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Open Letter to the Community from NYS Rugby
Open Letter to the Community from NYS Rugby - May 10, 2007
May 10, 2007
Open Letter to the Community from NYS Rugby
May 10, 2007
In conjunction with our Board of Directors, I continue to monitor the situation involving the incidents which took place at RIT this past weekend. As a Conference, we are thankful, along with RIT's campus community, that no one involved in was injured to a more severe degree.
Hazing and underage drinking have no place in Rugby or any other sport, no matter the level - varsity, club, intramural or recreational. It has been the mission of NYS Rugby over the past several years to assist, in any way possible, in changing the stereotypical culture of the sport.
We enforce a robust anti-hazing policy and code of conduct. Our commitment to these policies goes hand-in-hand with the work of the Colleges and Universities within our membership. It can be assured that NYS Rugby will follow the lead of the Institute on this matter and will mirror, or even enhance, any action taken against RIT's men's and/or women's rugby clubs and the individuals involved.
There is no doubt hazing and underage drinking are problems deeply rooted within the fabric of higher education. The sport of Rugby is no more or less represented in these incidents than any other team sport or the population in general. Yet, as a sport, it continually defends itself against past reputations.
One of the major issues we face as a governing body is working with clubs that do not have: a) proper leadership within the club's structure and b) the experience from which to reference acceptable ways to run an organization. Numerous collegiate clubs within our jurisdiction go without sufficient assistance from their institutions, including certified coaches, budgets and field availability. In many cases, 18-22 years old kids are left to their own devices. This generates a cycle of disorganization which is handed down year-after-year from one Captain or President to the next. Left unattended, it can result in serious infractions such as the ones we witnessed last weekend.
When run properly and embraced by respective institutions, we see the positive aspects of the sport emerge - athleticism, discipline, self-confidence, team-building, ethics, fair play, camaraderie, social skills and the building of relationships which last a lifetime. One only need look at institutions such as the University at Buffalo, Colgate University or St. Lawrence University, to name a few, where you find young men and women that compete at a high level, are respected by their campus communities and go on to successful careers following graduation.
Unfortunately, the wake of this incident has resulted in a black eye for the hub of the sport's growth in New York State. The Greater Rochester area features 11 teams at the high school level - five varsity boy's, three varsity girl's and three junior varsity boy's. These athletes are being introduced to the fundamentals of the game, all while developing unbiased attitudes and expectations of the sport. Over the past five years, we have seen scores of our high school athletes go on to collegiate programs within NYS Rugby and many single-handedly change the culture of their respective programs in a positive fashion. This is grass-roots change at its best.
In addition, Rochester will be the home to the USA Rugby Collegiate All-Star Championships, June 8-9, 2007. Over 200 athletes from around the country will be participating in this tournament and representatives from USA Rugby will be on hand to scout for the U.S. National Team. By far, this is the highest-caliber USA Rugby event to be hosted in New York State's history.
We acknowledge that there is room for continued growth and much important work to be done, but simply shutting down a program or continuing to govern at arms length is not the answer. We need, now more than ever, to accelerate the education of our athletes - not just on the perils of hazing and underage drinking, but also all of the positive and life-changing experiences that come from taking part in a team sport.
I invite your questions, comments or input. If you should wish to follow up with me, I can be reached via email at jcwhip4@gmail.com or by phone at 315.415.6146 (cell).
Sincerely,
J.C. Whipple
Executive Director
NYS Rugby Conference
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Posted Until Jun 30, 2007
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