Interview With UMKC’s Dr. Brandon Martin To Co-Chair Black AD Alliance

College coaches have spoken to the need for more opportunities for Black men and women at administrative levels. Administrators who can provide those chances are taking some action.
The Black AD Alliance has been created to promote, as its mission statement says, “the growth, development, and elevation of Black athletics administrators at the Division I level.”The group includes 16 Black athletic directors in Division I, and that includes co-chairmen Brandon Martin of UMKC and Allen Greene of Auburn. “There’s an acknowledgment that things need to improve in terms of opportunities for Black athletic administrators,” Martin said. “There needs to be a more fortified partnership with the NCAA and (National Association of Collegiate Athletic Directors), where there are intentional efforts to create the change.” Martin was introduced as UMKC’s athletic director in November 2018.
College administration other than the top role of athletic director includes senior positions of associate or assistant ADs who oversee compliance, marketing, communications, academic services, ticketing, sports medicine, and community relations — and their staffs.
Black and Hispanic/Latino men and women have historically been under-represented in the front offices of college sports. In 2018-19, excluding Historically Black Colleges and Universities, whites held 84.5 percent of athletic director positions. Blacks held 8.7 percent, Hispanics/Latinos 2.7 percent, according to the 2019 Racial and Gender Report Card released by The Institute of Diversity and Ethics in Sports (TIDES).
And 9.3 percent of assistant athletic director positions were held by African-Americans in 2018-19.
The Black AD Alliance hopes to increase those numbers by developing support networks and providing forums for communication.
“Members of the Black AD Alliance have a shared responsibility to leave a lasting impact on the industry to which we have dedicated our lives,” Greene said.
The alliance’s executive committee is comprised of Omar Banks (Campbell), Tim Duncan (New Orleans), Damon Evans (Maryland), Derrick Gragg (Tulsa), Martin Jarmond (UCLA), Candice Lee (Vanderbilt), Warde Manuel (Michigan), Bernard Muir (Stanford), Lee Reed (Georgetown), Ed Scott (Morgan State), Tamica Smith Jones (California-Riverside), Ingrid McCree (North Carolina Central) and Carla Williams (Virginia).
BY BLAIR KERKHOFF