SD29 - Violence in High School Sports

  • Published: 1995
  • Author: Department of Education
  • Enabling Authority: Senate Joint Resolution 200 (Regular Session, 1993)

Executive Summary:
Kill the ump! While there is no reported occurrence of violence of this magnitude in high school sports, there is ample evidence that violence has been on the increase nationally. Sports violence has been defined as behavior that causes harm, occurs outside the rules of sport, and is unrelated to the competitive objectives of the sport. Violence is most commonly associated with team contact sports such as football, rugby, ice hockey, and soccer. There are reported incidents, however, of violent behavior in most sports. The safety and well-being of students in Virginia's public schools have become issues of widespread concern that have carried over into similar worries about violence in sports.

An increase in both the frequency and seriousness of acts of violence has been well documented in studies across the nation. Responding to the charge that sports violence has been escalating, Senators Charles Waddell, Hunter Andrews, Charles Colgan, Joseph Gartlan, Benjamin Lambert, Louise Lucas. Henry Marsh, Henry Maxwell, Kevin Miller, Yvonne Miller, Frederick Quayle, Robert Russell and Delegate Kenneth Plum introduced Senate Joint Resolution 200 in the 1993 Virginia General Assembly. The resolution called for a study by the State Department of Education of violence in high school sports, both among participants and towards officials, and recommendations for possible solutions to the problem.

The study was conducted by a core and stakeholder team that reflected the relevant agencies, organizations, and constituencies, affected by the study. The team created an information base by conducting a review of literature, contacting other state athletic associations to determine what was occurring on the national scene, and by surveying the stakeholders involved in VHSL sports activities.

The initial phase of the study was a review of literature. The review used the combined library resources of the State Department of Education, the Virginia High School League, and Virginia Tech. In addition, the ERIC and INFOTRAC electronic data bases were searched.

The review revealed that very few references were available on the subject. In the citations found, it is the conclusion of the team that the incidence of event-related violence in high school sports is rare. The low incident rate is coupled with a perceived potential for violence to occur at high school sporting events - just as the potential exists in our society as a whole.

The second phase of the study was to determine how other states were addressing the issue of violence in high school sports. Surveys were mailed to 50 state athletic associations, and 43 responded to the survey. State surveys revealed the following findings:

• Sixty-three percent (63%) of the state athletic associations believe that violence is perceived to be a problem in their state.

• Seventy-six percent (76%) of the state athletic associations have developed interventions aimed at reducing or preventing violence in high school sports.

• Seventy-four percent (74%) of the state athletic associations have recommended strategies for reducing or preventing violence in high school sports.

• Four (4) states (Arkansas, Delaware, North Carolina, and Oklahoma) have legislation that considers the first incident of violence toward a sports official a misdemeanor, and Montana has legislation that considers violence toward a sports official a felony.

The third phase of the study involved surveying individuals who are involved in athletic contests in Virginia - school administrators, athletic directors, coaches, commissioners of officials, game officials, and players. The following findings were revealed by the surveys:

School administrators

Twenty-four principals participated in a roundtable dialogue sponsored by the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals on June 29, 1993. Participants unanimously believed that violence in sports, or associated with sports, is on the rise. At this time, however, the actual level of violent events is low.

Athletic directors and coaches

Of the seventy-one (71) attendees at The Virginia High School Coaches Association Clinic who responded:

• Ninety percent (90%) have never or seldom observed violence by an athlete or coach directed towards a Virginia high school league official.

• Seventy-six percent (76%) have never or seldom observed spectator violence directed towards a Virginia high school league official.

Commissioners of officials

Of the fifty-one (51) commissioners who responded:

• Seventy-four percent (74%) believe that the chance of an official being physically assaulted has increased in the last five years.

Game officials

Of the thirty-nine (39) game officials who responded:

• Two percent (20%) have been physically assaulted in the last five years.

• Thirty percent (30%) have had the perception that they were in physical danger in connection with a high school contest.

• Fifty-two percent (52%) believe that there is not adequate security for officials during and after athletic contests. The most frequently heard comment was that the officials were in control during the contest; getting from the field or court to the dressing room or when leaving the premises presented the greatest concern.

• Ninety-eight percent (98%) have the perception that the chance of being physically assaulted is greater today than it was five years ago. They believe that the greatest danger is from spectators (61%).

Players

Of the eighty-nine (89) players who responded:

• Ninety-two percent (92%) have never or seldom observed violence directed towards a Virginia High School League official by an athlete or coach.

• Eighty-seven percent (87%) have never or seldom observed spectator violence directed towards a Virginia High School League official.

Virginia High School League incident reports

The Virginia High School League office prepared a summary of incident reports involving violent acts over the past two years for the final phase of the study.

• During the past two school years (1991-1993), twelve incidents involving violent acts have been reported to the Virginia High School League. These incidents occurred in four sports: soccer (4), basketball (3), football (3), and cross country (1).

• During the same time period, one violent act toward an official was reported.

Perhaps it is important to consider the above incidents within the context of the total number of games at which incidents could occur. Only 13 violent acts were reported to the Virginia High School League over this two-year period. Viewed from the perspective that more than 20,000 games were played during this time frame, the number of violent incidents is minuscule.

The core team members conducted two meetings (September 29, 1993 and October 28, 1993) with representatives of the stakeholders involved in this study. Consistent with the findings and the dialogue of core team meetings, the stakeholders' team believes that a paradox exists in regards to high schools sports violence: The vast majority of involved parties believe that violence is on the rise, however, there is very little evidence to support this belief.

Recommendations

The results from the three phases of the study and the dialogue from the two stakeholders' meetings led the team to conclude that the following options should be considered:

• A fair and consistent definition of violence needs to be established by the Virginia High School League in concert with the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals.

• Written guidelines governing violence in sports should be developed by the Virginia High School League. The guidelines should include procedures to insure that the game officials are safely escorted from the premises.

• Annual workshops to review established procedures concerning violence should be conducted by the Virginia High School League. All school administrators, coaches, contest officials, players, and spectators should have the opportunity to attend the workshops.

• School administrators should inform parents, staff, and students that interscholastic contests are an extension of the school program. Behavior that would not be condoned in school will not be condoned at a sporting event.

• A strategy to improve the reporting system of all violent acts, particularly those towards officials that occur during athletic contests, should be developed by the Virginia High School League.

• The findings of this study should be disseminated by the Virginia High School League in its publications, "League Notes" and "The Leaguer."

• The General Assembly should consider introducing legislation to make it a misdemeanor to commit a violent act toward a Virginia High School League game official, or local government agencies should consider passing ordinances that would mitigate against violence at high school sporting events. Such ordinances would address crowd/fan violence before, during, and after the games.

It is the feeling of the core team that a demonstrable degree of vigilance should be maintained at Virginia High School League sporting events. This action may prevent the potential of violent acts toward a game official from becoming a reality.