Browsing by Author "Boucher, Courtney"
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Item Accelerating Systems Change for NCAA Women Sport Coaches: A Multi-Study Perspective(2022-08) Boucher, CourtneyThe underrepresentation of women head coaches of women’s teams at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level is well-documented, as are the barriers that impact that underrepresentation. Multiple sources of data report the percent of women coaching women’s teams has remained stagnant at approximately 40- 43% for more than a decade (Acosta & Carpenter, 2014; Silva-Breen et al., 2022; Wilson, 2022). One contributing factor of underrepresentation is the gendered culture of sport. While not the only problem women coaches face, it is a salient one. To change organizational culture of sport this line of inquiry addressed three specific barriers. First, the pervasive and systematic reproduction of the power of athletics directors (ADs) in and through the hiring process. Second, widespread deleterious blame narratives that hinder the entry into and career trajectory of women coaches. Third, unsupportive organizational policies and practices that disproportionately disadvantage women coaches were examined.This series of three interrelated studies was developed to specifically address each of these barriers that contribute to the underrepresentation of women sport coaches. Study I tested the statistical significance, and existence or absence of homologous reproduction at the NCAA Division-I level through quantitative analysis. Based on the data, gendered hiring patterns emerged. Results indicated that homologous reproduction was present in ADs’ hiring of head coaches of women’s teams. The second study used Heffernan’s (2018) grounded theory of gender allyship in sport to understand ADs who disrupt the gendered hiring process by hiring a majority of women over nine years. Nine eligible ADs (n = 56, 16.1%) were interviewed to ascertain their awareness, capacity and action for allyship and how and why they hired a majority of women head coaches for their women's teams. Findings indicated the existence of both gender allyship and capacity in ADs at the NCAA Division I level. Finally, Study III employed a critical feminist and multi-level perspective to examine the factors that influence intercollegiate women coaches to leave their current coaching position, apply for a new position, and accept or decline a job offer. Qualitative data were collected from women who coach 20 different sports within NCAA Division I, II, and III (n = 118). Analysis of the data revealed factors at the macro-level (i.e., location, program notoriety, aligning mission), meso-level (i.e., administrative support, work environment, salary, availability of resources, growth opportunities), and micro-level (i.e., burnout, emotional well-being) together impact occupational and employment decision making. Results were discussed regarding women's occupational attributions and thought processes which then provided strategies to better support, recruit and retain women in coaching. As a result of this series of studies, common ‘blame the women’ narratives often cited by athletics directors for the underrepresentation of women in coaching (Kane & LaVoi, 2018) were refuted. A call for more women in AD positions along with more (male) gender allies was made. Many ally strategies were provided. Theoretical, empirical, and practical implications were suggested. Limitations and future research were forwarded.Item Athletics Director’s Misses & Bull’s-eyes: Capitalizing on Targets of Opportunities to Hire Women Coaches of Women’s Teams at Select D-I Institutions(2019-06) Boucher, CourtneyThe number of women head coaches of women’s teams at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division-I level has been well documented and remained stagnant at approximately 42% for years (Acosta & Carpenter, 2014; LaVoi, 2013; 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017). The role of the athletics director within the athletic department is crucial in understanding why this stagnation exists as they ultimately are responsible for making key hiring decisions (Sartore & Cunningham, 2007; Wilson, Gilbert, Gilbert, & Sailor, 2009). This descriptive longitudinal study aims to quantitatively examine the hiring behaviors of individual athletics directors and institutions at select NCAA Division-I schools. Institutions (n=86) and athletics directors (n=115) were graded based on how often they have (or have not) capitalized on hiring a woman to fill a vacant head coaching position for a women’s team. The ultimate goal of this study is to continue and extend the mission of the Women’s College Coaches Report Card (LaVoi, 2013; 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017; 2018) and to use the data to hold decision makers accountable and reverse the current stagnation in the percentage of women head coaches of women’s teams.Item Tucker Center Talks: S2E13 -Tucker Center Interns Share their Perspectives(2020-07-30) LaVoi, Nicole M.; Benzig, Sam; Kaufmann, Cecelia; Richmond, Paige; Sirek, Greta; Boucher, CourtneyOn this episode, Nicole talks to an impressive group of women, the summer ‘Tucker Team’, which consists of the Summer Gender Equity Interns: Sam Benzig, Cecelia Kaufmann, Paige Richmond, Greta Sirek and The Pam Borton Fellow for the Promotion of Girls and Women in Sport Leadership, Courtney Boucher. They discuss the projects they have been working on this summer, what they have learned, and advice they give to future interns.Item Tucker Center Talks: S2E5 - Courtney Boucher(2020-04-01) LaVoi, Nicole M.; Boucher, CourtneyIn this episode of Tucker Center Talks Dr. Nicole LaVoi, director of the Tucker Center, talks to Courtney Boucher. Courtney is a current doctoral student in Kinesiology at the U of MN, research assistant in the Tucker Center, a two-time Pam Borton Fellow for Women in Sport Leadership. They discuss the inception, purpose and impact of the Women in College Coaching Report, a longitudinal research project the the Tucker Center does each year in collaboration with WeCOACH. Courtney shares her insight about the process of the report card from a student perspective and the idea behind her M.S. thesis at the U of M (’19) in which she examined hiring practices of athletic directors in NCAA D-I institutions over five years, an offshoot of the Women in College Coaching Report Card.Item Tucker Center Talks: S3E11 - Women in College Coaching Report Card(2021-07-15) LaVoi, Nicole M.; Boucher, Courtney; Kahn, MeganThe Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport and WeCOACH teamed up for a special episode to discuss the latest Women in College Coaching Report Card. In this podcast, Tucker Center Director Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi and TC Research Assistant, Courtney Boucher and WeCOACH CEO Megan Kahn review the latest results and data. They talk about data trends, grades and leaders for institutions, sports, and conferences, as well as the new race-related data, how the report card is being used to make a difference, and the WeAmplify initiative.