1 Faculty Athletics Task Force: Subcommittee of Student Life Bruce Oppenheimer Stokes Peebles, chair Doug Perkins Virginia Shepherd Sharon Shields Marshall Summar

2 Specific concerns related to athletics in the Vanderbilt community Academic advising Admission standards Student athlete majors (distribution should mirror overall student body) Student-athlete academic progress and graduation Scheduling of games and practices interfere with academic endeavors

3 Areas in which faculty may be able to assist in ongoing athletic programs Participation in faculty fellows program Assist in recruiting - attend dinners, meet with recruits, academic program advice, etc. Meeting regularly with coaches Assist in academic advising Serve on search committees for athletic administration and coaches Involvement in setting admissions standards

4 Meetings with coaches- genuinely want more interaction with faculty Coaches feel isolated from the rest of the university community Attractive aspect of being at Vanderbilt: strong academic reputation, but the coaches do not interact with the academic side of the university Want to know professors in various departments

5 Coaches Concerns Class selection for upperclassmen is difficult Summer school budget only for football and basketball student-athletes In individual cases, both faculty advisors and academic advisors within the athletic department have dissuaded student-athletes from more time consuming majors Lack of career counseling for all students

6 Student-Athlete Concerns Possibility of scholarship reduction or elimination without knowledge of student with little warning “Funneling” student-athletes into specific majors which are perceived as more friendly to athletes in terms of grading, advising, and time constraints that interfere with practices

7 Student-Athlete Concerns Lack of communication between athletic academic counselors and academic department academic advisors –Athletic academic counselor turnover rate has been very high and thus these counselors do not understand requirements for majors –Individual student-athlete academic problems not recognized in timely fashion

8 Student-Athlete Concerns Some coaches are not recognizing student-athlete class schedules and special academic projects and events Priority of summer school opportunities: –Revenue generating sports have much greater access compared to other sports –Student athletes who are “struggling” also given priority

9 Student-Athlete Concerns Pressure to keep individual and group problems within the athletic community and not seek university-wide help –All health issues must go through training staff and use of student health discouraged to maintain pressure to compete –Use of university resources for social and personal problems discouraged

10 Student-Athlete Concerns Student-athletes do not have annual opportunity to evaluate coaches and academic advisors to enforce accountability of athletic staff (presently only seniors have “exit interview” opportunities)