Your must-read briefing on what's driving the day in NCAA Division III.
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Colleges Are in Jeopardy
D3Playbook APRIL 15, 2020 | written by STEVE ULRICH your must-read briefing on what's driving the day in NCAA Division III
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>> Good Wednesday morning! It's Jackie Robinson Day. Now if we only had baseball.
>> Today's Word Count: 798. An easy morning read.
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1. "Colleges Are in Jeopardy"
by Goldie Blumenstyk, Chronicle of Higher Education
"The effects of the pandemic hit unevenly across higher ed.
College leaders spent the past month sending students home from campuses and overseeing a frantic pivot to remote learning. Now, before they’ve even taken a breath, new uncertainties loom: Can they reopen in the fall? Will students return? In what ways will colleges have to change? Will they survive at all?
Answers to most of these top-of-mind questions are still unknown. Still, you know things are dire when even the most steadfast defender of the viability of small colleges — Richard Ekman, president of the Council of Independent Colleges — now acknowledges that “quite a lot of colleges are in jeopardy.”
I’d never heard Ekman sound so concerned about small colleges’ survival. Usually he’s a reliable cheerleader, touting their ability to stave off closure with some last-ditch innovation or entrepreneurial venture, even as analysts and pundits predict their demise. But for institutions already struggling, the effects of Covid-19 could be decisive. As Ekman told me, “It’s just a lot harder if you don’t know if you’re going to be open in the fall.”
He’s worried not just for the students, professors, and other employees of these colleges, but also for the communities they’re in. Without these institutions, he said, “a lot of small towns would just die.”
>> Why It Matters: "College leaders are also worried about enrollment: whether freshmen will show up, whether current students will stick it out this semester in the remote format, and whether they’ll return in the summer or fall if courses are still online."
>> Between The Lines: "Regional state colleges could see some benefit, Garcia noted, if students feel strongly about staying close to home in the wake of the pandemic, or if they decide on the basis of affordability."
>> Reality Check: "The financial pictureis confounding to just about everyone. Most state legislatures haven’t set their budgets for next year, so public colleges don’t know what to expect — although they know it will be bad. Private colleges face a different challenge: Some are weighing layoffs or furloughs to ensure that they don’t fail the federal-financial responsibility test, which is based on assets and reserves held at the close of the fiscal year (typically June 30)."
>> Heard on the Street: “It’s the only leverage they have to reduce costs fast.” said Barbara Mistick, president of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities."
compiled by Madeline St. Amour, InsideHigherEd.com
"At some colleges, students are required to complete swim tests or other physical tests to graduate.
The vestiges of those traditions have now gone virtual at many institutions due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to Bloomberg.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology created two online classes for its physical education requirement, as well as an online program that teaches water safety and swimming basics so that students can fulfill the swim test requirement.
Other institutions have scrapped the swim test requirement altogether for seniors who hadn't yet completed it. Some, like Swarthmore College, are asking graduating seniors to fulfill the swim test remotely within one year."
3. #WatchD3
Our campaign to have past Division III athletics contests made available to those quarantined and looking for quality viewing continues.
Today's Feature
2013 Men's Lacrosse Championship
#3 RIT vs. #4 Stevenson
A championship match that came down to the wire with one team overcoming a three-goal deficit in the final 15 minutes to overcome a NCAA record-tying performance by an opposing player.
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4. The List
Basketball per-game average attendance in the day of ubiquitous sports channels.
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