The entire process is stressful for the student-athlete and their family.
Regina and five other parents reported that there is no one way for recruitment. There are
significant differences among schools, and the needs and talents of student-athletes are varied.
Ideally, coaches have much more experience with these processes, and they are supposed to
provide the students and parents with guidance for successful recruitment. TM and Shawna
reported having coaches worth their weight in gold because they have gone above and beyond
for their students. This does not only refer to the students who are star athletes, but they pay
attention to all students equally. Jessica felt that the coaches who give holistic advice and
communicate with the students about their desired positions seem to be much more appreciated
than those who just tell the students what to do.
However, Victor and a few parents shared the opposite about the coaches. Lisa and Tam
felt like her son’s coach should have done more to help with their overall college sports
recruiting process. Being invested in their children’s sports careers means that the parents have
an open line of communication with their children and their coaches. Victor found that some of
the information that the coaches provided was not clear, which ultimately started to frustrate both
the students and parents while at the same time misleading them. If the coaches do not give the
student correct information or appropriate feedback that could help the athlete set realistic goals
and standards, they put them at a disadvantage.
An example of this is if an athlete wants to play defense. Greg found it helpful when the
coach provides the student-athlete tips on their position of focus. Other parents shared that if the
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coach does not tell them that their weight, build, and athletic form are better for offense, the
athlete will not put in the right effort and be disappointed in the end.
Shawna stated that it is especially important that, as a family, they research all key
aspects of every future college. While looking for a college for their child, they know much
research is needed on current recruitment trends. The coaches may not necessarily do this step,
but it is up to the parents and their children to complete this step. Lisa's research and experience
led the family to review how many athletes who played the position her son was recruited for
expressed an interest at each college and how many athletes were already on the roster for that
position. Most involved parents are part of online communities where they are advised by those
who have gone through this process and talk to those in the same situation. Tina’s personal
experience supported how important it is for sports parents and student-athletes to research each
potential college and end up having a much higher chance of success than those who rely on the
advice from the coaches only. Having outside influences and weighing the given options will
encourage the formation of a more informed decision.
Research Questions
Rich data helped address the two research questions. This section will also frame the
findings to these research questions through the conceptual framework: Bronfenbrenner’s (1994)
EST. The theory helps explain how various elements in the environment can shift how
individuals network with one another, build relationships with each other, decide to take risks,
make life-changing decisions, or develop into positive community members.
Question 1
The first research question asked, “How do parents explore future opportunities for their
student-athletes as they transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?” Every
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sports parent has a unique way of exploring future sports opportunities for their student-athlete.
Some sports parents started planning when their child showed exceptional skills in a sport. These
parents have already completed their research on which pop-warner team, sports trainer, and top
high school would guarantee a scholarship. Many of them are involved in every aspect of their
student-athletes’ recruiting process and attend all training sessions or practices to ensure that
their children receive effective training and coaching (Lumpkin & Favor, 2012). A few sports
parents are not as involved; instead, they give the head coach full control over exploring future
college opportunities. Many sports parents try to help their children thoroughly research potential
collegiate sports programs. Once the student-athlete has shared their interest in pursuing a
collegiate athletic scholarship, the parent and student-athlete start reaching out to the school staff
to request assistance with this process. With the assistance of the school staff, head coach,
community resources, and support village, many parents can explore and navigate all
opportunities for their student-athletes.
During the transition to college, student-athletes must balance their sports engagements,
academic performance, and social lives. Parents’ involvement is vital in developing their
children's sports talent and academic performance. In this regard, Jaiswal (2017) noted that
parents are entirely responsible for guiding the overall development of their student-athletes
future, especially from the moment they decide to pursue playing collegiate sports. Openly
sharing experiences and expectations with their student-athletes helps develop their sports
personalities and increase their confidence about making decisions without relying on others’
opinions (Myer et al., 2016). Moreover, parents are also indirectly forced to invest in their child's
athletics since they are often judged by their peers based on their children's overall athletic
success or failure (Davies, 2017).
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Research shows that 54% of current college student-athletes were contacted by a college
coach or recruiter during high school, and 37% of current college student-athletes initiated their
recruitment (Remillard, 2014). Sometimes, a parent initiates contact with the college head coach
or position coach. Many of the participants confirmed that they reached out to many college
recruiters and position coaches. The sport’s parents would send game highlights for the college
coaches to review. Regina stated that she took her son to every local football camp offered in her
area to ensure that any visiting college recruiters saw him. Victor stated that the savvier sports
parents often post their student-athletes highlight reels on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
