Special Topics Course Proposal Form
SUFFOLK COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE
SPECIAL TOPICS COURSE PROPOSAL FORM
ORIGINATING CAMPUS: (X) Ammerman ( ) Eastern
( ) Grant
Date Submitted to Campus Dean: _____09/2015_____
To meet the ideals of Suffolk County Community College, new courses should, if appropriate, consider issues arising
from elements of cultural diversity in areas of textbook choice, selection of library and audio-visual materials, and
teaching methodology.
CAMPUS DEAN E-MAILS ENTIRE PROPOSAL PACKET TO THE COLLEGE CURRICULUM
COMMITTEE CHAIR AS A WORD DOCUMENT UPON ITS APPROVAL.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
PROCEDURES
1. Instructor downloads and drafts proposal and syllabus from Special Topics link on the Curriculum Website
2. Proposer sends the files (proposal and syllabus) electronically to the Academic Chair for distribution and support
from Academic Department.
3. Academic Chair initials the proposal upon approval and electronically forwards file and syllabus to the Campus
Dean.
4. Upon approval, the Campus Dean initials the proposal and electronically forwards file and syllabus to the College
Curriculum Committee Chair for posting on the Curriculum Website.
5. The College Curriculum Chair will electronically forward the files (including syllabus) to the College Associate Dean
for Curriculum and Assessment.
___________________________________________________________________________
Proposed by___Tom Flesher____
Date of Proposal_9/21/2015___
Department/Discipline_____Economics (Social Science)
Course #___295______
I.
Course Title___Sports Economics_______
RELATIONSHIP TO STUDENTS
A.
*Credit Hours_3__
Contact Hours_3__
Lecture Hours_3__
Lab/Studio Hours_0__
*See Curriculum Website for Credit/Contact Hours Formula.
II.
B.
Class Size: 35
C.
Course Fees
Lab Fees__0__
Course Fees_0___
RELATIONSHIP TO MASTER SCHEDULE
A.
**Proposed Semesters Course will run:
Spring_’16____
B.
**Projected Termination Date
Fall ’16
ALL FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY
9/2006
Special Topics Course Proposal Form
III.
Rationale for Course:
The economic way of thinking, cited in so many of our core learning outcomes, is nowhere better applied
than in the world of sports. Many different opportunities to evaluate rational decisionmaking exist, from
the free agency markets (where teams must convert productivity into financial value), to the existence of
minimum wages for players with minimal experience (which can be addressed using a monopsony model
not currently taught in Suffolk courses), to the application of labor market issues and public finance in
stadiums. These applications and extensions of core economics ideas can be gathered under the umbrella
of sports economics.
The success of the US Women’s National Team in the Women’s Soccer World Cup, the public finance
debate surrounding the successful Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics bid, the historic success of the 2015 New
York Mets, and the recent legal controversy surrounding the NCAA and student-athlete unionization
provide a backdrop that will generate interest.
IV.
Description of Course:
Microeconomic issues will be discussed and expanded on in the context of sports, highlighting
issues including labor markets, industrial organization, and price theory.
V.
Approvals
Department Approval Judith Travers
Date September 28, 2015
Academic Chair
Campus Dean Approval_____________
Date_______________
Campus Dean
ALL FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY
9/2006
Special Topics Course Proposal Form
SPECIAL TOPICS • COURSE SYLLABUS
I.
Course Number and Title: ECO 295, Sports Economics
II.
Description of Course: Microeconomic issues will be discussed and expanded on
in the context of sports, highlighting issues including labor markets, industrial organization,
and price theory.
III.
Course Objectives:
(What should students learn as a result of taking this course and how will they demonstrate that
learning?)
Upon completion of this course students will:
1. Recognize the relationship between productivity and value
2. Understand and describe the special features of the labor market in sports,
including monopoly and antitrust issues such as Major League Baseball and the
National Collegiate Athletics Association
3. Use public finance concepts to evaluate proposals for public subsidies for sports
teams
4. Demonstrate an understanding of rational choice through the lens of
coaching/managing strategy choices and player tactics
5. Create visualizations of data to demonstrate abstract statistical relationships
6. Demonstrate an understanding of core statistical methods and apply them to
one of the above learning outcomes
IV.
Required Texts and Materials:
(List textbooks, newspapers, journals, Internet resources, CD-ROMS, Videos, other teaching materials
to be used in the course.)
Sports Economics by Rodney Fort; timely news articles as appropriate.
V.
Assessment of Student Learning:
(Describe assessment measures, i.e., instruments that measure the attainment of course objectives.)
Exams will use constructed-response (i.e. modeling) questions; homework will be
assigned regularly using similar questions to generate feedback and assess learning.
Exercises in class will use Excel or other simple statistical software to teach data
visualization.
A statistical project evaluating data using publicly-available databases (e.g. Sports
Reference pages) will fulfill the department’s writing requirement and students will present
findings, including a data visualization of the main finding.
ALL FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY
9/2006
Special Topics Course Proposal Form
VI.
Weekly Outline of Topics and Assignments:
1. Introduction to Sports Economics
2. Statistical Methods
3. Demand and Revenue
4. Broadcast Rights
5. Cost, Profit, and Wins
6. Market Outcomes
7. Case study on contract negotiations (utilizing topics 5 and 6), Exam 1
8. Player Compensation
9. Labor Relations
10.Subsidies
11.Fort, “The Stadium Mess”
12.Taxes, Antitrust, and Competition Policy
13.The NCAA
14.Can we use NCAA statistics to predict pro performance?, Exam 2 (noncomprehensive)
15.Paper Presentations
ALL FORMS MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY
9/2006