Investment in Student-Athlete Experience

GENDER EQUITY

In the fall of 2019, the RMU Department of Athletics was proactive by making gender equity an organizational commitment. Through an outside consultant, the department conducted a detailed study of institutional and intercollegiate athletics policies and procedures in regard to Title IX gender equity through interviews with coaches, studentathletes, athletic administrators and support area directors.

During the study, the policies and procedures in place were reviewed, analyzed and compared to other institutions of similar size. This data helped RMU athletics define a performance baseline in regard to gender equity.

The study helped provide RMU athletics with recommendations for managing the impact of Title IX and gender equity compliant with budgets, facilities, personnel, competitive excellence and sport sponsorship.

REALRECRUIT

The RMU Department of Athletics announced in December of 2019 with with RealRecruit, the leading culture risk-management solution for collegiate athletic departments. The partnership is a reflection of the Colonials’ commitment to program excellence and to strengthening communication between students and staff.

RealRecruit gathers feedback from student-athletes through surveys and real-time reporting tools and serves an integrated hub for administrators and coaches to document and track their responses in one easy and accessible location. RMU leaders immediately recognized how the platform could provide the school with actionable data to make the most informed and best decisions—and advance its student-athlete experience forward. Once the team heard about the unparalleled levels of new “ insights it provided into the student-athlete experience, as well as the peace of mind that it gives administrators, implementing

RealRecruit at RMU became a no-brainer. “ Chris King Director of Athletics

INVESTMENT IN STUDENT-ATHLETE EXPERIENCE

The RMU Department of Athletics is proud to partner with ARMS Software, which helps athletic departments transform its operations and meet the overall goal of the university’s strategic plan through automation and control.

The fastest growing technology company in college athletics, ARMS Software is currently working with over 250 institutions at the NCAA Division I, II and II levels across the country, with clients such as Clemson, Louisville, North Carolina State and Stanford. ARMS helps athletic departments create efficiencies, transparency, accountability and overall effectiveness through the entire department.

Student-athletes, coaches and staff have the ability to communicate and stay up to date in a 24/7/365 manner from any device and complete tasks in both real time and in a secure manner. The software also helps as a recruiting tool for coaches and is customizable for any department or coaching staff.

RMU looks forward to automating its processes across all levels of its department of athletics to help springboard coaches and student-athletes to even greater heights of success.

FORWARD PROGRESS

An industry leader in NCAA related academics consulting, Forward Progress was employed by RMU to conduct a review of its policies and procedures for certifying student-athlete eligibility and submitting Academic Progress Rate (APR) and Graduate Success Rate (GSR) data.

Forward Progress has assisted numerous schools and conferences in assessing academic support services, compliance operations, strategic planning for improved academic performance and the navigation of NCAA processes. The consulting firm was founded in 2013 by former NCAA Director of Academic and Membership Affairs, John Shukie, and the former NCAA Coordinator of StudentAthlete Development Maricela Shukie.

Forward Progress develops student-athletes, coaches and administrators into successful leaders in life. The firm helps peoples find their voice and purpose through various initiatives, including leadership retreats and programs designed to bring the best out of an individual.

Through student-athlete advisory committee (SAAC), student-athlete and administrator training, Forward Progress has supported over 150 institutions in the mission to grow and graduate student-athletes.

HELPER HELPER

Implemented at Robert Morris during the 2019-20 academic year, Helper Helper is an efficient software platform and mobile app that enables student-athletes to easily coordinate and track service hours across the department of athletics.

By logging and keeping track of various initiatives, Helper Helper allows RMU to coordinate, track and report individual and team participation and its impact on the local and regional community. It provides student-athletes and administrators access to certified transcripts of community service volunteer hours that can be referenced at any time for graduation requirements, college applications and resumes.