They can also be sent by email, filling out a recruiting questionnaire, or sending a link to their
Hudl athletic highlights or game film (Remillard, 2014).
In the absence of adequate and up-to-date information regarding recruitment, many
student-athletes and parents lack valuable information. As a result of constant sudden changes in
sports recruiting, many sports parents' only option is to rely on the knowledge from blogs, the
internet, sports groups, and sports agents. Most parents think that seeking the advice of the
professionals at their child’s current high school is the best source of information (Brown, 2013),
even though the guidance counselor, athletic coach, and athletic director may have limited
information in this area. Tam stated that she found it quite costly for her family to secure a
reliable college sports advocate or agent to represent her student-athletes during the recruiting
process.
Many individuals who know how to navigate the process require parents to pay a
substantial fee to serve as their sports recruiting advocate. This fee can range from $2,500 to
$10,000 per student-athlete, and many sports parents are often willing to pay this fee to secure
their services. Regina and Eric informed said that the role of these sports recruiting advocates is
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to secure college scholarship offers, special invites to football camps and showcases, special
invites to unofficial campus tours, and an opportunity to speak with the position coach at certain
colleges.
Question 2
All stakeholders must understand the importance of the relationship between school staff
and student-athletes’ parents. Based on the research, it t many high school counselors assist
student-athletes and their parents with establishing realistic academic and athletic goals (Ruffalo
Noel Levitz, 2017). Ruffalo Noel Levitz (2017) added that counselors often organize and invite
parents to workshops on sports activities to develop a cordial relationship with them. The high
school staff responsible for preparing the student-athlete to transition to college academically,
socially, emotionally, and mentally are expected to provide parents with the tools to navigate the
next steps.
In many cases, these parents did not attend college or navigate the collegiate sports
world, so the tools and resources that the high school staff provides are essential. As Kail and
Cavanaugh (2018) discussed, EST relies on the idea that the environment (ecosystem) directly
impacts an individual. Many decisions made in the sporting world stem from the decisions and
choices made at home, meaning that all relationships between stakeholders must encourage open
communication, provide opportunities to exchange resources or information, and maintain
positive interactions.
An inconsistent or negative relationship among stakeholders hinders the recruiting
process. Many interviewees mentioned that recruitment was challenging due to a lack of access
to key resources. Lisa stated that her son’s school counselors were not properly trained on
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athletic scholarships’ academic requirements. Cherie felt that her son’s head football coach did
not provide him with the opportunity to properly showcase his athletic abilities.
Access to Resources
Many participants shared issues concerning access to resources. William said,
Cost is one of the biggest obstacles for student-athletes and their parents because if a high
school student-athlete is serious about perfecting their athletic skill or craft, it comes at a
substantial price. Many of the specialty coaches and trainers charge a separate fee.
Putting their student-athlete on the radar of various college coaches or recruiters requires
money, time, and concentrated effort. Different factors in student-athletes’ exosystems can
directly impact their access to resources (Chen et al., 2018 & Neubourg et al., 2018).
Bronfenbrenner’s theory implies how a parent's socioeconomic status can affect how the
student-athlete views their overall self-image. For instance, a parent's inability to purchase
school materials or pay for specialized training can impact the student-athlete’s self-esteem or
chances of getting recruited to play college football.
Jessica stated that parents must have access to resources to ensure that every
student-athlete has the same chance to be seen or recruited by a top university. These resources
include camps that recruiters or talent scouts visit or playing at venues where recruiters can seek
them out. COVID-19 shifted recruiting responsibility to parents, student-athletes, high school
coaches, and off-season sports travel coaches (NCAA Clearinghouse, 2020; NCSA, 2020). This
shift is a reminder of how important it is to build and establish positive relationships with
everyone in one’s immediate surroundings (Brown, 2013). The sports recruiting process begins
when a family selects a high school. By the time Donald’s son entered high school, he and many
of his pop-warner teammates already saw football as a passion and aimed to play professionally.
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Parents of student-athletes are invested in their children’s future careers and often lose sight of
how their students' overall academic performance can shape the probability of those careers. Tina
“spent a great deal of time researching various high school football programs that have a great
track record in exposing student-athletes to Division I collegiate programs.”
Selecting a high school with a strong football program was the key factor for Tina. By
Year 3 of high school, her son struggled academically, and his playing time declined. During the
interview, Tina reflected on the past 4 years and shared how important it was to ensure every
student-athlete had a balance of academic, social, mental, and athletic expectations. She stated
that the recruiting process would not meet anyone’s goals without this balance.
Access to resources is affected by the school environment. Eric’s stated that schools with
a rich history of getting student-athletes into Division I colleges tend to have more resource
access than those just starting. Thus, parents should take this factor into account when selecting a
school. Victor compared the resources provided at a public and a private school and noted that
the private school had more preparatory resources.
The students’ initiative should be holistic as well. Some schools provide opportunities
that are more academic-centered, like SAT preparation. These college workshops and test prep
courses could be useful when applying to college because academics and test scores are
