The Development of Interscholastic Sports at Seventh-day Adventist Academies and Colleges A Thesis Presented to the Department of Physical Education Brigham Young University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science by Brian A. Sather August 1996 This thesis, by Brian Sather is accepted in its present form by the Department of Physical Education of Brigham Young University as satisfying the thesis requirements for the degree of Master of Science. ii Acknowledgments God has been the most instrumental being in my educational experience. As I examined my accomplishments during this project, I clearly saw God’s perfectly orchestrated plan in my life. God deserves the highest praise for my achievements and the achievements of everyone involved in my life. I thank my parents, Allan and Judith, and brother, Vance, for making me a person with the ability to think critically and achieve success. Thank you to my committee, particularly Dr. Barbara Lockhart, for providing direction and expertise in writing the thesis. A final thanks deservingly goes to all my loyal friends who supported me during my education at Brigham Young University. Those who cooperated in providing information for this descriptive study deserve special thanks. I hope this thesis benefits their efforts to develop successful Adventist sports programs. iii Table of Contents page Acceptance Page ................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgments .............................................................................................. iii List of Tables ....................................................................................................... vi The Development of Interscholastic Sports at Seventh-day Adventist Academies and Colleges ............................................. 1 Ellen G. White’s Concerns ....................................................................... 2 Development of Interscholastic Sports..................................................... 6 General Conference Working Policy........................................................ 10 Value of Interscholastic Sports ................................................................ 12 Recommendations................................................................................... 17 References .............................................................................................. 20 Appendices A. Prospectus ......................................................................................... 39 Introduction ................................................................................... 40 Review of Literature ...................................................................... 45 Methods ........................................................................................ 59 References.................................................................................... 66 A-1. Hamerslough Survey, 1986............................................................. 68 A-2. Nelson Study, 1987......................................................................... 71 iv A-3. Cover Letter .................................................................................... 74 A-4. Blue Sheet....................................................................................... 76 A-5. Yellow Sheet ................................................................................... 79 A-6. Pilot Cover Letter............................................................................. 81 A-7. Follow-up Letter............................................................................... 83 A-8. Phone Interview Question Sheet..................................................... 85 B. Histories of Schools with Interscholastic Sports ................................. 88 Abstract v List of Tables Table Page 1. General Conference Statements ........................................................ 24 2. General Conference Working Policy - Interscholastic Athletics .......... 34 3. General Survey Results...................................................................... 35 4. Contributing Factors to Interscholastic Sports Decision..................... 36 5. Group Approval of Interschool Sports................................................. 37 6. Influence of Sports Program at Schools with Interscholastic Sports ............................................................ 38 vi 1 The Development of Interscholastic Sports at Seventh-day Adventist Academies and Colleges by Brian A. Sather Department of Physical Education Brigham Young University 2 The Development of Interscholastic Sports at Seventh-day Adventist Academies and Colleges A letter to the editor published in the Adventist Gleaner (Burt, 1996) read, “It appears that the Trojan horse of the world’s secular false values and misplaced affections has again found a receptive haven. .” (p. 3). This letter was written in response to a previous article (Robertson, 1996) reporting the state championship won by the Portland Adventist Academy boys’ basketball team. A struggle within the Seventh-day Adventist church is taking place over the presence and role of interscholastic competition in SDA schools. Ellen G. White’s Concerns The value of sporting competition has been debated since the inception of Adventist education at Battle Creek College in 1874. The debate started when students at Battle Creek College developed teams in baseball, football, basketball, and even participated in boxing matches (A. White, 1967). Ellen White (1827-1915), who was in Australia at the time, wrote a letter to the president of the college, William Prescott, stating: . .They [students] act as if the school were a place where they were to perfect themselves in sports, as if this was an important branch of their education. And they came armed and equipped for this kind of training. This is all wrong from beginning to end. 3 Amusement that serves as exercise and recreation is not to be discarded; nevertheless it must be kept strictly within bounds, else it leads to love of amusement for its own sake, and nourishes the desire for self gratification [italics added]. (qtd. in Vande Vere, 1972, p. 63) White expressed concern about sports in SDA educational institutions on different occasions. In the book Education, Ellen White (1903) discussed the sports of her day in the following statement: The games that occupy so much of (the student's) time are diverting the mind from study. They are not helping to prepare the youth for practical, earnest work in life. Their influence does not tend toward refinement, generosity, or real manliness. Some of the most popular amusements such as football and boxing, have become schools of brutality. They are developing the same characteristics as did the games of ancient Rome. The love of domination, the pride in mere brute force, the reckless disregard of life, are exerting upon the youth a power to demoralize that is appalling. Other athletic games, though not so brutalizing, are scarcely less objectionable because of the excess to which they are carried. They stimulate the love of pleasure and excitement, thus fostering a distaste of useful labor [italics added]. (p. 210-211) 4 In reading these statements by White, Adventists should ask the question, “What would she have said today about competitive sports in the education system?” White’s response, written in the 1890s, to a question similar to this one is printed in The Adventist Home (E. White, 1952). She gave the following answer to a nursing student at Battle Creek College who wrote her a letter expressing concern about sports at the college: I do not condemn the simple exercise of playing ball; but this even in its simplicity, may be overdone. I shrink always from the almost sure result which follows in the wake of these amusements. It leads to an outlay of means that should be expended in bringing the light of truth to souls that are perishing out of Christ. The way that they have been conducted at the college does not bear the impress of heaven. It does not strengthen the intellect. It does not refine and purify the character. .The exercise in these games is filling their brains with thoughts that distract the mind from their studies [italics added]. (p. 499-500) White’s concerns in these statements have been highlighted in italics. Because of statements like these, opponents of interschool competition hold that developing such programs go directly against inspired counsel (Akers, 1988; General Conference, 1976; Scriven, 1972a). However, for this claim to be 5 upheld, opponents of interschool competition bear the burden of proof showing irrefutably that White’s teachings about education, sports, and the plan of physical activities in the curriculum never changed over time. We must understand that White’s writings should be carefully interpreted in the proper historical and social context. Thompson (1991) and Knight (1985) have both shown that White’s understanding of issues ranging from home education, phrenology, and diet, among others, changed over time depending upon the needs and conditions of Adventist education and progress in physiological and nutritional science. Knight (1985) has demonstrated that White adapted her counsel on childhood education, location of schools, and new school design based on different situations that arose during her lifetime. In particular and novel circumstances, White encouraged solving problems based sensibly on