Faculty have been a bit dismayed at what appears to us as a marked increase in missed class time for many of our athletes.
The extension of the JV program may have something to do with this.
N e a r l y every faculty I know and have heard from is very supportive of athletics and we make every effort to accommodate our students and coaching staff.
Indeed, many faculty here were student-athletes in college as well (I was a mere student- surfer), so we understand its importance in our students’ lives.
Yet it’s difficult to feel that students are well served academically when they’re missing an inordinate amount of class time, and I would define “inordinate” as more than three classes (that’s my definition, to be clear, for others it is likely different).
The issue here, as I understand it, is not a binary either/or situation, but rather one of balance.
How can we serve our students well both as scholars and athletes?
Missing a lot of class, which presumably students are here for the class time, doesn’t seem to be serving them well.
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