important as well. Cherie reminded her son that a low GPA would hinder his recruitment because
colleges seek students who are more than just athletes. Jessica said that if the school provides
information about college workshops, NCAA requirements, graduation requirements, and dual
enrollment opportunities, it is the parent's responsibility to take advantage of the resources, as
they increase the chances of obtaining a free college education. It is also important that the
designated school staff be knowledgeable about both sports recruiting and the college going
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process. They can provide access to various in-person workshops about this important subject
area, and place all recorded workshop sessions on the school’s website for parents to view at
their convenience.
Lack of knowledge also limits accessibility. Tina stated that if a parent does not know the
importance of networking with fellow parents, they may not be aware of the resources the school
provides. Shawna found that actively participating in the spaces provided by the school was vital
for her family because it allowed them to establish positive relationships with all the key
stakeholders. Some high schools make it easier for parents to understand the recruiting process,
and all should provide parent workshops on the college recruiting process. This information
helps guide student-athletes. Charles and Lisa found that school-sponsored parent meetings were
essential for their children’s growth and development related to college and careers. The
drawback to these workshops was that they rarely discussed how parents and students should
navigate college sports.
Parents who ask school staff about their children’s well-being and overall development
offer the coaches and teachers incentives to pay close attention to these children. Cherie stated
teachers’ awareness that parents are invested and willing to partner with them on their child’s
academic growth and well-being enhances their efforts toward that child. TM stated that parents
who are seen as actively involved in their student-athlete’s life in all aspects tend to have a better
relationship with the school staff. These involved parents are at every parent meeting, workshop,
and sports activity. Shawna stated that a parent’s involvement in all aspects of their child’s life is
evident in their relationship and communication with their child.
Cherie expressed that important to be truly invested in a child’s success from a holistic
point of view and not just when they succeed in sports or academics. She noted that it often
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occurs in the shadows of the student-athlete. However, Cherie believed that monitoring
academics, test scores, and overall athletic performance is not solely the parents’ responsibility.
Instead, Cherie articulated that it is shared among the student-athlete, parents, and all school
stakeholders. The student-athlete must be aware of where they need assistance and actively seek
it out. When they do seek support or assistance, they will be in a better position to receive help.
This Study’s Challenges
Not all of the sports parents I contacted participated in this study. I tried to establish
rapport with as many sports parents as fit the study criteria. A few declined to participate due to
conflicting schedules and not feeling comfortable sharing their individual experiences with me.
Some of the participants found it difficult to openly share their experiences, but their comfort
increased after answering a few questions. By the end of the interviews, many of the participants
opened up about their overall experiences. Another challenge was maintaining neutrality during
the study because I had just completed the sports recruiting process with my only child. At times,
it was difficult to remain neutral or not offer advice to the interviewees.
Recommendations for Practice
The recommendations outlined in this section come from the voices of the 16
interviewees. The recommendations received from these sports parents consider their personal
experiences during the sports recruiting process with their student-athletes and provided the
researcher with essential insight on how their sports recruiting journey with their student-athlete
would have created a better overall experience if these set of recommendations were put in place
at all local high schools. These recommendations place the focus and responsibility in the hands
of every high school educational leader to provide more support and guidance to all
student-athletes and their parents once they have officially enrolled in their high school. Access
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to resources and opportunities for these student-athletes should be made available to all aspiring
student-athletes and their families.
Recommendation 1
The first recommendation is to train a designated school support staff to prepare scholars
and parents for the academic and athletic expectations of the NCAA at the start of high school.
Regular interactions with the guidance counselor play a significant role in the future success of
the student-athlete. When the guidance counselor provides guidance, support, and assistance te,
they can get to know the student-athlete. They would also be able to provide academic support or
interventions and schedule them in the appropriate classes to prepare them for graduation from
high school and college acceptance. The guidance counselors at many private and public high
schools are not professionally trained on the NCAA eligibility requirements, which often serves
as a disadvantage for student-athletes.
By the time the guidance counselor finds out that the student-athlete is trying to satisfy
the eligibility requirements for an athletic scholarship, it is the student-athlete’s junior year. Eight
interviewees expressed frustration after speaking with their child's guidance counselor and other
school staff about their assistance with ensuring their children met the requirements for an
athletic scholarship and learning that the child was not on track for NCAA eligibility
requirements. Five parents stated that the counselor informed them that they were never trained
on the requirements for these scholarships. These five parents had to seek assistance and
guidance from other sports parents and research the NCAA website to gain the necessary
information to ensure their student-athlete was eligible to receive a scholarship. The high schools
where a guidance counselor or athletic director was trained on these requirements often held
regular informational meetings with the parents and student-athletes to provide them with the
