Increased television exposure allows previously lower-level competitors to recruit against traditional football powers. Also, NCAA limits on the number of football scholarships have created greater parity among the big-time football programs each of which is competing for ‘food’ in the form of talented recruits as they strive to swim in the ocean of money generated … Read more
The Drake Group supports the introduction of strong TAO (transparency, accountability, oversight) measures at the NCAA and in the athletics programs at its member institutions to help restore academic integrity in higher education—reducing the level of academic corruption that enables America’s colleges and universities to pass off athletes who are academically, socially, and/or time disadvantaged, … Read more
The NCAA’s continued success at professionalizing big-time college athletics, while thwarting serious reform puts academic corruption and cheating on par with prostitution, illegal gambling, and speeding violations as acceptable forms of social misconduct in America— it’s OK so long as you don’t get caught. »Read more
Without transparency, accountability, and independent oversight, there is no way of knowing what really goes on at these centers. Reported improved academic performance is problematic. Put another way, there is no basis for knowing how much of the reported improvement in academic performance of college athletes is verifiable – in the sense that quality degrees … Read more
The formidable task of getting priorities right at Rutgers, and other schools supporting big-time football and men’s basketball programs, must be taken on by others. Reform-minded faculty members in the Rutgers 1000 will likely feel the really heavy weight of their reform lances — risking burnout when they face the defensive efforts of those opposing … Read more
Aside from federal intervention, there is no way that university and college presidents, governing boards, and/or faculty members can be motivated to do whatever is necessary to eliminate academic corruption in college sports. Put another way, these parties cannot be educated and/or embarrassed to do the right thing, no matter how logical it seems to … Read more
Valuable insights applicable to subsequent reform campaigns and the faculty role in college sports oversight were obtained via experience in the 1990s with projects related to environmental and national information infrastructure initiatives. For example, the campaign for systemic engineering education reform was the first to build on this experience. In turn, this campaign helped guide … Read more
Breaches of academic integrity exist at multiple levels in America’s higher education enterprise where integrity can be compromised by schools intent on winning at any cost. Rubber-stamp accreditation by weak, or, intimidated accreditation organizations make the breaching task a no-brainer for big-name schools. »Read more
Simply put, college presidents and administrators live in fear of violating the privacy provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). It is also ironic that FERPA is the very same act the NCAA and its member schools abuse for their own benefit — using the act to shield from public view the academic … Read more
In a nutshell, like graduation rates, the NCAA’s member institutions self assess and report graduation rates and academic progress rates without independent oversight. As Walter Byers, who served as NCAA executive director from 1951 to 1987, said when speaking of a college’s reporting on the necessary progress that has been made on the rehabilitation of … Read more