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Philosophy Statement

Statement of Philosophy for UW-Stout Intercollegiate Athletics

The general purpose of education is to promote the personal growth and development of qualified undergraduates and graduate students. The University of Wisconsin-Stout shares the core mission of the UW-System's University Cluster to “offer an environment that emphasizes teaching excellence and meets the educational and personal needs of students through effective teaching, academic advising, counseling and through university-sponsored cultural recreation and extracurricular programs.”

According to the University of Wisconsin-Stout mission statement, UW-Stout expects its students to integrate applied learning, scientific theory, humanistic understanding, creativity and research to solve real-world problems. As a department within the Chancellor's Division, the Athletic Department endeavors to support the mission of the University by offering students the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of intercollegiate athletic programs. These programs support, encourage and provide guidance in understanding and appreciating the importance and value of health/wellness and movement related activities as they contribute to human well being. Moreover, athletic participation provides practical experiences that permit the revelation of intangible qualities that advance the scope of individual achievement. It is through these means that intercollegiate athletics satisfies the Mission of UW-Stout.

Other purposes serviced by the program are:

  • Competitive athletics provide a natural outlet for enthusiasms and energies of students
  • Athletics provides an identity for the college community and provide an item of common interest to students, faculty, townspeople, alumni, friends and supporters. Additionally, it promotes a feeling of mutual interest and enthusiasm that carries over into many useful fields.
  • Intercollegiate athletics provide valuable laboratory-learning experiences for students preparing for professional careers in recreation and coaching. Likewise, band personnel, student journalists and other student groups are provide with valuable experiences relating to their professional goals through the medium of intercollegiate sports and associated enterprises, such as radio, audio-visual, photography and so forth.

An institution of higher education committed to excellence must consider intercollegiate athletics as a “showcase” and measuring device for its institution as well as an “honors” course in physical education.

Intercollegiate Athletics: Guiding Principles

  • The Athletic Program at UW-Stout is committed to excellence. Intercollegiate athletics is an integral part of an educational program. As such, it must be sustained by basic principles of ethical behavior that are intended to:
  • Enhance the goals and missions of University of Wisconsin-Stout and Student Life Services.
  • Strive to enroll and retain student-athletes with the potential to succeed academically.
  • Provide for student growth and development within a positive learning environment versus a win-at-all-cost philosophy.
  • Provide broad-based participation opportunities through individual and team sport offerings within the parameters of gender equity and limits of facilities and resources.
  • Promote excellence by providing leadership to student-athletes, the student body, the faculty, the alumni and the community.
  • Provide an opportunity for interaction between the University and local communities, and the alumni.
  • Promote equitable treatment of all participants and staff.
  • Provide clearly defined expectations for coaches, staff, and participants by outlining University policy, intercollegiate program goals, practices and evaluation procedures.
  • Abide by the WIAC Constitution and By-Laws
  • Adhere to the NCAA Division III philosophy (see below)
Statement of Philosophy [PDF]

NCAA Division III Philosophy
Colleges and universities in Division III place highest priority on the overall quality of the educational experience and on the successful completion of all students’ academic programs. They seek to establish and maintain an environment in which a student-athlete’s athletics activities are conducted as an integral part of the student-athlete’s educational experience, and in which coaches play a significant role as educators. They also seek to establish and maintain an environment that values cultural diversity and gender equity among their student-athletes and athletics staff.

To achieve this end, Division III institutions:
  • Place special importance on the impact of athletics on the participants rather than on the spectators and place greater emphasis on the internal constituency (e.g., students, alumni, institutional personnel) than on the general public and its entertainment needs;
  • Shall not award financial aid to any student on the basis of athletics leadership, ability, participation or performance;
  • Encourage the development of sportsmanship and positive societal attitudes in all constituents, including student-athletes, coaches, administrative personnel and spectators;
  • Encourage participation by maximizing the number and variety of athletics opportunities for their students;
  • Assure that the actions of coaches and administrators exhibit fairness, openness and honesty in their relationships with student-athletes;
  • Assure that athletics participants are not treated differently from other members of the student body;
  • Assure that athletics programs support the institution’s educational mission by financing, staffing and controlling the programs through the same general procedures as other departments of the institution. Further, the administration of an institution’s athletics program (e.g., hiring, compensation, professional development, certification of coaches) should be integrated into the campus culture and educational mission;
  • Assure that athletics recruitment complies with established institutional policies and procedures applicable to the admission process;
  • Assure that academic performance of student-athletes is, at a minimum, consistent with that of the general student body;
  • Assure that admission policies for student-athletes comply with policies and procedures applicable to the general student body; (Adopted: 1/9/06 effective 8/1/06)
  • Provide equitable athletics opportunities for males and females and give equal emphasis to men’s and women’s sports;
  • Support ethnic and gender diversity for all constituents;
  • Give primary emphasis to regional in-season competition and conference championships; and
  • Support student-athletes in their efforts to reach high levels of athletics performance, which may include opportunities for participation in national championships, by providing all teams with adequate facilities, competent coaching and appropriate competitive opportunities.

The purpose of the NCAA is to assist its members in developing the basis for consistent, equitable competition while minimizing infringement on the freedom of individual institutions to determine their own special objectives and programs. The above statement articulates principles that represent a commitment to Division III membership and shall serve as a guide for the preparation of legislation by the division and for planning and implementation of programs by institutions and conferences.
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