CFA: 11th International Symposium for Olympic Research

The 11^th International Symposium for Olympic Research, hosted by the International Centre for Olympic Studies (ICOS) at The University of Western Ontario, will be held on October 19 & 20, 2012, at the Ivey-Spencer Leadership Centre in London, Ontario, Canada. A downloadable PDF of the Call for Abstracts can be found at:http://www.uwo.ca/olympic/ (see first news item)

Scholars, researchers, students, and professionals interested in the socio-cultural study of the modern Olympic or Paralympic Games are invited to submit abstracts for conference presentation. Papers in the area of history, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, political science, and sport management, as well as other disciplines or professions that contribute to our cultural understanding of the Games are particularly encouraged. Details for submission of abstracts follow below.

As in years past, ICOS will produce a peer-reviewed collection of edited contributions from the Symposium papers.In an effort to foster this dissemination worldwide, and following a global trend in scholarly production, the edited collection will now be provided to all delegates in electronic format. As well, scholarly distribution will continue through LA84, reinforcing ICOS’ positive stance on open access policies (www.la84foundation.org/index.html, under Digital Archive, Periodicals and Series). ICOS no longer produces hard copies of Symposium papers. Presenters who wish their paper(s) to be considered for the edited collection will be required to submit their full papers on or before July 27, 2012.

A Graduate Essay Competition will also be instituted for the 2012 Symposium. The award winner will receive all expenses paid (including registration, economy air travel, and conference hotel) to present the winning paper at the 2012 Symposium. The paper will also be considered for publication in Olympika: The International Journal for Olympic Studies. Full-time graduate students (at the master’s or doctoral level) who are enrolled in a post-secondary institution for 2012-2013 are eligible for the competition. Full papers are due June 1, 2012.

Special room rates, which include a hot breakfast buffet, have been secured for all symposium delegates at the Ivey-Spencer Leadership Centre. More information about this hotel can be found at: http://www.dolce-spencer-leadership-centre-hotel.com/

The Symposium registration fee will include an electronic copy of the edited contributions, participation in all sessions, including keynote presentations, as well as access to all-day food and drink refreshments, two hot luncheons, and one evening reception. Organizational details concerning registration fees and payment, hotel registration, submission procedures for the edited collection and Graduate Student Competition will follow soon. Please check the ICOS website for updated information (www.uwo.ca/olympic).

Janice Forsyth, PhD

Director

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION PROCEDURE

Authors must send their abstract(s) in the body of their email message (please do not send attachments) and include the following information:

· Name, affiliation and position (if applicable), phone number, postal and email addressfor each of the authors;

· Title of the paper (maximum 15 words);

· Abstract (maximum of 300 words and only one paragraph), which must include:

o the main question, problem or issue to be addressed in the paper;

o the evidence that will be used;

o the significance of the paper to our understanding of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Games

Please email all abstracts to:

Dr. Janice Forsyth

Assistant Professor & Director

International Centre for Olympic Studies

The University of Western Ontario

janice.forsyth@uwo.ca

Deadline for submitting abstracts:

· January 6, 2012

Presenters will be informed of acceptance of their papers no later than January 20, 2012. All presenters must register for the conference.

CFP: Sports Symposium (Philadelphia, PA)

Sports Symposium 2012

Eastern University

Graduate School of Non-Profit Management

“Sports as Caring: Dimensions of Therapy and

Life Skills in Sports and Community Recreation”

DATE: Saturday, March 3, 2012. 10AM – 5PM.

LOCATION: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA.

Sports have for millennia served as a community building and social relationship enterprise. From the breadth of family game-time to competitive global Olympic competition, amateur athletics, to professional enterprises sports serve the human community as a means of life balance between work and play bringing people together culturally, socially, physically, and aesthetically.

Caillois in Man, Play and Games defines sports as “isolated from the rest of life” building a separate social location for one to live life. Play in its most raw form has no purpose except for pure leisure. Though organized games have objective rules and structures for play that provides boundaries for the execution of leisure, yet a world of “make-believe” (p. 9) still emanates in sports, setting it “against real life” (p. 11). Huizenga argued in a similar vein that games and play in this way counteract the idea that all of society is being immersed into a pure scientific worldview and lives for an objective rational life. We play and know that when we play we must be more than merely rational beings, for play is irrational. Indeed, sports are a challenge to the daily drudgery of life.

