Dr. Tatum on Wellness, page 5...
We have also made a decision that may not be for everyone, but we believe is the best decision for us. We have decided to discontinue our participation in NCAA intercollegiate sports as of May 2013. That may seem counterintuitive given our focus on physical activity, but in a context where most Black girls are inactive, the number of student athletes we have is very small – today only about 60 of a population of 2100 students. Instead of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars transporting a small number of athletes to intercollegiate events, we will be investing those dollars in wellness and intramural programs on our campus that will foster habits that will be sustained for a lifetime.
What are the physical activities that adult career women continue beyond college? It’s not basketball and soccer. It’s tennis, it’s golf, it’s swimming, it’s running 5ks and 10ks, it’s walking, it’s Pilates, it’s yoga. Just as we want to develop the habits of the mind – developing critical thinking skills that will be used for a lifetime – we want to develop habits of the body – that will support healthy living for a lifetime.
We are excited that what this new direction at Spelman offers an effective and affordable model of health and wellness education that can be a model for all of our colleges and universities, not just for those serving Black women, but for all serving a generation of young people headed on a path toward physical disability and shortened lifespans.
Just as Packard and Giles forged a new educational path for Black women, Spelman is forging a new wellness path, one that will lead the way to better health for this generation of students and for those whose lives they will touch. We think this is a revolution we can all participate in, and one that we believe will create a health legacy we can all feel good about.
As I look out at all of you, I see soldiers in this revolution – men and women who have been in the vanguard of it. Thank you for the knowledge and inspiration you provide every day. Thank you for all you are doing – and will do – to grow this momentum toward healthy living -- and save the lives of the next generation of leaders!