Virginia Athletic Directors and School Law

A review of the literature indicates that there has been no previous studies on Virginia Athletic Directors (ADs) and their knowledge of school law. Several researchers have studied other educators' knowledge of school law. In general, previous studies on educators' knowledge of school law demonstrates that educators do not have a comprehensive working knowledge of school law. ADs differ from those studied previously due to the lack of unified certification requirements for ADs in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

This study was designed to measure Virginia interscholastic ADs' knowledge of job related school law. In addition, the study analyzed the data for any significant relationships between ADs' knowledge of school law and other variables. Such variables include age, experience, size of school district, level of education, administration and supervision endorsement, type of legal training, methods for obtaining current school law information and/or updates, membership in professional organizations, national certification level. Of the 315 Virginia public high school Ads, 305 were surveyed and 140 responded, for a response rate of 45.9%. Results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, and ANOVA analysis.

Statistical analysis revealed that ADs in larger schools scored significantly higher than ADs in smaller schools. Also, ADs with that possessed the 'Certified Athletic Administrator' (CAA) credential scored significantly higher than ADs that have not attained the CAA certification. Lastly, ADs that are members of both the state and national ADs association (VIAAA and NIAAA, respectively) scored significantly higher than ADs who are not members of both associations.