Most people don’t know that the majority of college athletes do NOT receive athletic scholarships. Most athletes who receive athletic scholarships are receiving partial awards rather than the amounts covering the full cost of education. While 42 percent of college students report being “food insecure,” that percent among athletes is 60 percent with 51 percent … Read more
Student reporters and accomplished sports journalists who were judges in this year’s The Drake Group Education Fund Student Journalism Prize for Investigative Reporting on Intercollegiate Athletics participate in a wide-ranging conversation about college sports and the role of investigative journalism. Student journalists from Northwestern University and Quinnipiac University, winners of this year’s sports journalism contest … Read more
On the eve of March Madness, one of the biggest sports gambling days of the year, a former NBA referee and an attorney who were gambling addicts, a professional gambler and founder of a betting tips newsletter, and experts on match-fixing and treatment of gambling addiction discussed how gambling has the potential to destroy college … Read more
Jon Ericson, founding member and former Director of The Drake Group, draws on 35 years of higher education experience to describe how the system is fixed, who fixes it, and how the ‘race card’ is played to intimidate those who seek to expose exploitation of Black athletes. Ericson also explains how faculty and administrator conduct … Read more
A stellar panel of experts will explore what it looks like to truly cover the mental health needs of college athletes by moving beyond opinion and digging into the budget line items and numbers. After hiring a clinician or two, what are the other costs associated with college athletes’ mental health care? How are the investments currently … Read more
On September 5, 2023, Julie Sommer, Executive Director of The Drake Group Education Fund, issued the following statement via a national press release, cautioning higher education and athletics leaders to take immediate action on college athlete gambling and improper relationships between higher education institutions and the gambling industry. Sommer warned, “A tidal wave of match-fixing, … Read more
There is probably no more significant roadblock for college athletes seeking meaningful educations than the unreasonable amounts of time they must engage in practice, travel to competitions, and other athletics-related activities. College presidents and boards of trustees continue to seek more favorable conference memberships pursuing the highest media rights fee payouts, ignoring the impact of … Read more