At the beginning of 2007, only six out of 119 head football coaches at Division I-A schools were African-American, a particularly startling fact given that more than 50% of these teams’ players are African-American. On November 14, Rutgers School of Law–Newark will host a symposium on the issues that have led to this disparity and potential solutions, including a Title VII action against individual NCAA member institutions that have shown disregard for inclusiveness and diversity in their hiring practices and coaching ranks. The symposium, entitled “The BCA and the NCAA: How Title VII May Level the Playing Field in the Collegiate Coaching Ranks,” is sponsored by the Rutgers Law Record (www.lawrecord.com), a student-run, general subject online law journal. 

Speakers will be: 

• Dr. C. Keith Harrison, author of the Black Coaches & Administrators (BCA) “Hiring Report Card,” Associate Professor of Sport Business Management in the DeVos Graduate Program at the University of Central Florida, and Associate Director for the Institute of Diversity and Ethics in Sport
• Dr. Kenneth L. Shropshire, Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and Director of the Wharton Sports Business Initiative
• Dr. Emmett Gill, Assistant Professor, Rutgers School of Social Work, whose current research examines whether Title IX has failed black female student-athletes  
• M. Jeremi Duru, Assistant Professor, Beasley School of Law, Temple University, whose research focuses on employment discrimination and issues of race in the law, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of race, law, and sport
• Dr. Damion Thomas, Assistant Professor, Department of Kinesiology, University of Maryland–College Park, who is working on a book-length manuscript tentatively titled “American Politricks: Sports, Civil Rights and the Cold War”