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UDC
commissions task force for intercollegiate athletics
December 12, 2004
Washington, D.C. —University of the District
of Columbia president, Dr. William L. Pollard, has commissioned
a blue-ribbon task force of national leaders in athletics
to chart the course for intercollegiate athletics at UDC.
The sixteen-person task force held its first meeting December
9 on the University’s
Van Ness campus.
“This is an excellent opportunity for us to closely
review the role of athletics in the University of the District
of Columbia,” said Dr. Pollard. “On a higher
level, however, this also gives us an opportunity to explore
the role of intercollegiate athletics in any institution
of higher education in the nation.”
This distinguished task force, whose members include leaders
in academia, intercollegiate athletics and business, will
develop recommendations for the future of athletics at the
only public university in the District of Columbia. The establishment
of this task force is a critical component of the University’s
desire to address the NCAA violations disclosed in the University’s
internal investigation into the operations of the Division
II institution’s Intercollegiate Athletics program,
an investigation which led the University to announce on
November 18 that the 2004-2005 men and women’s basketball
seasons were cancelled.
The task force will study if an intercollegiate athletic
program is compatible with the academic mission of UDC as
the only urban land-grant university in the country. If they
find such a program is appropriate for the University, then
the task force will make recommendations as to the appropriate
level of participation for UDC.
Dr. Joseph Lang, former Athletics Director of Georgetown
University has agreed to serve on the task force, referring
to this as a great opportunity for all concerned. “This
is the perfect opportunity for the University of the District
of Columbia to take a look at the place of athletics in the
life of a university,” said Lang. “This is a
very useful exercise. Whatever decision is ultimately made,
it will be the result of significant input from a wide constituency.”
Joining Dr. Lang on the task force is Professor Percy Bates,
Director of Programs for Educational Opportunity in the School
of Education and faculty representative to the Advisory Board
on Intercollegiate Athletics at University of Michigan in
Ann Arbor . Professor Perry Wallace, a member of the law
faculty at the Washington College of Law at American University
and the first African-American to play varsity basketball
in the Southeastern Conference, has also agreed to be a task
force member, as has Mr. Michael Bennett, a v ice president
with Northrop Grumman Information Technology and a representative
to the National Bar Association’s Board of Governors.
Michelle V. Bryan, acting General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
for Laidlaw International andf ormer U.S.
Airways executive vice president-corporate affairs and general
counsel will be a task force member, along with Dr. Donald
N. Langenberg, Chancellor Emeritus to the University System
of Maryland and a current member of the UDC Board of Trustees.
Representatives of the University faculty, administration
and student government have also been included in the task
force.
The decision to convene the task force is part of in-depth
review of intercollegiate athletics at UDC, but according to
Dr. Pollard, the University will ultimately benefit from the
process. “This has been a difficult process for us,” said
Pollard. “But as we evaluate our program, we have a unique
opportunity to create a model program that reflects our commitment
to all our students, not just student athletes. I also believe
this can become a model for other colleges and universities.
Students must…and will…come first.”
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