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information. This designated school staff would host informative parent and student-athlete
workshops both in-person and via zoom. After each scheduled workshop seminar, the designated
school staff person would post the recording of that session on the school’s website for parents to
view.
Recommendation 2
The second recommendation is for sports parents to actively seek access to essential
workshops, resources and tools at their student-athletes school or within their local community
that will successfully guide them during the sports recruiting process with their aspiring
student-athlete. These essential resources and tools could be presented to sports parents via
either school or community sponsored workshops that are centered around how to effectively
prepare your student-athlete to be recruited by college coaches. Many parents have expressed
during their one-on-one interview that it would be helpful to have local college coaches to come
and speak directly to them, during scheduled sports team meetings about the various aspects of
the sports recruiting process. The high school coach should take time to explain to his
student-athletes and their parents the different ways their athlete can get recruited or placed on
the radar of the various different college coaches.
Being that not every high school coach is capable or willing to share recruiting resources
with their student-athletes or parents it is very important that parents do not rely solely on the
information provided by the high school. Parents must utilize all resources regularly, collaborate
with other sports parents, and join sports parents’ groups online. When a school site has limited
resources, the parent must research different ways to get their student-athlete in the best position
to be seen, evaluated, and recruited by potential college recruiters. Parents should also encourage
their children to research universities and athletic programs of interest. They should attend
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school and community-sponsored workshops that promote going to college. Some college-going
workshops may have special guest speakers from the NCAA who can speak about the sports
recruiting process. Parents should go to some local sports camps during the offseason, as they
often have college recruiters there. Parents can ask for their business cards and about the
recruiting process. Parents should speak with parents of current athletes attending university
about their school, coach, and experience.
Recommendation 3
The third recommendation is to motivate previous sports parents to share their
experiences with upcoming sports parents. Encouraging sports parents to share their experiences
with others is often difficult because some sports parents are fearful of giving another parent an
advantage that they did not have. Also, the sports parents willing to share their experiences are
often never asked to do so. Many sports parents tend to be closed off when another approaches
them to ask about how they navigated the process. Six sports parents who collaborated with other
former sports parents avoided some of the pitfalls that others faced, which made navigating this
process smoother for their student-athlete. Shawna stated that connecting and collaborating with
former sports parents helped her create an action plan on the entire sports recruiting process
before her son started high school. As a result of these relationships, she decided to form a social
media platform for sports moms to network and share best practices. This social media platform
allows everyone the same opportunity to find out about upcoming sports camps, workshops, and
various resources to help all group members successfully navigate the sports recruiting world.
Recommendation 4
The fourth recommendation is to provide parents with access to sports training resources,
specialty camps, and post-season travel circuits. The trust and mutual respect between
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student-athletes, parents, and high school coaches or off-season coaches remain a critical aspect
of college sports recruitment. The results from this study and the theoretical frameworks provide
perspective on the intersections of parental and coach involvement, privilege, and social and
cultural capital connected to the sports recruiting process of student-athletes who play various
sports year-round. Moreover, the nature of support and level of privilege relate to people and
artifacts that are essential resources to student-athletes when making a college choice
(Carter-Francique et al., 2017). Involved sports parents serve an influential role. Still, their role is
often overshadowed by the off-season seven-on-seven and various post-season sports coaches.
These coaches sometimes have inside connections to getting scholarship offers from the college
coaches.
These seven-on-seven football coaches spend more time with these student-athletes
during the off-season, allowing them to influence the thinking of the student-athlete. When
parents are not directly involved, many student-athletes can be influenced by offers and gifts
from coaches. It is essential for the sports parent to wisely select an off-season specialty coach
who shares the same values they have related to their student athlete's future success, since it is
costly to secure off-season sports training, camps, and travel for their student-athlete. Many
student-athletes who play various sports do not get the opportunity to participate in off-season
training due to the cost and the resources, and often only privileged with financial support have
access. Having financial means to participate in off-season training, would enable student
athletes to participate in the seven-on-seven travel football circuit or other sports travel circuits
(Feiner, 2015), and to access social networks to learn about the recruitment process (Hextrum,
2018).
82
Many of the sports parents in this study referenced that having their student-athletes
participate in off-season training and seven-on-seven travel football was highly beneficial
because they felt that their student-athletes received additional exposure and assistance being
promoted by their off-season coaches. Having access to any form of post-season sports training
and competition helps to actively promote all high-profile student-athletes to gain future
exposure to college recruiters. The parents expressed that for their student-athlete to be able to
participate in off-season training, it required a substantial financial commitment from them,
which not many sports parents are willing to make. This financial commitment for off-season
