By Wesley Sinor | wsinor@al.com
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on August 27, 2015 at 2:01 PM, updated August 27, 2015 at 2:03 PM
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An NCAA compliance expert believes there "could be a potential NCAA issue" at Auburn after the athletic department reportedly lobbied to keep an athlete-friendly undergraduate program from being eliminated.
Dr. David Ridpath, associate professor of sports administration at Ohio University and NCAA compliance expert, weighed in on the Auburn athletic department's apparent involvement in keeping the university's public administration major on the curriculum after the faculty voted to disband it.
"The biggest concern Auburn has is they need to explain why they kept (public administration)," Ridpath told AL.com on Thursday. "Are they keeping it for the sole purpose of clustering athletes there and keeping their eligibility there? That could be a potential NCAA issue."
According to The Wall Street Journal, athletic officials at Auburn lobbied school provost Timothy Boosinger to keep the public administration major on the curriculum after the faculty voted to disband it. The athletic department offered to subsidize the program, but the offer was turned down and the major was kept, Auburn confirmed to the Journal.
The "real problem," Ridpath says, lies with accreditation and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), which has not responded to an inquiry from AL.com. In December 2003, SACS placed Auburn on probation for what it felt was excessive trustee influence in day-to-day university matters, particularly athletics, following the "Jetgate" scandal.
"Part of accreditation is whether they have institutional control over their athletics program, and whether the athletics program improperly influences academics," Ridpath said. "The answer could come in on that, if there's some direct evidence. It's definitely still an accreditation issue because they brought it back after a faculty vote to disband it."
According to Auburn records, 16 current members of the Auburn football team, four members of the men's basketball team and three members of both the baseball and softball teams are majoring in or have completed bachelor's degrees in public administration. Thirty-one Auburn football players were public administration majors in 2013, and 26 in 2014, records show.
Auburn football's academic progress rate (APR) reached a program-low score of 935 in the 2008-09 school year, but rose in each of the next five years while more players declared themselves public administration majors.
If a team's APR score drops below the NCAA benchmark (currently a 930 four-year average) the sanctions could include loss of scholarships, reductions in practice time and potential postseason bans.
"If athletes are being funneled into that major for the sole purpose of keeping them eligible, then they are essentially manipulating academia," Ridpath said. "I don't know if that many athletes really want to major in public administration. I think Auburn has some questions to answer and they should do that. They should get out in front of this."
Joseph Aistrup, the dean at the College of Liberal Arts, told AL.com athletics did not influence his decision to recommend the program stay alive upon his arrival as the new head of the college in September 2013. Aistrup said an examination of grades within the major showed no concern for academic dishonesty, adding that the influx of athletes in the curriculum was also not a red flag.
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on August 27, 2015 at 2:01 PM, updated August 27, 2015 at 2:03 PM
0
An NCAA compliance expert believes there "could be a potential NCAA issue" at Auburn after the athletic department reportedly lobbied to keep an athlete-friendly undergraduate program from being eliminated.
Dr. David Ridpath, associate professor of sports administration at Ohio University and NCAA compliance expert, weighed in on the Auburn athletic department's apparent involvement in keeping the university's public administration major on the curriculum after the faculty voted to disband it.
"The biggest concern Auburn has is they need to explain why they kept (public administration)," Ridpath told AL.com on Thursday. "Are they keeping it for the sole purpose of clustering athletes there and keeping their eligibility there? That could be a potential NCAA issue."
According to The Wall Street Journal, athletic officials at Auburn lobbied school provost Timothy Boosinger to keep the public administration major on the curriculum after the faculty voted to disband it. The athletic department offered to subsidize the program, but the offer was turned down and the major was kept, Auburn confirmed to the Journal.
The "real problem," Ridpath says, lies with accreditation and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), which has not responded to an inquiry from AL.com. In December 2003, SACS placed Auburn on probation for what it felt was excessive trustee influence in day-to-day university matters, particularly athletics, following the "Jetgate" scandal.
"Part of accreditation is whether they have institutional control over their athletics program, and whether the athletics program improperly influences academics," Ridpath said. "The answer could come in on that, if there's some direct evidence. It's definitely still an accreditation issue because they brought it back after a faculty vote to disband it."
According to Auburn records, 16 current members of the Auburn football team, four members of the men's basketball team and three members of both the baseball and softball teams are majoring in or have completed bachelor's degrees in public administration. Thirty-one Auburn football players were public administration majors in 2013, and 26 in 2014, records show.
Auburn football's academic progress rate (APR) reached a program-low score of 935 in the 2008-09 school year, but rose in each of the next five years while more players declared themselves public administration majors.
If a team's APR score drops below the NCAA benchmark (currently a 930 four-year average) the sanctions could include loss of scholarships, reductions in practice time and potential postseason bans.
"If athletes are being funneled into that major for the sole purpose of keeping them eligible, then they are essentially manipulating academia," Ridpath said. "I don't know if that many athletes really want to major in public administration. I think Auburn has some questions to answer and they should do that. They should get out in front of this."
Joseph Aistrup, the dean at the College of Liberal Arts, told AL.com athletics did not influence his decision to recommend the program stay alive upon his arrival as the new head of the college in September 2013. Aistrup said an examination of grades within the major showed no concern for academic dishonesty, adding that the influx of athletes in the curriculum was also not a red flag.
