Ex-NFL athlete to speak at the University of Oregon about shifting sports culture

EUGENE, Ore. -- (Oct. 14, 2008) -- The UO School of Law's Appropriate Dispute Resolution Center will present "Shifting Sport Culture: Competition Not Conflict" with Don McPherson, activist and College Football Hall of Famer, on Monday, Oct. 20, in Eugene, and Tuesday, Oct. 21, in Portland.

For more than 20 years, McPherson has used the appeal of sport to address complex social issues. He has created innovative programs, supported community service providers and has provided educational seminars and lectures throughout North America.

The free public event will take place at 7 p.m. on Oct. 20, in the Knight Law Center, Room 175, 1515 Agate St. in Eugene. McPherson will give the same presentation from noon to 1 p.m. at the UO in Portland's White Stag Block, 70 N.W. Couch St., on Tuesday, Oct. 21.

The lecture will address how to reduce destructive conflict in sports and to promote the positive aspects of competition from pee wee leagues to professional international levels. The Competition Not Conflict program was established with a gift from UO athletic director Pat Kilkenny and his wife Stephanie. The program offers workshops, lectures, coach trainings and is part of the new Oregon Heroes student-community services partnership program.

As an athlete, McPherson was an all-American quarterback at Syracuse University and is a veteran of the National Football League, playing for the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Oilers, and the Canadian Football League. As captain of the undefeated 1987 Syracuse football team, McPherson placed second in the Heisman Trophy voting, set 22 school records, led the nation in passing and won 18 national "player of the year" awards. In 2008, McPherson was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame.

In his service to the community, which spans three decades, McPherson has delivered school and community based programs addressing issues such as drunk driving, alcohol and substance abuse, bullying, youth leadership and mentoring. He has testified before the United States Congress and worked closely with U.S. Departments of Education and Defense and the Pentagon on issues of sexual violence in education and the military, respectively.

Upon retiring from pro football in 1994, he joined Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society as national director of Athletes in Service to America, an AmeriCorps funded program. In 2002 he founded the Sports Leadership Institute at Adelphi University, for which he served as executive director until 2007.

To RSVP to the Portland event, please contact Courtney Croak at 541-346-3883 or ccroak1@uoregon.edu. No RSVP is required for the Eugene event.

About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Contact: Julie Brown, 541-346-3185, julbrown@uoregon.edu

Links: Competition Not Conflict, http://adr.uoregon.edu/cnc/

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