travel football included: specialized position training, equipment, uniform fees, tournament costs,
and travel fees (Feiner, 2015; Koba, 2014).
The return on investment for sports parents who could afford to pay for their
student-athlete to participate in off-season training, camps, and tournaments helps secure
additional exposure in the sports recruiting circuit. Their student-athletes could showcase their
talents on a larger stage outside of their high school. Through this exposure, they get the
attention of various college recruiters who follow the various sports travel circuit during the
off-season. For sports parents who lack the financial means to pay for off-season training for
their student-athletes, it is extremely hard for them to gain access to the necessary platforms
where they can showcase their athletic ability and gain the interest of college recruiters.
Future Research
Research on the parents' perspective on the collegiate sports recruiting process is limited.
The majority of the research conducted on the sports recruiting process centers on the
student-athlete’s perspective or the school staff’s perspective of the recruiting process. The
experience of the sports parents continues to be overlooked by society. Through my research, I
83
uncovered and set free the untapped voice of many sports parents who have personally
experienced the trials and tribulations of the collegiate sports recruiting process with their
student-athletes. The perspective of the sports parent on the collegiate recruiting process needs to
be researched, shared, and heard by future sports parents. Their views will help prepare and
inform the upcoming sports parents about what they can expect to happen once they start
navigating the recruiting process with their student-athlete. The shared perspectives of these
sports parents can provide them with insight into where they can go to gain access to the
essential tools and resources required when navigating the collegiate sports recruiting process.
Many of the parents that participated in this study was very fortunate to have a positive recruiting
experience as it relates to their student-athlete getting the opportunity to continue their dreams of
playing collegiate football at various colleges and universities. Only a small percentage of the
parents interviewed shared stories where their student-athlete had to walk away from football as
a result of not being provided the opportunity to play at the collegiate level. Having such a small
percentage of parents sharing the drawbacks of the sports recruiting process, opens the door to
encourage more future studies on parents’ perspectives of the sports recruiting process from high
school to college.
Conclusion
This study was designed to better understand the parental perspectives on the recruiting
process experiences of high school football student-athletes and reduce the gap in understanding
experiences related to navigating the recruiting process with their student-athletes. More
specifically, this study sought to understand who served as resources to sports parents during the
recruitment process and identify what was most important to consider in selecting a potential
college. Based on the findings from this study, parents of student-athletes tend to rely on the
84
input they receive from their surrounding support village, off-season position coaches, and the
head coaches as resources during recruitment. Sports parents of student-athletes find support in
individuals they trust and respect. Value having a sense of reassurance within their circle of
support to guide them throughout the recruitment process. Most sports parents tend to look for a
college environment that offers an athletic scholarship, will support their children’s aspirations,
and provide them with a sense of community and belonging. Through this research, every
interviewee expressed that it was important for them and their student-athlete to establish
trusting relationships with the football coaching staff at the colleges they were considering as
future homes.
Establishing these relationships with the faculty and staff at the potential colleges helps to
make the transition from high school sports to collegiate sports smoother for both the
student-athlete and the sports parent. In their interviews, TM and a few other sports parents
stated that an established relationship with the entire coaching staff was the deciding factor when
solidifying which college their student-athletes selected to attend, especially since it was
thousands of miles away from home. Most sports parents may never perfect the sports recruiting
process because, with every student-athlete, the recruiting process looks exceptionally different.
Every sports parent's ultimate goal for their student-athletes is to help them select the college or
university that is the perfect fit for their student-athlete the first time going through the sports
recruiting process.
Although there may be challenges associated with selecting the perfect college or
university, establishing a solid partnership with the coaching and university staff helps because
all parties must be able to see that this commitment from the sports parent and student-athlete is
about building and strengthening the legacy of this family, which starts before and during this
85
college journey. In the end, many sports parents shared that what helps them find peace is
knowing that if they make a mistake the first time around, they still have 3 years of athletic
eligibility to make it right.
86
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Appendix A: Screener Survey
1. Name:
2. What is your age?
3. What is your gender?
4. What is your racial background? (Select all options: White, Latino, Black/African
American, Asian American, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Native American/Alaska
Native, Middle Eastern/North African, Multiracial, Other race not listed with fill in box)
5. Are you a parent of a high school student-athlete or college student-athlete that is
currently going through the collegiate sports recruiting process?
6. Would you consider the area in which live in to be urban or rural?
7. What sport is your student-athlete being recruited for?
8. What school or college does your student athlete currently attend and what grade level?
9. Rate on Likert scale: I feel like I understand the collegiate recruiting process. (5: Strongly
agree, 4: agree, 3: neutral, 2: disagree, 1: strongly disagree)
10. Please explain your response.
11. Rate on Likert scale: I feel like I have access to all the resources and tools to properly
guide me and my student-athlete through the collegiate sports recruiting process. (5:
