The Smith Athletics Department engaged in an unprecedented conversation on Cromwell Day. Amongst suggestions to increase diversity in the recruited classes, to search for recruits in wider geographical areas and to host more events and conversations discussing inclusion, came the conversation on providing credit for being involved in a varsity sport.
This change would make sports more accessible to students receiving financial aid by allowing students to take a lighter course load and balance sports, school and work-study in a more sustainable manner. It would also help make the transition from high school to collegiate athletics more smooth and likely increase team retention rates.
While playing a varsity sport may not seem like it has the same workload as an academic class, most athletes have to commit upwards of 25 hours per week to practices, recovery and physical therapy and team meetings, which is the equivalent of approximately eight credits worth of work. This is not just physically strenuous but intellectually strenuous as well. Many athletes are asked to read articles about nutrition or game strategy or form mechanics, draft multi-step goals, analyze prior games and competitions and other mental preparation and reflection to improve performance in their respective sport.
Often there are frequent meetings on improving team relations and continuing to work towards creating a more inclusive environment for the variety of identities that exist amongst the members. Much like a class builds close relationships through a deep dive on a subject and how many classes create guidelines for feeling safe and respected within the space, teams also do this work;they learn how to work off of each other in a healthy way that maintains close friendships but also in a competitive way that helps them grow athletically.
These bonding activities and discussions can also move beyond just their involvement in the sport at Smith into diversity and inclusion work in the broader community. Cross country and Track, for example, have held discussions on podcasts about how running isn’t always accessible or safe for certain racial or class groups. They have also crafted a racism response protocol document as a preventative measure to attack issues of racism if they arise. This document, as well as a form to submit incidents anonymously, is starting to be adopted by other teams as well. The athletics department also works to do service in the larger community by volunteering for the Food Rescue Network and Sugarloaf Youth Track, fundraising for the Sports Bra Project and more.
If the “sports for credit” system is implemented, athletes would likely get one or two credits per semester when they are in season that would be categorized under the Exercise and Sports Science department, much like the physical education classes that already exist. This small change could be a huge relief for an athlete to be able to slightly lower their workload in order to pick up an extra work-study shift or even just gain an extra hour of sleep and recovery from the constant stress of three or more hours of practice per day.
While the athletics department can seem like just a fun extracurricular activity to someone outside the department, varsity sports at Smith are year-round commitments to constant physical and mental strain, work building positive and sustainable team relations, communication with coaches and the athlete’s own body signals and reflection and analysis of performance. Varsity sports at Smith are rigorous, and receiving credit for them would likely improve the health and wellness of athletes and make them more accessible for those who need to work to pay for tuition.
