Systems Matter Seminar | Solving the Youth Sports Officiating Crisis with Technological Innovation, Faculty Research & Student Creativity
The Systems Matter Seminar Series brings experts in the areas of materials, devices, and processes together once a month to share innovative research in those areas. The seminar series meets during the academic year at noon in the Marcus Nanotechnology Building conference rooms (1116-1118).
Abstract: Youth sports is facing an existential crisis lurking in the shadows. While the media narratives and youth sports advocacy groups decry travel sports, specialization, abusive coaches and parents, and the cost to participate, it is the shortage of sports officials at the grassroots levels that threatens the youth sports ecosystem. No sport or region of the country is immune from the shortage, not even basketball in Indiana or football in Texas. Recruitment and retention efforts have failed over the past 30 years. The average age of sports officials at 57 years old, only 12% of officials under the age of 34, and 80% of officials quit by their third year. This presentation tells the story of how students and faculty in the Sports Innovation Institute at IU Indianapolis have conducted research, created innovative solutions and technology, and partnered with sports technology RefReps to play a role in solving the officiating shortage. RefReps is an online learning platform offering comprehensive officiating education courses and interactive training that helps new officials see the game through the eyes of the officials. RefReps offers 18 sport specific officiating courses that has introduced 30,000 learners to officiating through high school classes, university courses, and state high school athletic associations. Key learnings in the presentation will include pivoting technology and business models to monetize an idea successfully and how artificial intelligence is improving operational efficiency and creating a technology interface more approachable to young learners than the old-school rulebook.
Bio: David Pierce, PhD, is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Tourism, Event, and Sport Management at Indiana University Indianapolis, where he has been on the faculty since 2013. Prior to his role as Chair, Pierce served as the Director of the Sports Innovation Institute at IU Indianapolis for six years. He earned a PhD in Sport Management from Indiana University Bloomington in 2007 and was on the faculty at Ball State University from 2007 to 2013. Pierce has authored 85 peer-reviewed publications, given over 100 national presentations, and was the lead author on the sport sales textbook Selling in the Sport Industry. He also authored a design thinking curriculum focused on sports innovation with Atlanta-based start-up e-learning platform FieldX. He uses this teaching methodology in his undergraduate capstone course in Sports Innovation, which has led to two students winning the start-up pitch competition on campus and the creation and development of RefReps, a sports officiating e-learning platform that has introduced over 30,000 high school students to sports officiating.