Sport Governance in North America, 2nd ed. - eBook

Foreword
by Richard J. Larue
Professor, NAS Fellow
University of New England

The underpinnings of sport governance can help ensure quality participant experiences. This includes the ability for leaders to create an environment where sport experiences are valued and serve to enhance the quality of life for those who participate as players, officials, and/or spectators.

In recent years, nearly all levels of sport have faced challenges that were either predictable or unanticipated. Therefore, it falls to the knowledge and experience of our sport leaders to ensure that sport serves a positive role in the lives of those involved!

In the 21st century, sport governing organizations have both offered solutions and created more issues and challenges. Clearly, for organized sport to flourish, there must be a broad-based commitment to those characteristics and goals we aspire to achieve, as well as a passion for always seeking to do what is right!

This second edition of Sport Governance in North America provides the critical underpinnings for students as they acquire new ideas and establish a better understanding of governance and policy development in sport.

The authors of this book are all experienced professionals who clearly understand the importance of sport governance and policy development. To that end, they have worked together to create a second edition that has evolved in a manner that will serve the reader well!

Particularly important to active learning and knowledge acquisition is the approach applied to learning. This book is organized in a manner that students are first introduced to the critical skills and attributes of good leaders in sport.

The book then provides an overview of sport, sport organizations, and sport governance. What follows next are the elements of governance and the essential knowledge regarding policy development, decision making and planning, compliance, governing bodies (their influence on sport), and ethics. 

After this critical introduction, the book creates in the reader both a basis of understanding and the tools for implementation. The chapters that follow address governance that is specific to sport and sport programs across the lifespan.

These chapters challenge students to look in-depth at the range of sport and specific organizational structures. And these chapters offer opportunities for the reader to value both the attributes of governance and the quality ensured, based directly on the programmatic goals and passions of the respective leadership.

Completing the text are two capstone chapters. These chapters offer a unique opportunity for the reader to consider the essential value of community support and the challenges (realized and unknown) facing sport managers in the (their) future. Here the authors have combined their ideas as they anticipate the respective needs and challenges of the future.