Colleges spending far more on student athletes
Friday, June 18, 2010
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(06-18) 04:00 PDT Washington - --
Colleges have increased spending on athletes at almost twice the rate as on average students and the imbalance is pushing higher education in the U.S. toward "financial destabilization," the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics said Thursday.
The nonprofit group, which includes current and former university presidents and former athletes on its board, issued a 24-page report detailing steps schools should take to reduce sports expenses and realign the mission of athletics with that of the rest of the university.
Only seven U.S. sports programs generated enough revenue to have an operating profit in each of the past five years. At most schools, the growth in athletic spending has required greater subsidies from the university and state taxpayers and higher fees from the student body, the report said.
"The considerable financial pressures and ever-increasing spending in today's college sports system could lead to permanent and untenable competition between academics and athletics," the report said.
The report, produced after an 18-month-long study, is the third issued by the 20-year-old panel as it examines the business of college sports. While it carries no official weight, the commission's recommendations usually are considered seriously by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the main U.S. governing body of college sports.
The report shows that athletic department spending increased 37.5 percent to a median of $84,446 per athlete at 97 of 103 public schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision
Colleges have increased spending on athletes at almost twice the rate as on average students and the imbalance is pushing higher education in the U.S. toward "financial destabilization," the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics said Thursday.
The nonprofit group, which includes current and former university presidents and former athletes on its board, issued a 24-page report detailing steps schools should take to reduce sports expenses and realign the mission of athletics with that of the rest of the university.
Only seven U.S. sports programs generated enough revenue to have an operating profit in each of the past five years. At most schools, the growth in athletic spending has required greater subsidies from the university and state taxpayers and higher fees from the student body, the report said.
"The considerable financial pressures and ever-increasing spending in today's college sports system could lead to permanent and untenable competition between academics and athletics," the report said.
The report, produced after an 18-month-long study, is the third issued by the 20-year-old panel as it examines the business of college sports. While it carries no official weight, the commission's recommendations usually are considered seriously by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the main U.S. governing body of college sports.
The report shows that athletic department spending increased 37.5 percent to a median of $84,446 per athlete at 97 of 103 public schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/06/18/MN0D1E0SCG.DTL&type=education#ixzz0rJNqBKFj
