The Adams Minority Student-Athlete Coalition has provided a place for minority student-athletes to come together and share their experiences with one another.
The formation of the Coalition was announced on Feb. 9 by the St. Joe’s Athletic Department. The Coalition was named after Dick Adams ’59, who was St. Joe’s first Black student-athlete, and meets bi-weekly to provide minority student-athletes with the opportunity to share their experiences and connect with other members of the Coalition.
Erick Woods, director of student-athlete development, helped form the organization with the intention of providing a space for minority student athletes to form relationships with each other.
“The final goal is to create an opportunity for them to do great things on our campus,” Woods said.
Woods said he sees relationships forming between minority student-athletes in the Coalition, which was his biggest hope when creating it.
“A lot of times they see or recognize other student athletes are a minority but don’t necessarily get a chance to interact with them,” Woods said. “This has created a space for their interaction to occur and the relationships to be built.”
Junior Jayden Greene, a middle distance runner on the men’s track and field team, said that the Coalition is important to have at St. Joe’s because it is a predominantly white institution and students of color are underrepresented.
“I can relate a lot more to minorities that are also athletes,” Greene said. “They understand what we all go through.”
According to junior Sam Dumont, a forward on the women’s soccer team, the Coalition values having conversations where student-athletes can share their experiences as a person of color on campus and on their team.
“We try to get a full scope of what a student athlete goes through on the field and off the field,” Dumont said.
Dumont said that because a lot of sports on campus are dominated by white athletes, the Coalition provides minority athletes on campus with the opportunity to find people with shared experiences.
“It shows that we’re not as different as we all think we are,” Dumont said. “You feel seen and you feel like, ‘wow, I’m not the only one who’s been in the situation.’”
Woods said that recent events in the city and country have brought attention to the need for an organization like this Coalition.
“There is a real focus around making St. Joe’s a culturally responsive place where there is a real sense of belonging happening,” Woods said.
According to Greene, the Coalition has provided him with a sense of belonging and is a safe space for him and other athletes.
“I feel more comfortable with people of color or minority students,” Greene said. “I’ve made many friends from it.”
Dumont said that the Coalition provides a community for minority student athletes on campus.
“It brings people together,” Dumont said. “Especially being in a school that is predominantly white, there’s not many people of color at this school.”
According to Woods, the Coalition is hoping to create programs that serve the community and that students can take pride in.
“We are working closely with the Center for Inclusion and Diversity (CID) and hoping to work with the Black Student Union (BSU),” Woods said. “Being able to collaborate and partner with other campus partners has been the biggest step this year.”
Woods said that going forward he hopes that the Coalition will continue to create a legacy of unity between minority student-athletes.
“That’s the big goal,” Woods said. “To create a space that lasts through the years and can be built on the foundation of real meaningful relationships that are built within the group.”