Strongly agree, 4: agree, 3: neutral, 2: disagree, 1: strongly disagree)
12. Please explain your response.
13. Would you be willing to participate in a one-hour interview as part of this study?
Interview participants will receive a $10 Starbucks gift card at the conclusion of the
interview.
14. If yes, please provide your contact information below (Email)
100
Appendix B: Interview Protocol
Researcher Name: Kimberley Kirkwood
Participant Pseudonym:
Date:
Research Question(s)
1. How do parents explore future opportunities for their student-athletes as they
transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
2. How does the interaction and relationship that student-athlete’s parents have with
school staff play a role in the future opportunities available to their student-athlete
as they transition from high school athletics into collegiate athletics?
Reflection prompt:
For the purposes of this interview, I will ask you to share specific ways that the collegiate sports
recruiting process has shape the way in which you and your student-athlete decided which
collegiate program would be the best option for them after transitioning from high school
athletics.
Introduction
Hi, my name is Kimberley Kirkwood. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today. Here
is a little information about myself and my research. I am a current doctoral student at the
University of Southern California in the Rossier School of Education studying Educational
Leadership. This interview is to collect information for my dissertation. This study will examine
the experiences of student-athlete parent’s that is either currently going through the collegiate
sports recruiting process with their student athlete or has been through the recruiting process with
their student-athlete within the past year.
As a reminder, this interview will take about one hour as we go through 15 questions. Your
involvement in the study is voluntary and you can stop it at any time. If there is a question you
do not want to answer, please let me know so I can skip it. Any identifiable information will be
removed from your responses, so we need to pick a pseudonym, what would you like it to be?
Also, I would like to record this interview to best capture your responses, is that okay? If you
would like me to stop the recording at any time, please let me know.
101
Appendix C: Sports Parents Interview Questions
Questions (with transitions)
What sport does your student athlete actively
participate in? What motivated your student
athlete to participate in that selected sport?
How long has your athlete participated in
this particular sport?
Does your student-athlete actively participate
in any other sports at their school/college or
outside of their school/college?
What skills or techniques do you expect for
your student athlete to learn as a result of
their participation in this sport? How can
they apply these new skills or techniques to
their life after football?
What is your level of involvement with your
student-athlete during the sports recruiting
process?
Do you feel that your student's current coach
has provided access to the needed resources
to transition into the collegiate world of
sports? (please explain)
Do you feel that your student’s current high
school has properly prepared them to
successfully transition into the collegiate
world of sports and academics?
Do you feel that it is the responsibility of the
high school, student, coach, or parent to
ensure that your student athlete is eligible to
accept a college athletic scholarship?
(please explain)
102
What type of parent workshops are provided
by your child’s high school? How helpful
and accessible are these parent workshops?
(What type of college workshops are being
provided to your college athlete about life
beyond football?)
Give examples of the possible support you
believe that your student athlete could or
could have received from their current
coach, counselor or athletic director....
When selecting your student-athletes’ future
college what key factors are most important
to your student athlete? (Explain why these
key factors are important.) (How have you
prepared your college athlete for the next
phase of their life? adulthood)
What are your student athletes current or
ultimate goals? Do you feel that your
student's current athletic experiences have
properly prepared them to achieve these set
goals? (please explain)
Do you believe that there is just one path that
all student athletes must follow in order to
achieve their ultimate goal of gaining
access to a free college education (playing
professionally)? (please explain your
answer)
As you reflect on your journey as a Sports
Parent what are some valuable lessons you
can share with me? I wish that I knew …….
when I started this journey as a Sports
Parent?
103
If you had the opportunity to start your sports
parent journey all over. What would you do
differently and why? Would your level of
parental involvement change?
Share some struggles you experienced as a
Sports Parent? Share some victories you
experienced as a Sports Parent? Share a
story of what motivated you to keep
grinding for your student athlete?
What advice would you share with a new
sports parent in both high school and
college? (Something that you wished
someone would have shared with you)
Please provide any additional information
about your experience as a sports parent
during the sports recruiting process with
your student-athlete.
Thank you for taking the time to participate
in this one-on-one interview with me.
104
INFORMATION SHEET
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Parkway
Los Angeles, CA 90089-4033
Parental Perspectives on the Collegiate Sports Recruiting Process
You are invited to participate in a research study. Research studies include only people who
voluntarily choose to take part. This document explains information about this study. You should
ask questions about anything that is unclear to you.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
This research study aims to understand the experiences of parents of student-athletes who are
either currently going through the collegiate sports recruiting process, or parents of student
athletes who have been through the recruiting process within the past year. Little is known
currently about the actual experiences or perspectives of student-athlete’s parents that have gone
through the collegiate sports recruiting process with their student-athlete. The research findings
may reveal the need for additional support and programs for both parents, student-athletes and
other essential stakeholders to have access to prior to the start of the student-athletes senior year
