Boston University To Study Athletics Program
September 14, 2009 | General
Sept. 14, 2009
BOSTON - Boston University announced today that it has begun a year-long, campus-wide study of its athletic department as part of the NCAA Division I certification program. As mandated by the NCAA, the study will focus on four specific areas: academic integrity, governance and commitment to rules of compliance, commitment to gender and diversity, and student-athlete well-being.
The purpose of the athletics certification program, which the NCAA requires every 10 years, is to help ensure integrity in the institution's athletic department and to open it to the university community and the public.
Linda Wells, the Dean of BU's College of General Studies, will chair the Steering Committee comprised of administrators from across campus who will oversee four subcommittees. The membership of the subcommittees includes representatives from academics, administration, athletics, and student life. Seven of BU's undergraduate schools and colleges are represented, reflecting the academic programs in which the majority of student athletes are enrolled.
Within each area to be studied by the committee, the program has standards, known as operating principles, that the NCAA adopted to establish benchmarks by which all Division I members are evaluated.
When BU concludes its study, an external team of reviewers will conduct a three-day evaluation visit on campus. Those reviewers will be peers from other colleges, universities or conference offices. The peer-review team will report to the NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification. The Committee on Athletics Certification then will determine the institution's certification status and publicly announce the decision. Sanctions could be imposed for institutions that fail to conduct a comprehensive self-study or to correct identified problems.
The three options of certification status are certified, certified with conditions, and not certified. While institutions will have an opportunity to correct deficient areas, those institutions that do not take corrective actions may be ruled ineligible for NCAA championships.
The NCAA is a membership organization of colleges and universities that participate in intercollegiate athletics. The primary purpose of the Association is to maintain intercollegiate athletics as an integral part of the educational program and the athlete as an integral part of the student body. Activities of the NCAA membership include formulating rules of play for NCAA sports, conducting national championships, adopting and enforcing standards of eligibility, and studying all phases of intercollegiate athletics.
