Education Secretary On Coaches & Academics

Donate To GopherHole

I think he's got a point worth considering. (Unless one thinks that college basketball is just the farm system for the NBA and leagues overseas.)
 

Amid all the big budgets, high salaries for coaches, and perks for athletes, we sometimes forget that sports is not the primary purpose of higher ed.
 

Simple solutions according to me:

Change scholarships to either 2 or 3 year commitments. Even if the player leaves your program, that scholarship counts against your maximum allowed. This prevents schools from only recruiting one and done players, and puts more pressure on the school to keep the players in the program.

and/or

Make the NCAA tournament have a minimum graduation rate to qualify.
 

Considering he parlayed his job as Chicago Public School CEO into a spot in the cabinet amidst putrid graduation rates, I question his criticisms.

Sure, a lot of these kids aren't in school for the academics. Where does he want them to be? A lot of them take advantage of the opportunity. Why is it up to the coach to prod the student along?

They're adults, it's no longer time to be babysat. Learning to motivate yourself is part of the college experience.

Further, aren't there bigger problems to worry about?

There are 28,000 undergraduates at Minnesota and 14 play on the basketball team.
 


NateDawgUM said:
Considering he parlayed his job as Chicago Public School CEO into a spot in the cabinet amidst putrid graduation rates, I question his criticisms.

Sure, a lot of these kids aren't in school for the academics. Where does he want them to be? A lot of them take advantage of the opportunity. Why is it up to the coach to prod the student along?

They're adults, it's no longer time to be babysat. Learning to motivate yourself is part of the college experience.

Further, aren't there bigger problems to worry about?

There are 28,000 undergraduates at Minnesota and 14 play on the basketball team.
Click to expand...

The Chicago Public School system was a mess long before Arne Duncan got there and I would suggest a stint in a school system with a horrifying graduation rate would give you more insight about the important challenges in education than working in a toney suburban school district like Barrington.

These are YOUNG adults (18, 19, 20 years old), many are first-generation college students (google it) and creating an atmosphere that allows a student/athlete to have a successful academic experience IS the coaches responsibility--it's part of the contract. If that wasn't the case, as stated in previous posts, Clem Haskins would still be the coach of the Gophers. Don't forget, "the Monson years" weren't possible without the "Haskins Academic Scandal." Can't think of a "bigger problem" than that.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom