ADVISORY
April 11, 2001
Dean Smith, Tom Osborne to headline seminar for coacheson sportsmanship, ethics as part of national education campaign
Monday, April 30, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.The William and Ida Friday Continuing Education CenterUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill(Organizers request coverage plan information by April 20)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will co-host "Pursuing Victory with Honor: A Sports Summit on Sportsmanship, Ethics and Character Building," the first event of its kind on the East Coast, April 30th. More than 500 coaches, athletic directors, school administrators and community recreation professionals will attend the free seminar and represent club and youth sports as well as middle school, high school, interscholastic and collegiate sports programs. Registration for the seminar filled up quickly, and UNC could not accommodate hundreds of other interested coaches and officials. Speakers will include Dean Smith, the former Tar Heel basketball coach who holds the NCAA record for most wins, U.S. Rep. Tom Osborne, the former Nebraska football coach who won two national titles, and actor Tom Selleck, a former All-American volleyball player.
"Played the right way, sports can inspire and teach -- especially our young people," says UNC Chancellor James Moeser. "We must reach them in middle school or even earlier with the messages of why good sportsmanship and ethical behavior are important. The key is the coaches themselves, who can either be teachers and models of good sportsmanship and fair play, or the reverse. We have an urgent task to enlist coaches, both professional and volunteer, in this effort in recognition of a basic premise that the profession of coaching is a teaching profession."
UNC is co-hosting the seminar with the Josephson Institute of Ethics and its Character Counts! Sports program, based in Marina del Rey, Calif., and the N.C. High School Athletic Association. Moeser serves on the Josephson Institute's Board of Trustees. The UNC event is part of the institute's national "Pursing Victory With Honor" campaign to help youth and collegiate sports programs carry out the Arizona Sports Summit Accord. The accord, written in May 1999 by nearly 50 sports leaders including Moeser, then chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, emphasizes the ethical and character-building aspects of athletic competition. (The accord, endorsed by universities, high school athletic associations, professional organizations and youth groups, is posted at http://www.charactercounts.org/sports/accord.htm.)
Speakers and schedule
Smith, known for his players' strong graduation rates, and Osborne, who led the nation in football academic All-Americans and last fall was elected to Congress, will participate in a live interview with ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas and Woody Durham, the voice of the Tar Heel Sports Network, that will include a question-answer session with participants from 1:15 p.m. - 2:35 p.m.
Morning speakers include former UNC basketball coach Bill Guthridge, who has led UNC's organizing efforts for the seminar, Moeser, who is concerned that current behavior in youth sports stems from what youngsters see at the collegiate level, Michael Josephson, institute founder and president, Lloyd V. Hackley, former president of the N.C. Community College system and a Josephson Institute board member, Charlie Adams, executive director of the N.C. High School Athletic Association, Selleck, a Josephson Institute board member, and Lin Dawson, N.C. Central University athletic director.
Panel discussions will address "Keeping a Balance: Athletic, Academic and Character Development," "The Coach as a Teacher; Role Modeling; Teaching Leadership through Sports" and "Special Issues -- Hazing, Eating Disorders, Alcohol and Binge Drinking, Substance Abuse, Performance-Enhancing Drugs."
Panelists will include UNC Athletic Director Dick Baddour and Carolina coaches Matt Doherty, men's basketball, Anson Dorrance, women's soccer, and Sylvia Hatchell, women's basketball. Others will include former Tar Heel linebacker Brian Simmons, a New Bern native now of the Cincinnati Bengals, Kay Yow, women's basketball coach at N.C. State University, and Barry Mano, president of the National Association of Sports Officials.
Moeser, the UNC chancellor, wrote an opinion column about sportsmanship from a university perspective and the upcoming seminar published April 8 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (Posted at http://www.unc.edu/news/newsserv/univ/moeser041001.htm) UNC-TV, North Carolina's 11-station, public television network, will produce a special program on the seminar now scheduled to air next fall.
Logistics for journalists Covering the seminar
For planning purposes, organizers request that all journalists planning to attend the seminar notify UNC News Services no later than 5 p.m. Friday, April 20. To register, send the names of staff members (or number of representatives if names are not available) and your media outlet to: e-mail, [email protected], fax,(919) 962-2279 or phone, (919) 962-2091. Organizers expect some seminar speakers to be available for additional time with reporters throughout the day. Details about speaker availability and work space on site will be available later.
Audio, video feeds
UNC-TV, which will be shooting the seminar with multiple cameras, will provide high-quality video and audio feeds to interested TV and radio stations on site. Videographers, photographers and reporters can expect reserved seating and some space for tripods in the Friday Center's Grumman Auditorium, but likely will want to factor the feed availability into coverage plans. For details, call Karen Moon, broadcast manager, (919) 962-8595 or [email protected].
Friday center directions
UNC's Friday Center is near I-40 exit 273.http://www.fridaycenter.unc.edu/fc/fcdir.htm
Web linkswww.charactercounts.orgwww.josephsoninstitute.org/
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Contacts: Mike McFarland, print, (919) 962-8593; Karen Moon, broadcast, (919) 962-8595
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