The Drake Group, an organization of faculty and staff who seek to defend academic integrity in college sports is now “in residence” at the University of New Haven. The Drake Group was founded in 1999 when a distinguished group of college faculty, authors, and activists were invited to Drake University for a twenty-four-hour think tank in how to end academic corruption in college sport. Included in the conference were members of faculty senates, journalists, athletic directors, and members of organizations such as the NCAA and the Knight Foundation Commission on collegiate Sport.
Since its inception, the Drake Group has had no home base, but has held yearly meetings in cities throughout the United States. Drake Group members have significantly influenced public discourse on current issues and controversies in sport and higher education through articles and appearances in the national media. The Drake Group has co-sponsored the College Athletes Right to Know Act in Connecticut, sponsored conferences focused on major policy issues in collegiate sport, and met with Ralph Nader’s League of Fans to discuss changes in athletic scholarship policies. In the Fall of 2012, the NCAA adopted one of the Drake Group’s, most controversial proposals when it revived multi-year scholarships.
The University of New Haven is a private, top-tier comprehensive institution recognized as a national leader in experiential education. Founded in 1920 on the campus of Yale University in cooperation with Northeastern University, UNH moved to its current West Haven campus in 1960. The University provides its students with a unique combination of a solid liberal arts education and real-world, hands-on career and research opportunities. The Drake Group will reside in the university’s college of business. A major Drake Group goal is to coordinate local and national reform efforts with other groups that share its mission, goals, and/or proposals.