Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2014

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LEADERSHIP IN SPORT: A GIRLS GRAMMAR PHILOSOPHY

In order to change what has become the status quo for women in leadership positions in sport, there needs to be a greater focus on preparing girls for opportunities to develop these skills while they are still in school. In 1908, then Girls Grammar Principal Milisent Wilkinson summed this up superbly: It is sometimes said that women in their ventures into life do not display the qualities which men possess: self-restraint, good fellowship when pursuing a common aim, ability to take defeat in good part, and esprit de corps — qualities which men first gain as boys, from their games. If this be so, there is all the more reason why girls should be given, equally to boys, the chance to receive such beneficial effects and be no longer debarred from the education of the playground (cited in Harvey- Short, 2011).

Geordan Shannon (2002), Emily Poole (2013, QGSSSA Sports Captain), Ellodie Ruffin (2013, Club Sports Captain), Alissa Castrisos (2001) at the 2013 Sportswomen of Excellence event.

AUTHOR Ms Sally Northcroft Director of Sport

EACH YEAR, MORE THAN 700 GIRLS PARTICIPATE IN EIGHTEEN COMPETITIVE SPORTS FOR GIRLS GRAMMAR — AND THIS IS BY NO MEANS A RECENT PHENOMENON. RESEARCH CONDUCTED INTO PARTICIPATION RATES OVER THE PAST DECADE REVEALED 70 PER CENT OF THE STUDENT POPULATION HAD REPRESENTED GIRLS GRAMMAR IN COMPETITIVE SPORT. The transition from participant to problem solver, decision maker and leader can sometimes be seen as an organic process for those who play sport. The challenges on the sports field tend to provide a learning landscape where athletes can develop leadership and decision- making skills which are highly valued in future careers. A recent study by Dr Terrance Fitzsimmons revealed that at school, male CEOs, ‘ … were almost always the captains of their football teams’ (Fitzsimmons, 2011). Based on the exceptional levels of participation of our fine female athletes, it stands to reason that more women should be in corner offices. Sadly, this is not the case. Women who could contribute to the strategic planning, allocation of funds and guiding philosophies of sporting organisations are particularly under-represented in coaching at elite levels, as well as in significant leadership and administrative positions. In Australia, women hold only 24.4 per cent of board directorships of national sport organisations (NSOs). Five out of the fifty-five NSOs recognised and funded by the Australian Sports Commission did not appoint one woman to their boards in 2013 (Women on Boards, 2013). In the United States, 80 per cent of the universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association employed a male as their athletic director (Irick, 2011). While in the United Kingdom, thirty-one out of fifty-seven boards surveyed did not meet the 25 per cent minimum female representative expectation, and six sports boards did not have any female representation at all (Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation, 2013).

Isabella Franks receiving her recognition as a sports brooch nominee from Associate Dean Mrs Pauline Harvey-Short.

The playground of the 20th century has become the boardroom of the 21st century. So in order to best prepare our girls, Brisbane Girls Grammar School uses sport to harness their boardroom skills while they are only beginning to imagine their future careers. Preparing young women with the ideas, the skills and the support to not only pursue their athletic dreams, but to also achieve a recognisable career in sport, requires worldwide attention. Promoting opportunities for girls in sport is vital. It can contribute to the growth and development of confident young women who become leaders in sport and inspire future generations to believe in their abilities. Sport can also become a medium through which their wisdom, imagination and integrity, grows.

GRAMMAR GAZETTE