Appreciative Advising for Division I Student-Athletes

Intercollegiate athletics is a topic continually riddled with controversy. Media outlets, college students, and enthusiastic fans all have opinions on the management and wealth of athletic departments, particularly at Division I institutions. As Harmon (2010) pointed out, Collegiate athletics has exploded into a multimillion-dollar enterprise that has brought with it a host of issues, including the exploitation of student athletes, concerns about student athletes ’ academic success and low graduation rates, cheating by student athletes and staff, and misbehavior and crimes committed by student athletes, coaches, and athletics staff. (p. 26) New stadiums, high-profile players, and well-paid coaches make the headlines, leaving the academic element of college athletics in the dust (Gaston-Gayles & Hu, 2009). Alongside the criticism of athletics comes the task of advising a very unique student population. A typical Division I athletics department has a staff of advisors with the sole purpose of managing the academic needs of athletes. Academic services generally include monitored study hall, learning specialists for at-risk students, content tutors, as well as student mentors. Weekly meetings, mandatory study hall hours, and monitoring of tutoring appointments ar