of high school. This research ay shed light on the need to conduct within additional research on
the impact that parents of student-athletes have on the overall collegiate sports recruiting process.
PARTICIPANT INVOLVEMENT
If you agree to take part in Part 1 of this study, you will be asked to complete an online survey
which is anticipated to take about 5 minutes. You do not have to answer any questions you don’t
want to. Click “next” or “N/A” in the survey to move to the next question.
If you agree to take part in the second part of this study, you will be asked to participate in a
60-minute audio-taped interview. You would not have to answer any questions you don’t want to.
If you decline to be recorded, handwritten notes will be taken. If recording has started, you will
be able to stop the recording at any time.
PAYMENT/COMPENSATION FOR PARTICIPATION
For the survey, you will not be compensated for your participation.
105
For the interview, you will receive a $10 Starbucks gift card for your time. You do not have to
answer all of the questions in order to receive the card. The card will be emailed to you after you
complete the interview.
CONFIDENTIALITY
Any identifiable information obtained in connection with this study will remain confidential.
Your responses will be coded with a false name (pseudonym) and maintained separately. Any
hard copy files will be shredded after the conclusion of the study. The audio files will be
destroyed once they have been transcribed. The data will be stored on a password protected
computer in the researcher’s office for three years after the study has been completed and then
destroyed.
The members of the research team and the University of Southern California’s Human Subjects
Protection Program (HSPP) may access the data. The HSPP reviews and monitors research
studies to protect the rights and welfare of research subjects.
When the results of the research are published or discussed in conferences, no identifiable
information will be used.
INVESTIGATOR CONTACT INFORMATION
Principal Investigator Kimberley L. Kirkwood via email at kkirkwoo@usc.edu or phone at (310)
654-3506 or Faculty Advisor Dr. Tracy Tambascia at tpoon@rossier.usc.edu or (213) 740-9747.
IRB CONTACT INFORMATION
University of Southern California Institutional Review Board, 1640 Marengo Street, Suite 700,
Los Angeles, CA 90033-9269. Phone (323) 442-0114 or email irb@usc.edu.
106
APPENDIX E: Recruitment Emails
Initial Recruitment Email Communication
Dear [Name],
My name is Kimberley L. Kirkwood. I am a current doctoral student at the Rossier School of
Education at University of Southern California. I am conducting a research study as part of my
dissertation that examines the experiences of student-athlete parent’s that is either currently
going through the collegiate sports recruiting process with their student athlete or has been
through the recruiting process with their student-athlete within the past year. I would like to
invite you to participate in this study.
If you are interested in participating in this study, you will be asked to complete a short survey
that contains 10 questions and some short answer questions. The survey will take about 10
minutes to complete. The survey will help me in selecting 10-15 participants for this study and
collect some data.
If you meet the criteria for the interviews and submit your contact information at the bottom of
the survey, I will contact you to schedule a date and time for the interview at a location of your
choosing, somewhere at your institution or online. Each interview will be about one hour and
recorded with your permission. Your identity will never be shared in this study, and all the
information you provide will be confidential in this study. If you are selected to participate in the
interview, a $10 Starbucks gift card will be emailed to you after the interview.
Online survey link: TBD
If you have any questions, please contact me at kkirkwoo@usc.edu or 310-654-3506.
Thank you for your help,
Kimberley L. Kirkwood
Doctoral Candidate
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
107
Reminder Email
Dear [Name],
My name is Kimberley L. Kirkwood. I am a current doctoral student at the Rossier School of
Education at University of Southern California. This is a reminder that I am conducting a
research study as part of my dissertation that examines the experiences of student-athlete parent’s
that is either currently going through the collegiate sports recruiting process with their student
athlete or has been through the recruiting process with their student-athlete within the past year. I
would like to invite you to participate in this study.
If you are interested in participating in this study, you will be asked to complete a short survey
that contains 10 questions asking about your demographics and some short answer questions.
The survey will take about 10 minutes to complete. The survey will help me in selecting a
purposeful sample of participants for this study and collect some essential data. If you meet the
criteria for the interviews and submit your contact information at the bottom of the survey, I will
contact you to schedule a date and time for the interview at a location of your choosing, or via
online. Each interview will be about one hour and recorded with your permission. Any
identifiable information will remain confidential in this study. If you are selected to participate in
the interview, a $10 Starbucks gift card will be emailed to you after the interview.
Online survey link: TBD
If you have any questions, please contact me at kkirkwoo@usc.edu or 310-654-3506.
Thank you for your help,
Kimberley L. Kirkwood
Doctoral Candidate
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
Interview Participant Email
Dear [Name],
Thank you for completing my study’s survey and being willing to participate in a one-on-one
interview. This study will examine the experiences of student-athlete parent’s that is either
currently going through the collegiate sports recruiting process with their student athlete or has
been through the recruiting process with their student-athlete within the past year.
Can you please provide your availability from these dates and times to schedule a one-hour
interview?
TBD
As a reminder, you will receive a $10 Starbuck gift card emailed to you once the interview has
concluded.
If you have any questions, please contact me at kkirkwoo@usc.edu or 310-654-3506. Thank you
for being a part of this study. I look forward to speaking with you.
108
Best,
Kimberley L. Kirkwood
Doctoral Candidate
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
INFORMATION/FACTS SHEET FOR EXEMPT NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH

