Graduate student shares expertise on NCAA panel
A College of Education graduate student will be featured on a panel this spring during the annual NCAA Inclusion Forum.
Marques Dexter, a doctoral student in sport management and policy, is one of three graduate students who are conducting research within intercollegiate athletics that relates to diversity and inclusion, and he will speak to his research and the work he is doing at the College of Education. The annual forum brings together higher education and intercollegiate athletics leaders, along with student athletes, who are passionate about improving the collegiate athletic environment
Sessions during the three-day event feature a range of topics related to policy, research and best practices that support racial and ethnic minorities, women, international student athletes, LGBTQ athletes and athletes with disabilities.
"I am truly honored to have this opportunity from the NCAA to provide a platform to share my research to a wide yet vital group," said Dexter.
His research focuses on the experiences and identities of academically and athletically high-achieving male African-American athletes. "One of the essential parts of me conducting such research is that it is reflective of myself; it has become me-search," he added. "I was tired of reading article after article that depicted black/African-American males from a deficit standpoint. We aren't all struggling or lacked emotional support; our athletic identity wasn't our salient identity. It has become my mission to provide narratives beyond the prevailing ones throughout the media and society."
Dexter brings a range of leadership experiences to the committee. He is a graduate teaching assistant in the College of Education's department of kinesiology, a member of the Sport Research Instruction Laboratory within the department, and also holds the AAMI Graduate Research Assistantship from the UGA Office of Institutional Diversity's African-American Male Initiative. Dexter is involved in student organizations such as serving as a College of Education Student Ambassador and president of UGA's Graduate and Professional Scholars organization. He is also one of two students selected for the search committee tasked with selecting the new dean for the College of Education.
A Philadelphia native, Dexter received his bachelor's degree from Robert Morris University with a concentration in sport management. He later enrolled at UGA, where he received his master's degree in kinesiology, specializing in sport management.