Athletics key part of college

A year ago January, IU President Myles Brand delivered his speech, "Academics first: Reforming intercollegiate athletics," to the National Press Club. President Brand commented on how there exists a "disconnect" between the mission of academic institutions and the proliferation of NCAA Division IA athletics. The example he used to demonstrate the "disconnect" is the public's response to the Knight firing as compared to its response to a $105 million Lilly endowment donation to the Indiana Genomics Initiative.\n President Brand pointed out that the public's response to the Knight firing, by-far, eclipsed the response to the Lilly endowment donation.\n "The announcement of the genomics project drew only a handful of e-mails and letters, despite the fact that the genomics project will have dramatically greater significance in people's lives," Brand said.\n No one would dispute the fact that a cure for cancer or epilepsy or a genetic correction for heart disease would have an amazing effect on the human spirit. But it cannot be denied that intercollegiate sports also have an important effect. Failing to realize this fact only demonstrates a disconnect between academia and the world at large. College athletics are not only a part of university life but are threads in the fabric of American life as well. "March Madness" can give inspiration, enjoyment and relief from the doldrums of life.\n"University presidents believe their real job is to preserve and create environments where new knowledge can be discovered, knowledge that makes life richer, more rewarding, and, as in the case of the genome project, more livable," Brand said.\nHowever, universities also provide the soil from which people can grow and achieve socially, economically and spiritually as artists and athletes. New knowledge is not just something that is discovered under microscopes, in books and with mathematical formulas. Universities hold the potential to enable individuals to foster talents, not only intellectual, but athletic as well. Restricting the growth of athletic programs will only hinder the capacity of universities to help athletes achieve their full potential. Big Ten universities are in a good position to help athletes achieve goals and expand the breadth of their talents.\nReforming intercollegiate athletics is not needed so much as the reformation of the mission of colleges and universities. The umbrella of education and the discovery of knowledge does not stop at the bookmark but continues off the page, enriching the human spirit not only for life long learners, but also for sports fans and up-and-coming athletes.\nStaff vote: 9 - 4 - 2