High School Coaches as Institutional Agents: The College-Going Influence of Coaches on Student-Athletes

• In Event: Race, Recruitment, and Power Dynamics: Exploring the Role of Coaches, Stereotypes, and Scandals in High School Sports

Abstract

Almost 8 million students participate in U.S. high school sports programs (NFHS, 2023). Acting as institutional agents, high school coaches can change student-athletes’ perceptions of school and higher education (Hinojosa & Maxwell, 2018). Coaches can influence their districts and schools by insisting that all players receive the same educational opportunities and resisting narrow views of student-athletes of color. This quantitative study uses secondary data to show the influence of high school coaches on student-athletes— students who think they will receive financial aid through an athletic scholarship—on their 2-year and 4-year college enrollment and compare this college-going influence on diverse groups of student-athletes.

Authors

• Antonio García-Bautista, Claremont Graduate University

• Jenifer L. Kelson, Claremont Graduate University

• Guan Saw, Claremont Graduate University