Academic support for student-athletes

Interim Provost Jeri Echeverria has issued the following memo regarding academic support for student-athletes:

As you may be aware, several members of our campus have been considering how Academic Affairs can assist in ensuring that academic advising for student-athletes is appropriate to campus and NCAA regulations.  In addition to the central role you as faculty play in upholding academic standards, I am writing to call your attention to a requirement affecting our student-athletes and to request your support for those who may qualify to compete in post-season play.

As a member institution of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), our campus community needs to be aware that the WAC recently changed one of its regulations to require that student-athletes pass a minimum of six units each semester in order to participate in post-season competition.  The "six unit rule" is designed to ensure that student-athletes who represent us in post-season competition are indeed our students and are making sufficient progress toward their degrees.  On our campus we have several sports that may qualify for consideration in post-season play and whose competition may occur before the close of the term.  These include football, baseball, golf, and track.  If any of these teams are invited to participate in post-season play, we may need early grade verifications from instructors before the close of the term or at the close of the final exam period.

For example, if our football team is invited to play in a bowl game this year, or is likely to be invited, we will need to certify that each member of the team is passing at least six units of coursework contributing to the successful completion of his degree.  We will need to accomplish this before the close of the term, even though the competition may occur weeks later.  Once we determine the probability of a bowl bid, I will send each of you with team members in your courses a letter with a grade verification form.  The form will ask you to indicate whether the student is expected to pass your course and will request a letter grade for your student-athlete before "regular" grades are due in January.  That date will be Dec. 18 for this term.  Should the baseball, golf and track teams have successful seasons in 2004, I will be making a similar request of appropriate faculty in spring.

I thank you in advance for your assistance in supporting all of our students, for ensuring the quality of our academic programs, and for working with Academic Affairs to ensure the very best for our student-athletes.