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VIA
committee discusses sports and the university
A
town hall meeting focuses on developing athletic
programs that fulfill TCU’s mission statement.
By
Lacey
Krause
Staff Reporter
Although the university’s athletic programs have
enjoyed remarkable success in the past five years, some
university officials aren’t satisfied with fan support.
“I’d be hard pressed to identify another unit
on campus that has enjoyed that level of success in that
time period,” Bob Vigeland, Strategies for Athletics
committee member and accounting department chair, said
Wednesday.
Low student attendance at athletic events is a problem
across the country, and TCU is no exception, said Davis
Babb, associate athletic director for development.
“This is not just a football resurgence,” Babb
said. “This is across the board, and the apathy is
still there. If now is not the time to support it, when
is?”
Approximately 80 people, including students, faculty and
staff, met Wednesday to discuss “Building a Stronger
Team: Athletics and the University.” The meeting
was the fifth of six town hall meetings organized by Chancellor
Victor Boschini’s Vision in Action group. Boschini
developed the VIA group to develop a three-to-five year
plan for the university’s future.
All students received an e-mail Tuesday inviting them
to the meeting. The meetings were originally targeted
toward faculty and staff, said Leo Munson, Strategic Planning
Steering committee co-chairman.
“What we discovered in the first town hall meetings
were that students were not only hanging around to listen,
but also stood up to offer statements and testimony,”
said Munson, assistant vice chancellor for academic support.
“We certainly don’t want them to feel they were
not included.”
TCU does a great job of making sure athletes get an education,
said Linda Moore, Faculty Senate liaison to the Coalition
on Intercollegiate Athletics.
“We look incredibly good,” said Moore, a social
work professor. “I think you see that when you look
at the graduation rate for athletes.”
The Athletic Academic Services office does a good job
of communicating with the rest of the campus, said Cheryl
Cantu-Mireles, academic advisor for the Center for Academic
Services.
“I really appreciate the fact that they’re willing
to work with other departments,” she said.
Participants also discussed on-campus housing for athletes,
a topic brought up via e-mail by Moncrief Hall Director
Kyle Sherer. Student athletes may become better integrated
into the campus if they are not concentrated in one residence
hall, Sherer said.
According to NCAA regulations, residence halls can’t
be comprised of more than 50 percent athletes, said Marc
Evans, director of athletics compliance.
“We have student athletes who live in almost every
dorm here,” he said.
Making student athletes part of TCU community is an ongoing
process, said Neil Dougherty, the head men’s basketball
coach. Dougherty said he encourages players to greet their
professors and peers when they see them on campus.
“It’s a process that has to continue to be nurtured,”
he said. “It goes beyond where they sleep. It’s
where they interact every day.”
Students with similar interests and needs could benefit
from living together, especially during their freshman
year, said Don Mills, vice chancellor for Student Affairs.
“We need to provide them with the kind of support
they’ll need to be successful,” he said.
However, all students need to interact with other students
from a variety of backgrounds throughout their college
career, he said.
“The most successful experience will be one that
allows them to have a diversity of experiences,”
Mills said. |
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Sarah
Greene/Staff Photographer
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| Neil
Dougherty, the head men’s basketball coach,
speaks at a town hall forum on athletics. |
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