Over the weekend of March 20th to 22nd, 2015, I had the opportunity to work as an

evaluator of student officials at the NIRSA National Championship Series Regional Basketball
Tournament (NCS Tournament) at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) in Amherst, MA.
The tournament was hosted on campus in the Student Recreation Center, a recently constructed
sports facility, with three basketball courts, an indoor running track, weight and cardio rooms,
changeroom facilities, multipurpose rooms for group exercise courses, offices for the Recreation
department staff, and one classroom. The facility is located on the west side of campus, outside
of the main academic buildings, and faces a large arena used for Varsity Athletics basketball and
ice hockey games, and a large multi-sport field area.
The tournament was hosted by UMasss Recreation department. The organizing
committee for the tournament was comprised primarily of students with support from two staff
members from the Recreation department. A unique aspect of this tournament was that the chair
of the organizing committee, responsible for overseeing the registration of 27 teams, game
schedule and pre-tournament communication with staff and participants, as well as the chair of
the host committee, responsible for arranging hotel rooms for 40 out of town staff and officials,
feeding all 50 tournament staff members and officials daily, and providing information on
lodging, food and parking to all participants, were both undergraduate students from UMass.
Having previously attended other NCS Tournaments over the last seven years, at the University
of Maryland, University of Iowa, University of California Los Angeles, and others, I was
accustomed to professional staff members or Graduate Assistants filling these types of roles and
was surprised to find them filled by undergraduate students (one of which was a junior). I believe

this is a good example of the types of students UMass enrolls (Input), the opportunities they offer
their undergraduate students on campus (Environment), and the end result of a great tournament
led by high quality student employees (Outcomes).
For this analysis, I plan on utilizing Astins E-I-O system describe system
Inputs
UMass is a public institution, founded in 1863 as a land grant institution, is the flagship
institution of the University of Massachusetts system (Points of Pride, n.d.). The Carnegie
Classification of Institutions of Higher Education considers UMass a large four-year, highly
residential, Research University with very high research activity (The Carnegie Classification of
Institutions of Higher Education, 2010).
The admission process to UMass is also very competitive with over 36,000 high-school students
applying for only 4,650 spots in 2013. Those being accepted had a mean high-school GPA of
3.72 on a 4.00 scale (Student Body and Admissions Statistics, n.d.).
Racial demographics. UMass, minority students make up 21% of total undergraduate enrollment
(Student Body and Admissions Statistics, n.d.), which is well below the national average for
public institutions from the most recent year reported, 2012, where minority students comprised
42% of enrolled students (National Center for Education Statistics, 2013).
U.S. News and World Report ranking of the 30th best public institution in the country
Environment
UMass is a public institution located in the small town of Amherst, MA, in mid-west
Massachusetts, with total enrollment of 28,635 for the Fall 2014 semester (UMass at a Glance,

n.d.). The institution is located on the northwest side of town and abuts farmland on the north
and west sides. The campus is a smorgasbord of buildings representing architectural styles from
the past 150 years. The campus is organized in such a way that the main academic,
administrative, and student union buildings are located around a small pond in the center of
campus. There is also an a large performing arts center at the south central side of campus, a very
1970s style poured concrete structure with neon lights and a large boulevard that leads up to it,
with a visitors center at the opposite end of the boulevard. This gives the impression to any new
comers to campus that performing arts is an important part of campus community. The other
focal point is the library, located almost exactly in the center of campus. At 26 stories, it is the
tallest university library in the United States (find source) and towers over all other structures on
campus. It can be seen from several miles away when approaching campus, but other than being
tall is utterly unremarkable, a 1960s style red brick structure with black windows. For anyone
who knows what the building is used for, its size and location exemplify the primary focus of
this institution higher education and research. This is further enhanced by the fact that the
library is immediately surrounded by buildings that serve the educational mission of the
institution, with auxiliary services (other than a student union with an attached hotel) being
located on the perimeter of campus.
The residential buildings on campus for the ***# of on campus students, are located in
two areas. On the south end, large 10+ story apartment towers from the 1970s house primarily
freshman and sophomore students, while colonial style low rise buildings on top of a hill house
principally upperclassmen and graduate students on the east side of campus. This geographic
distinction, particularly with the upperclassmen being located on top of a hill, gives the
impression of a hierarchy amongst the study body. While both were in adequate working order,

the upperclassmen accommodations had more pristine landscaping and appeared to be more well
maintained. This seemed to relate back to the institutions colonial roots and its focus on being a
Carnegie classified Research Institution, as it gave priority to the senior students working on
research related activities.
The remaining auxiliary services, such as student health, recreation and athletic facilities,
university police, and university physical plant services, were all located on the northern and
western periphery of the institution. Again, the physical location of these facilities gave the
impression that these services, while important, were not the focal purpose of the institution. The
athletics facilities, in particular, were located on the far western edges of campus, away from the
main entrance from the downtown of Amherst. The facilities, including a medium sized football
stadium, arena, baseball and softball fields, and many practice facilities, were contemporary and
appeared in good working condition, but did not scream we are an institution proud of our
athletic heritage like many Big Ten and Big Twelve conference schools I have previously
visited, such as Ohio State Universitys large stadium and arena near the center of campus, or
University of Texass 100,000+ seat stadium on campus. This environment signified to me the
importance of academics, not athletics at this institution. This is also evident by UMasss status
as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference, along with other Carnegie classified public Research
institutions such as Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Rhode Island, and the
University of Dayton (The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, 2010).
The
The tournament also featured leadership roles for