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[Dale
B. Lake Award Winners for 2007]
[Evaluating Athletic Success at
KVCC]
KVCC Athletic Philosophy
(by Athletic Director, Richard Shilts)
The athletic program at KVCC is an integral
part of the overall academic setting. The often publicized criteria for
success in this program was established in a memo sent to the KVCC Board of
Trustees on April 19, 1979. The memo stated that "The success of an
intercollegiate program...is determined certainly by the 'win-loss' record, but
of equal importance is the extent to which the athletes are also 'students,'
and whether or not they successfully complete their academic programs.
Further...'success' is the development in our athletes of a positive attitude
toward themselves, their teammates, their coach, and their college. An
additional important measure of success for an intercollegiate athletic program
is the image of that program in the community-at-large..."
This definition of success has been the
foundation stone for a quality program, which all members of the athletic
department have been striving to develop. The ideal program being pursued
is a truly first-class community college athletic program that offers a viable
alternative to aspiring student-athletes as they seek a college that adequately
meets their needs. Realizing that the race for quality has no finish
line, the KVCC faculty and coaching staff have, nevertheless, produced
an
opportunity for a total academic/athletic experience that is second to none in
the country.
KVCC holds membership in the National Junior
College Athletic Association (NJCAA) whose headquarters is located in Colorado
Springs, CO, and in the Michigan Community College Athletic Association
(MCCAA), an organization of community colleges in Michigan that offer various
intercollegiate sports. KVCC Athletic Director, Dick Shilts, has just completed
serving twelve years as President of the MCCAA. Sports sponsored by KVCC include men's
and women's basketball, women's fast-pitch softball, baseball, women's
tennis, volleyball, and golf. Current coaches of each sport are listed
above.
Women's tennis and volleyball start in August with competition during the fall
semester. Men's and women's basketball competition spans the fall and spring
semesters, and the softball, baseball, and golf seasons occur
in the spring semester. Early spring training trips are planned in each of the
spring sports, and usually occur during the week of spring break in the academic schedule at KVCC.
Although concentrated recruiting is a year
round process for each sport, tryouts are held at the beginning of each season
for interested and qualified student-athletes. In order to participate a first
time student-athlete must be attending at least 12 semester hours of credit
during the semester of his/her competition. Eligibility beyond the first
semester and for all transfers reverts back to the previous full time semester;
participants must have completed at least 12 credit hours with a minimum GPA of
1.75 or accumulated at least 12 times the number of previous full time
semesters with a minimum GPA of 1.75 in order to be eligible. In addition,
before a student-athlete is eligible for a second season, he/she must have
accumulated at least 24 hours with a minimum 2.00 GPA.
Interested and qualified students should
contact the Athletic Office to notify the coach of their interest in trying out
for the intercollegiate team. Transcripts of previous college academic work
must accompany questions about future eligibility. On the first day of school
in the fall, candidates for any of the sports other than women's tennis and
volleyball (it's too late for those sports by that time), must sign in at the
athletic office. Physicals and insurance information must precede tryouts in
all sports; physicals for participation are generally given on Wednesday of the
first week of school.
Contact with the athletic office secretary, Trudy Wright,
may be made by calling (269) 488-4395.
05/11/08
