Read this and comment, then comment on 1-2 of your classmates' posts.
Let's Treat the Philosophy Department Like the Football Team
http://chronicle.com/interactives/ncaa-subsidies-commentary?cid=gs&utm_source=gs&utm_medium=en&elq=31733bf6827945f786d4d8b0de028ffa&elqCampaignId=1876&elqaid=6945&elqat=1&elqTrackId=f156681de0094694a618d7dfcddc544f
I believe that if an athletic program at a school is not bringing in enough money and is costing the school money it should be cut. In it's place the school can add a club or intramural team as a substitute. In the article, Walker talks about how the philosophy department at Murray State University was taken over by the English department, because it had too few majors and not enough interest. But the football team- which is not preforming at its peek, and isn't bring in much revenue either is still being funded. I believe that Murray State should get rid of their football team, because if they don't it is just showing the students and community that athletics is put at a higher value than academics. Isn't the whole point of going to a university is to get your education? If I ran a university, I would keep an academic program that isn't doing well over a football team that isn't doing well, because if their are students interested in a philosophy major, why not give them the best education they can get. No decent football athlete is going to chose a college that is in division one with a bad football team, and doesn't have the funds to give out scholarship.
ReplyDeleteI disagree about the sport being cut because it would not be fair to those participating in that sport,but I do like the idea you stated about adding a club or intramural team to replace and substitute for it.
DeleteI like the connection you made with the academics and athletics. I agree on the point that the whole purpose of going to a university is to receive your education. Athletics should come second.
DeleteIf the sport would in fact have to be cut, I think a club team would be a good idea instead. Also, I agree with the idea of academics coming first rather than the sport.
DeleteI 100% agree that the purpose of college is to get an education, and that sports are just an additional blessing. A school can continue with out athletics but once you take away the academics, you no longer have a school.
DeleteI agree that the purpose of college is to get an education. Athletics should come second. If there is not academic part in a university and just athletics the school would no longer be there.
DeleteI agree that sports should come after academics, and I also think it is a great idea to get students involved in more school activities or clubs. It develops a well rounded student outside of athletics.
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ReplyDeleteIf an athletic team is not bringing in enough revenue and their ticket sales are not making enough money for the cost of uniforms, travel, salaries, and scholarships that team simply needs to hold fundraisers and ask for several donations. I think cutting the program all together would upset the student body and potentially effect the enrollment of student athletes. This would be unfair to those students who participate in that sport and if one sport team is cut then wouldn't they all have to be cut? Under certain circumstances I guess there can be a potential way to help this situation such as substituting things for that missing sport, but I don't see a way around cutting one sport and not another even if that numbers are not there to help complete a team. I also believe that if an academic department does not have as much interest as another, both departments should be accessible to students. Students still need that course to graduate if it involves their career, so taking it away once again will drive multiple students out of your University or College. To counter my argument I am aware that say for instance in this article the football team at Murray State was not being funded and basically was eating away money for their University, this is obviously a huge problem and by taking it away would allow other opportunities. Another argument would be if a certain student athlete's sport were to be taken away and cut and they transfer or it effects their decision on attending that certain College or University then they clearly were not there for the right reasons and that is academics. Obviously stud athletes are not going to pick a school that does not have a good team or stable athletic program.
ReplyDeleteThere are numerous factors that can go into the banishment of a athletic department like football. But the biggest people and universities are worried about is the revenue. Also deciding whether or not to keep an athletic department like football over an academic program shouldn't be a contest, academics should come first. I know this would cause frustration at the university but if its simply not making the revenue, why keep it?
ReplyDeleteI disagree with the idea of cutting a sport if an athletic team is not generating enough money to provide uniforms, travel expenses, scholarships, and other team expenses. The problem with cutting the sport is the decrease of students at the university. Many students attend a certain university because sports, and if a sport is cut, then it could cause students to leave, especially the athletes of that specific sport. A solution to this issue could be fundraising. However, if a university cannot make enough money after fundraising, then it is probably best to cut it.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing i disagree with that even though a university might not make the money after fundraising they still shouldn't cut it until interest and participation is at a point of almost no return. In many schools one gender of the sport might make revenue but not the other. Due to title IX you couldn't cut the other genders sport unless you came up with an alternative.
DeleteIn the case of schools like TMC i would agree with you saying that it would be bad to cut a sports program because many students who participated would leave, but that would not be the case at a school like Murray State. They would only lose 10's out of their 1000's of students, so it wouldn't be nearly as big of a hit to them, especially if the program is costing them money
DeleteIf a sports team is not bringing in enough revenue from things such as ticket sales, the answer is not to just cut the program. If the school can not really afford to fund the team for this reason, efforts should be made to fund raise.Only after true efforts to keep the program would it be understandable to cut the program. Although I do not agree with cutting the program because just as the article said, big sports teams are the faces of colleges, and many students take pride in their schools athletics not only just by their record but by being a part of the atmosphere that the team creates. If the question came down to whether to cut an athletic team or a school program, the answer should be the sports team every time. At the end of the day, although athletics are what seems to be the face of universities, it is still a school so academics should always come first.
ReplyDeleteI agree Patrick Louis, college sports shouldn't be about money they should be about the love of the game. If they want to make it about money then they should pay their players
DeleteI disagree with cutting a sport mainly because it is truly hard to make large revenue off a sport. In a sport like football to make a large revenue off of the sport you need to be a football based school, a "power house'. Many schools especially at the lower divisions find it extremely difficult to make revenue off these sports. But as scholarships decrease, student-athletes have to reach farther in their pockets to pay for their schooling. The idea is that you should look for a school because of its education not because of the sport. If your degree is being dropped there is a chance it could be because its unsuccessful. A team can be unsuccessful and each individual could be okay, if their education is unsuccessful then their unsuccessful.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with cutting a sport mainly because it is truly hard to make large revenue off a sport. In a sport like football to make a large revenue off of the sport you need to be a football based school, a "power house'. Many schools especially at the lower divisions find it extremely difficult to make revenue off these sports. But as scholarships decrease, student-athletes have to reach farther in their pockets to pay for their schooling. The idea is that you should look for a school because of its education not because of the sport. If your degree is being dropped there is a chance it could be because its unsuccessful. A team can be unsuccessful and each individual could be okay, if their education is unsuccessful then their unsuccessful.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with cutting a sport. It is hard to make large revenue off any sport. Cutting the sport is not going to be beneficial. Sports are the faces of most colleges. People take pride in their college sports team.. Academics should always come first. If a team is unsuccessful in their sport then that is not going to be as life threatening as if you are unsuccessful in academics
ReplyDeleteTaking away a sport because it is not creating revenue for the school is not right. Schools should be promoting sports whether they bring in the big revenue or not. Promoting sports to young athletes can help get out there and find what they like. Or another look is college athletics. College athletics may have a few players, but those are the individuals that are interested in the sport and would like to help bring more revenue in. If there was a situation where the sport needed to be removed for very serious reasons then I understand, but they need to add something in return such as another sport or club. Different people have different interests so you cannot favor the one sport that has all the players and revenue.
ReplyDeleteAcademics are more important than sports in the long run, but to some people playing a sport helps them succeed in the academic world.
ReplyDeleteI think that athletics are certainly more viable for assets than any major that is struggling for majors. There is more to offer than just profit and competition. My high school's football team was very bad but many people still went to the games because it was just a way to do things socially. You would go and hang out with friends for a few hours. If you took this away from a University, which has to sell itself to prospective students, then you take away that social element and you leave students wondering what they will do for entertainment.
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