Spartan Daily

SIDEBAR: Rallying school spirit at SJSU

When fighting the reputation of a commuter school, one has to begin asking what makes people come together and form a culture, to take pride in their identity on a college campus.

For many schools, San Jose State University being no exception, the first and largest incubator for school spirit is its athletics.

“Athletics can be a rallying point for any campus,”  Marie Tuite, SJSU Athletics deputy director for internal operations  said. “More people come together at athletic events than any other events on campus. It brings many different constituencies together for one common goal: to cheer for the Spartans.”

Obviously the first goal in any competitive sport, and something which people can take pride in, is winning, Tuite said.

“Everyone is happier when you win,” she said. “Athletics (are) more fun when you win.”

Neelam Rattam, a lecturer of Psychology and Sociology at SJSU, said in her native Indian culture, when a school team won in a sport, it was a celebration that the whole institution took part in, and something the students identified with very strongly.

Upon arriving at SJSU however, she noticed the students attitudes towards athletes on campus were remarkably different.

“They seem to come in and go out, and nobody asks them ’did you win the game or not,’” she said. “There is a sense of indifference. I think it is due to (students being) overwhelmed. As fans at the events it may be different.”

Tuite said though victories for the athletes were a very positive thing, her real delight in the 2011 football victory over Hawaii was not the final score, but witnessing the students rushing the field ecstatically after the whistle.

“It was thrilling to see our students celebrate,” she said. “Athletics should be fun. It should be an opportunity for people to come together and enjoy the experience.”

Rattam said in her experiences athletics provided an opportunity for students to celebrate each others’ accomplishments, but it seemed that because of the demands of life in San Jose, students simply did not seem to have the time to listen to each other’s triumphs or defeats in the name of their university.

“I do seriously think that if we did have a winning team there would be more of a sense of ownership and identifying,” she said.

SJSU Media relations director Pat Lopes Harris said athletics was one of the best way to get future monetary donors to become reengaged in university life.

“I think what we are seeing is donors choose many ways to enter or re-enter life at the university,” she said. “Some choose to attend performances, some have a strong affinity to the athletic programs”

If alumni particularly are able to become involved in donating to the university even in just little ways, Harris said, evidence shows that those same donors usually go on to become larger and larger contributors, so long as they remain involved.

Harris said in addition to wanting the students to succeed at the collegiate level, the university hopes that by winning championships it will enable graduates to go on to become more successful and give back to the university as donors.

She equated the experience of playing for a championship as trying to get graduate students into the best available Ph.D programs.

Harris said the university views the opportunity to compete at a high level as another form of educational experience.

“I think the university wants to provide the best resource we can for the students,” she said. “We want more teams to be viable for conference championships.”

Tuite said the position of student athlete was one which indicated the students were receiving an education, even through their participation in sports.

“We are under the firm belief that athletics is under the umbrella of higher education,” she said. “I think sometimes people view athletics as a business operating in a Silo.

“We are strong believers in the academic mission of the university… We are firmly merged within the university’s footprint.”

Francisco James Rendon, Spartan Daily