Emerging out of this play element is the use of sports as a tool for therapy and life skills development to care for people. For instance, across Americas’ inner cities we find organizations that use sports leagues as a means for counteracting gang culture. Compton United Soccer is playing at Kelly Park in the former heart of gang warfare in South Central Los Angeles, featured at last’s year’s symposium. Equestrian programs are active in helping in physical rehabilitation while providing the disabled children with activities to enhance self-esteem and social relationships. The recent tragic events of a death at the Winter Olympic Games brought this to the worldview as the chaplain and mental health networks combined to provide grief counseling and memorial to the athletes and fans. This symposium will discuss the various dimensions and tactics used by non-profit and professional sports organizations within these realms. Two primary outcomes relate to the sports as caring theme: therapy and life skills.

“Sports as Therapy”

This section of the symposium focuses on the means and practices of using sports as a tool for therapy of the whole person. Of particular interest are background programs in counseling, chaplaincy, disability service, physical rehabilitation, and fusions of psychology, sociology, and health. On an amateur, collegiate, or professional level, therapeutic programs are critical to the success of the athlete beyond expertise in a specific sports activity. This involves issues of injury recovery, psychological motivation and counseling, travel fatigue, disability, competition, and self-esteem.

“Sports as Life Skills”

This section of the symposium focuses on organizations and projects that use sports as a means for building life skills. Teamwork, coaching, mentoring, discipline, and education all combine to teach and motivate youth in particular to overcome obstacles and build neighborhood care. The intersections between crime reduction, increased school grades, and enhancement of family life and friendships are of critical importance in understanding how sports are a means to broader positive effects on the community. This section will present various creative means on how this is accomplished.

CALL FOR PAPERS, PRESENTATIONS, WORKSHOPS:

We invite papers, panel presentations, professional development workshops, and poster sessions on topics related to these topics, or other sports and community recreation presentations that fit within the broad criteria of the theme of sports as caring.

An abstract of 150 words and a short biography should be sent to Prof. Hans Tokke, Convener, htokke@eastern.edu.

For more information contact:

Prof. Hans Tokke, Convener, htokke@eastern.edu

Faculty Director, Non Profit Management

ASSISTANTSHIP: GA position in Sport Pedagogy/Coaching Science

Graduate Assistantship in Department of Sport Sciences (Sport Pedagogy) at the University of the Pacific (Fall 2012).

Job description:

The Department of Sport Sciences at the University of the Pacific invites applications for a 2-year Sport Pedagogy Graduate Assistantship (Fall 2012). The successful applicant will pursue a Masters (MA) in Sport Pedagogy or Coaching Science. Graduate Assistant responsibilities include the on-site co-ordination of Tiger PRIDE (an after-school physical activityoutreach program), delivery of a minimum of 2 activity classes and assisting with the daily operations of the Sport Pedagogy faculty. Opportunities to engage in independent student-led research initiatives, experiential learning, overseas experiences and attendance at conferences are also provided. Applicants should posses a minimum of a 3.0 GPA and a Bachelors degree in Sport Science (or equivalent). Coaching and/or teaching experience is desired but not required. The successful applicant will receive an $8,250 stipend (per academic year) and remission for the 32 units required to earn the Master’s degree (approx. value $35,776). Supplementary monies may be accrued through research grant funding, additional teaching opportunities and on-campus employment.

About Pacific:

The University of the Pacific was established in 1851 as California’s first chartered institution of higher learning. Pacific has earned widespread recognition for its student-centered approach to education, its many firsts and innovations and the accomplishments of its 55,000 living alumni. Pacific’s progress and leadership in higher education have earned national recognition. The University has been listed as a “Best Value” (Top 50) every year since 2000 and is consistently ranked among the top 100 national universities in the country. The Stocktoncampus was ranked by College Admission Essay as the fifth most beautiful campus in the nation. The Graduate School was established in 1956 and the goal of graduate education at the University is threefold: to excite and discipline the intellectual capacities of its students, to record and publish the products of intellectual inquiry, and to advance knowledge. To achieve this goal, the Graduate School encourages faculty to work closely with advanced students to create an environment congenial to advanced academic and professional study and to further scholarship and research. The distinctiveness of graduate studies lies in our academic programs, which emphasize various forms of creative scholarship, training of students in the principles and methods of research and developing professional competence, by limiting the number of students enrolled in order to allow them to work more directly with faculty members. Many degree programs are small, and in place of seminar experience students work relatively independently under close supervision of the faculty.

For further information on the position and the application process, please contact Dr. Lara Killick on lkillick@pacific.edu. The deadline for applications is Monday 12^th March 2012 at 5pm.

The department is strongly committed to the principle of diversity and welcomesapplications from members of ethnic and racial minority groups, women, persons with disabilities and persons from other under-represented groups.