Ethical Leadership in Collegiate Athletics Review

This course has been both terribly depressing and exceptionally refreshing - along with a number of other emotions and mental states as well - for a final course to my IAL experience. To be a leader in any industry means have your morals and ethics challenged and athletics are no exception, I’d even say those personal beliefs and ethical lines are tested more in athletics than almost anywhere else. Why do students that go through the IAL program want to be in a world that is so often considered moral corrupt and ethically suspect? This is something I’ve had to think long and hard about all year long and even more so during this semester with the ethics course.

While trying to answer that question I tested my desire to continue within intercollegiate athletics and I really appreciate that of this course. In just a few assignments and only three days of class this course has really made me explore my desires for my future and why I believe what I do - it has been a great way to sum up everything we discussed throughout the year. Though we may not have explicitly referenced other classes, similar topics were brought into discussions.

Right now I’m confident that there is great value in intercollegiate athletics and that all those involved have the opportunity to positively affect young adults. I haven’t always been so confident and I may not be in the future, but if that changes so be it. This course has helped me with self reflection has been a good opportunity for me to solidify my beliefs.

For who knows what reason I chose to write my final paper for this course about the film Tin Cup. For those who haven’t seen that movie it is far from being a moral pillar to build your cultural values on, but I chose to write about it. I got a significant portion of the paper written before I hit a serious wall and didn’t think I could confidently write about morals and Tin Cup. I stuck with it and ultimately proved that sports can be represent much more than just competition in any form. This was a great example of what this course as a whole has been for me - a true exploration of my personal values.