Trustees and Presidents: A Podcast for University Leaders On College Athletics

This podcast is all about disruption--as a leader, how do you handle this disruption, and what should folks who oversee athletics do to adapt to this environment. I am joined by Bob Zemsky, professor of higher education at the University of Pennsylvania, and author of "The College Stress Test: Tracking Institutional Futures Across a Crowded Market".

I also share some of my ideas for collegiate athletics, including indicators that leaders should be attending to now. Listen now to be ahead of the curve.

Dan Kane, a staff investigative reporter at the Raleigh (NC) News and Observer, followed and reported on the University of North Carolina's massive academic integrity scandal from the beginning. To this day, UNC has never been punished for the over 3,100 students (half which were athletes) who took "paper" classes. It seemed that the accreditors for the University were about to punish them, then all of the sudden,.... nothing. What happened? And how did the NCAA ignore a Pac12 President's suggestion to again provide an academic oversight function in late 2019? Dan and I unpack the issues in this week's podcast. 

This week, my conversation is with Phil Schubert, the President at Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas. When Phil became President in 2010, he and his Board had deliberate plans for growing the institution's profile and retention, and athletics played an integral part in that effort. Today, they are a successful member of the Southland Conference along with a brand new football stadium on campus. How did he make this work? Take a listen.

UPDATE: Abilene Christian's Men's Basketball team upset the University of Texas Longhorns in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.

Dr. Mike Williams, President of Faulkner University in Montgomery, Alabama discusses the challenges for becoming compliant with Title IX in athletics in an environment where you need to increase the number of males on your campus. He says that he was surprised after assuming the role as President as to how much time he would spend thinking about college athletics.

Also, I continue the conversation with the co-Chair of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, Dr. Carol Cartwright. Cartwright provides insight into the changes the Commission has guided the NCAA to implement, including reforms on behalf of student athletes in academic success and health and safety. The KCIA has put a premium on presidential leadership and oversight of athletics.

This week, I interviewed Lucas DaPrile, reporter for The State newspaper in South Carolina. DaPrile has been covering the story for some time, and has provided his readers insight into the reasons that the Board invited a consulting firm to assess the culture and competence of their oversight. The result? The consultants told the Board they must fix ‘fundamentally misguided governance culture." Listen for more details as to how this may have involved interference in the employment of the head football coach and the athletics director.

Val Ackerman has been around college, professional and international basketball for most of her life. From being former collegiate athlete at the University of Virginia, to becoming the Commissioner of the Big East Conference and one of Sports Business Journal's 50 most influential people in sports, Val has a perspective on how college athletics works that many will want to know. 

The Ivy League has one of the most storied traditions in all of college athletics. Comprised of eight institutions, they have worked together to establish standards and guidelines that allow for athletes to be students first, yet still compete for NCAA Championships. Attending an Ivy event means passion and school spirit, and certainly demonstrates that champions can be found in the League. My guest is former Commissioner Jeff Orleans.

A conversation with Donna Lopiano, President of Sports Management Resources, former women's athletics director at the University of Texas, and President of the Women's Sports Foundation. Dr. Lopiano has been meeting with Senators and members of the House, to advance legislation in the Federal Government to redefine college athletics. She is a co-author of a book, Unwinding Madness, which provides numerous examples of how higher education could restructure college athletics to benefit athletes and manage costs.

Linda Shoemaker, a member of the University of Colorado Board of Trustees, has been proactively advocating for concussion research and safety for many years, particularly in the sport of football. She has inserted the issue into the search for a new head football coach, and organized player safety presentations to her fellow Regents. She has some serious reservations about college athletics’ dependence on football and its revenue streams.

Carol Cartwright, former President at Kent State (Ohio) and Bowling Green (Ohio) Universities, sits down to discuss the impact that Division I athletics had in the decision making structure at both universities, from faculty to the Board of Trustees.