The high rate of Wellesley student athletes quitting their sports has become an issue for the athletic program. Student athletes and the athletic administration recognize this problem and, according to officials from both groups, it is not an issue that results from a bad athletic department but from an exceptional college that provides endless opportunities. With so many decisions to make about what a student wants out of their college experience, athletic teams, because they can be such a huge time commitment, can become a difficult obligation to sustain.
The Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is the liaison between the athletic administration and student athletes. This committee promotes unification among all athletic teams and enhances the voice of student athletes in the athletic department. The executive board, which is made up of student athletes, decides on relevant and critical topics to discuss at meetings. SAAC member and representative of the golf team, Alexis Kelleher ’12, said, “Last semester, in response to recognizing that athlete retention at Wellesley is a problem, SAAC spent a significant amount of time talking about ways to improve the athletic culture within Wellesley and how to increase enthusiasm on campus.”
Student athletes quitting their teams is not just an issue for the athletic department but also one for the college as a whole. Wellesley provides many opportunities that students usually find hard to balance with their athletics. The stress can become unbearable, and the pressure to take on what non-athletes on campus are doing, in addition to a sport, is high. To balance athletics with the clubs, organizations and any study abroad opportunities students desire, is an art; the time management skills and work ethic are rare qualities. However, even with these qualities, it is still evident why the amount of athletes quitting their sports at Wellesley remains an issue.
Planning classes around athletics is difficult in such a high stress environment because no student wants to limit their class opportunities; but if practice is at 5 p.m., lab needs to be planned around this. For students whose sports go throughout the year and through wintersession, studying abroad opportunities are limited to the summer time.
If an athlete has spent three hours on a bus on the way home from a game and has a big exam the next day, they can feel that they are at a disadvantage compared to their classmates who have probably been in the library for hours. When an athlete spends two to three hours practicing six days a week to represent the Wellesley name in matches, tournaments and games, and the fan turnout is low, athletes cannot help but feel underappreciated and begin to reevaluate how they spend their time at Wellesley.
SAAC, after recognizing this problem, created a new program to launch next fall called Athletic Mentor Program (
AMP). This program provides all new athletes with mentor groups, group activities, and the opportunity to meet people on other teams. AMP is a program that will shine light on the rare opportunities that come from being a college athlete and as Kelleher described it, “AMP will increase blue pride.”
One way to improve athlete dropout rates is to incorporate of other activities within sports. Since they spend so much time together incorporating only a specific, focused set of activities, athletes may feel that they are missing out on a wider range of activities.
Students quitting their teams is no surprise in such a highly competitive atmosphere with so many opportunities to experience. The decision to choose to travel or to be a dedicated member of an organization or society is up to the individual and is based on what she wants from her college experience. Not being able to do it all is an issue for most students at Wellesley, but it is up to the individual to decide where to dedicate the most of her limited time.
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