It’s Time to Expose the Big Lie Congress has been reluctant to strip the NCAA and its member universities of their tax-exempt status and so help limit the seemingly uncontrolled growth of professionalized big-time college sports entertainment. »Read more
The challenge before us is to get academics-over-athletics priorities re-established at America’s colleges and universities that are held captive to the NCAA’s commercial interests in its sports entertainment businesses. Such interests appear to be first and foremost to the NCAA, not the interests of college athletes and American taxpayers. Simply stated, the NCAA has a … Read more
Cheating scandals such as the one at the University of North Carolina are not limited to a few rogue universities. On the contrary, some violations of academic integrity are to be expected in any school that requires athletes to give so much time and attention to sports that an army of tutors and academic support … Read more
The Secretary is seemingly unaware of the fact that NCAA’s highly-touted APR is not a realistic measure of academic progress. In light of the intrinsic defects of the APR and the historic failure of the APR process to promote academic reforms, as well as the lack of reform-leadership abilities of school presidents, it is almost … Read more
One would think that stories keyed to the devastating impact of collateral damage to our nation’s education system and its students would cause public outrage and thus go viral—not so in a culture that apparently values sports and entertainment above academics and learning. So what’s up with collegiate athletics reform? »Read more
Since deadly football violence triggered President Theodore Roosevelt’s intervention back in 1905, it seems that the immediate and long-term collateral damage related to the nether world of the athletics entertainment businesses at America’s colleges and universities has never exceeded the acceptance threshold of the general public or government officials. »Read more
The latter question is likely on the minds of the Drakes as well as other reform-minded organizations and individuals. Will Secretary Duncan provide the leadership to change America’s dysfunctional system of higher education the mission of which has been hijacked by the sports entertainment industry, or, will he continue to flag problems but only provide … Read more
Since it is in the financial interest of conference commissioners, the NCAA and its member schools—presidents, trustees, ADs, coaches, and boosters—to portray athletes as legitimate, degree-seeking students, they are likely be quite forceful in the use of their influence and powers of intimidation to getwhat they want. What they want is the very best athletes—no … Read more
Standing in sharp contrast to the public’s reaction to the financial meltdown, oil drilling accidents and the like, the lack of public reaction to the reported cheating and academic corruption scandals at schools supporting big-time football and men’s basketball programs is stunning. The academic mission at many schools has been hijacked by the professional college … Read more
By all accounts, Emmert is a pragmatist who is unquestionably capable of making his predecessor, the late Myles Brand, and the NCAA’s school-president apologists appear as comparative lightweights. »Read more