“...the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Student Senate…stands opposed to the pending proposal from the NCAA President’s Council…” reads the resolution unanimously passed by the assembly last Friday. The proposal would eliminate athletic scholarships for student-athletes playing Division I sports in otherwise Division III schools, a move that would affect eight universities’ programs, among them RPI’s men’s hockey team.
“This proposal looks like it’s theoretically good, but is in actuality causing harm,” said Grand Marshal Mike Borzumate. “They’re trying to solve a problem that just isn’t there.”
The proposal grew out of a movement by a few schools in the Division III council to emphasize the division’s core commitment to academics over athletics, which some feel has been strayed from.
“Everyone endorses the goal of Division III,” said Borzumate, “but this would just cause problems we don’t have.”
The resolution details RPI’s commitment to a quality hockey program and its longstanding tradition and then describes how RPI athletes have not been shirking their academic responsibilities.
RPI athletes, in many cases, perform better academically than their peers in the school, the men’s hockey team in particular. The team garnered an overall GPA of 3.155 last semester, with 19 of the 25 members making the Dean’s List. In the athletic department as a whole, the GPA was 3.174, which is slightly higher than that of the general student population.
“...as we can identify no compelling positive benefit from the proposal, and many negative consequences, we strongly encourage the NCAA President’s Council to eliminate this proposal from consideration,” the resolution concludes.
“Academic performance of athletes is definitely not an issue here, and it appears that it’s not an issue at the other affected schools either,” Borzumate said.
The idea for the resolution grew out of discussions between Borzumate and Athletic Director Ken Ralph. “It seemed like the most effective thing that the Senate could do at this point,” said Borzumate.
Also at their meeting on Friday, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Don Steiner, an institute professor of nuclear engineering, to the Promotion and Tenure Committee. Students usually choose a professor at elections during GM Week, but complications arose last spring and the election did not take place.
Instead, the Senate formed a Special Council, under the leadership of Class of 2006 Senator Max Yates, to interview candidates for the appointment. Borzumate and Provost G.P. “Bud” Peterson met and discussed the issue, arriving at a list of four candidates for the position. The committee met with each of the candidates, asking them questions about goals and educational philosophies. The committee then met alone to discuss the professors and the individual members’ impressions.
“Any of the professors would have been great, but his philosophy and attitude set him apart,” Borzumate said of Steiner. “We were looking for someone who understood the balance between teaching and research, and I think we found someone who does.”
“It took a lot of debate since we wanted a real consensus among the group,” said Marcus Griep, freshman Senate secretary who served on the committee. “Steiner really stood out in all categories, and everyone liked how frank he was.”
Steiner will join seven other professors on the P&T committee: one from each of the schools and two selected by the faculty. He will serve a one-year term, and make suggestions to the provost for the advancement of professors.
