"No one understands inclusion unless you've been excluded."
That was one of many moving statements from sports icon and champion of equality Billie Jean King, who spoke at the 2022 NCAA Inclusion Forum, which was themed "It's Time: Delivering on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging."
The forum, hosted by the NCAA office of inclusion, welcomed close to 3,000 registrants to this year's virtual platform. The annual event educates, informs and inspires higher education and athletics leaders to improve and enhance their diversity, equity and inclusion efforts for student-athletes, coaches, administrators and staff. The forum, moderated by DEI leader Leland Brown, was held in June to coincide with the NCAA's celebration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the federal law that prohibits gender discrimination in education programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance.
King was joined by award-winning broadcast analyst and former NCAA basketball student-athlete LaChina Robinson, the session moderator, for a spirited yet open dialogue around the similarities and differences of their athletics careers and life paths. Both talked about how they got involved in sports, their mentors and role models, the challenges they've experienced and the ways in which they have been impacted by the passage of Title IX.
King spoke of Althea Gibson, the first African American to win Wimbledon, as a person who inspired her journey. King also delivered key points, which included the importance of having strong leadership because she believes the people who are in power will be the ones to accelerate change as it relates to diversity and inclusion. She also stressed to listeners that they have to be bold and take risks to create change, and she cautioned that not taking risks could impose further risks down the road.
King and Robinson chatted about how participation opportunities in sports helped them and how having access can also open doors to education, as well as improve hiring numbers. Robinson shared her youth and collegiate experiences and talked of the challenges that she and other women of color experience in sports and their careers. NCAA student-athletes also had the opportunity to provide questions for King and Robinson.
Felicia Martin, NCAA senior vice president of inclusion, education and community engagement, and Candace Parker, a former Tennessee and WNBA basketball phenom, entrepreneur and NBA broadcast analyst, closed the forum with a conversation that centered on Parker's successful athletics career, her current life and the importance of equality in sports.
Parker took time to share experiences from her early years and talked about the influential people in her life, who included her mother, heralded Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt and national network morning anchor Robin Roberts. She also discussed her role as a parent to two children and the opportunity to be an analyst now with Turner Sports. Parker shed light about her position as executive producer for a documentary that celebrates Title IX called "Title IX: 37 Words That Changed America." She said it was a "passion" project for Baby Hair Productions, her company, and she accepted the task of empowering people to want to learn more about Title IX and to tell important stories that needed to be shared.
When asked about how to ensure girls and women continue to have access to sports without experiencing boundaries and biases, Parker said, "I hope we're all learning that we shouldn't put limitations on individuals. By putting limitations on individuals, we are denying them opportunities. We have to look at the bigger picture."
Haben Girma, the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School and a disability rights advocate, hosted a session and shared her thoughts on the importance of access for all individuals, along with her experiences of being excluded. Girma discussed her journey to earning a college degree and said she refused to allow her hearing and sight loss to stand in the way of experiencing new activities or continuing her education. Girma was emphatic in stating that mindsets must shift toward being more inclusive and people need to dispel myths that disability means no ability or no value.
Girma provided examples of her extracurricular activities, showing pictures of herself tandem surfing and dancing to music. She also stated that though she could not hear nor see, her academic skills and ability to do other things were excellent. "My disability isn't the problem. It is the environment that is the problem. The environment needs to change and adapt and be more accessible."
The Inclusion Forum also offered concurrent sessions that focused on the office of inclusion's five core areas — disabilities, international student-athletes, LGBTQ concerns, race/ethnicity and women.
Schuyler Bailar, considered to be the first openly transgender athlete on a Division I men's team, gave an account of his challenges and experiences from youth to his collegiate days as a swimmer at Harvard. Bailar talked about the team support he received and discussed the impact on his mental health. He also encouraged better understanding and education from the coaching community around gender identities and said that having conversations, especially with athletics team members, may help alleviate some of the challenges that transgender student-athletes experience.
Other sessions included education on unconscious bias and microaggressions and tools to address them on campus; cultural awareness with international student-athletes; Title IX 101; racial and social justice strategies; mental well-being resources and how to create safe spaces; and allyship methods.
Poet sensation Yorri Berry shared final words of inspiration and motivation. She told the participants that it is time to stop excuses and to move forward: "The conversation around DEI is so important because it is time to stop procrastinating, stop delaying and stop wasting time."
Berry stated, "The call to action is ringing."
The 2023 Inclusion Forum is being planned as an in-person event in Indianapolis in April.
