William E. “Brit” Kirwan, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland, presides over first meeting as co-chairman; NFL Hall of Famer Nick Buoniconti and Northwestern President Henry Bienen join Commission
Who: R. Gerald Turner, President of Southern Methodist University and Co-Chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
William E. “Brit” Kirwan, Chancellor, University System of Maryland and Co-Chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
Henry S. Bienen, President, Northwestern University
Nick Buoniconti, NFL Hall of Fame member and University of Miami trustee
Other Knight Commission members
What: Knight Commission meeting to discuss academic data and trends for all sports and specific recommendations to improve academic performance of baseball players, and to receive a report on financial issues in college sports (agenda below)
When: Monday, May 14, 9:00 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. EST.
Reporters will have a chance to talk with panelists and Commission members during breaks or at the conclusion of the final session.
Where: Pierce Room at The Willard InterContinental. 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C.
Note: A workroom will be provided for media in the Fillmore Room
Information on the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, including downloadable reports, meeting podcasts, biographies and pictures of Knight Commission members can be found on https://www.knightcommission.org. The meeting sessions will be accessible via podcast on the website after the conclusion of the event. The Commission will meet again in Washington, D.C. on October 15, 2007.
MEETING AGENDA
Monday, May 14, 2007 – Pierce Room, The Willard InterContinental, 1401 Pennsylvania Ave.
9:00 – 10:50 a.m. Academic Integrity: Report on the NCAA Academic Performance Program, academic data, trends, and the recommendations to improve academic performance of baseball players
Walter Harrison, president, University of Hartford, and chairman, NCAA Committee on Academic Performance
Kevin Lennon, vice president for membership services, NCAA
Kevin Weiberg, commissioner, Big 12 Conference, and member of the NCAA Baseball Academic Enhancement Working Group
11:00 – 12:45 p.m. Fiscal Responsibility: A report on new NCAA financial data and status of financial recommendations made by the NCAA Presidential Task Force on the Future of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics
Peter Likins, president emeritus, University of Arizona, and former chair, NCAA Presidential Task Force on the Future of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics
Todd Petr, director of research, NCAA
Jamie Pollard, director of athletics, Iowa State University
John Walda, president and chief executive officer, National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO)
12:45 – 1:00 p.m. Media Availability with members and guests
About the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
The Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics was formed by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in October 1989 in response to more than a decade of highly visible scandals in college sports. The goal of the commission was to study and report on reform efforts that recognize and emphasize academic values in a climate in which commercialization of college sports often overshadowed the underlying goals of higher education. The commission, which presented recommendations in a series of reports in the early 1990s and in the subsequent A Call to Action in 2001, continues to monitor and report on progress in increasing presidential control, academic integrity, financial integrity and independent certification of athletics programs.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invest in U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. For more, visit http://www.knightfdn.org.