Abstract (if available)

Abstract This study helps uncover parents' voices as they explore opportunities for their student-athletes and examine the relationships among high school, college, and NCAA expectations and guidelines. In addition, this study analyzed the recruiting process from the lens of the sports parent. Qualitative methods included semi-structured interviews with 16 football sports parents in Southern California. This study aimed to contribute insight into the sports parent voice in navigating collegiate sports recruiting. Ecological systems theory helped to provide a lens for analyzing the data and answering the research questions. The findings overall supported the research surrounding the perspectives of sports parents and how they navigated the high school recruiting process with their student-athletes. Recommendations were provided as potential resources and best practices for future sports parents. One of the recommendations is to establish a solid partnership with all invested stakeholders in collegiate sports recruiting.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Kirkwood, Kimberley LaChele (author)

Core Title Parental perspectives on the collegiate sports recruiting process

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Educational Leadership

Degree Conferral Date 2022-08

Publication Date 08/04/2022

Defense Date 07/25/2022

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Football,High School,OAI-PMH Harvest,parents perspectives,sports recruiting,student-athletes

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Tambascia, Tracy (committee chair), Greene, Alan (committee member), Hinga, Briana (committee member)

Creator Email kkirkwoo@usc.edu,klkirkwood@yahoo.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC111376182

Unique identifier UC111376182

Legacy Identifier etd-KirkwoodKi-11100

Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Kirkwood, Kimberley LaChele

Type texts

Source 20220805-usctheses-batch-970 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA

Repository Email cisadmin@lib.usc.edu