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Sportsmanship Program Develops Character in the Athletic Arena
University of Scranton alumnus and founder for Institute for Excellence and Ethics, Matthew Davidson, Ph.D., a former Royals lacrosse player, provided an overview entitled, “Developing Character FOR and FROM Sports.”
Scranton prep alumnus and former renowned Duke University guard Steve Vacendak also spoke at the event. Vacendak discussed how the coaches he encountered during his life influenced his outlook on sportsmanship. He said that he received a lot of credit for his playing skills even though his coaches deserved the recognition.
“I appreciate it and I relish it even more not because of what I hear about myself but because of what those people did for me. I was very fortunate,” he said.
To Vacendak, playing sports equates to knowing how to play the game of life in an athletic environment. There is not a certain way to win or to become a winner.
He explained that there seems to be a blurred sense of how to be a “good sport” these days. He believes our society needs to define sportsmanship more positively and uniformly.
He said an organized and unified approach to training for coaches, athletic directors and other leaders is the best way to accomplish this in order to improve the atmosphere on the playing field. Dr. Davidson, president and director of Institute for Excellence and Ethics, also spoke about his love for sports and how he ultimately wants athletics to succeed.
“Sometimes sportsmanship breaks down into a cliché,” he said. Using athletes fighting during a game as an example, Davidson stated that “autopsy data” is needed to resolve the problem. He defined autopsy data as a thorough review of something a past event. He said that a fight is an incident that needs to be examined and its causes to be understood in order to prevent it from occurring again.
The workshop also taught different sportsmanship methods that emphasized the importance of athletic performance in conjunction with moral character. Attendees learned practical and theoretical strategies to apply to their own athletic department. The workshop was held in celebration of the 20th annual National Sportsmanship Day.
The University’s sportsmanship initiative will continue on March 26 as members of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, comprised of Scranton student-athletes, travel to Frances Willard Elementary School to discuss teamwork and character.
