Releases and Statements

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Knight Commission Memorandum to NCAA President Mark Emmert and NCAA Board of Directors on NCAA Governance and Related Issues

LINK HERE to download as a PDF MEMORANDUM To: Mark Emmert, President, National Collegiate Athletic Association NCAA Division I Board of Directors From: William E. Kirwan and R. Gerald Turner, Co-Chairmen, Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics Subject: Recommendations on NCAA governance and related Division I issues Date: August 6, 2013 The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate…

2011 Financial Data

In its 2010 report, the Knight Commission recommended greater transparency of athletics finances for college sports noting that “real long-term progress in athletics financing across all NCAA Division I institutions requires the availability of clear, comparable, and complete financial data, together with strategies to improve accountability. The Commission also introduced new financial metrics that could…

Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics 2011-12 Research Grants Initiative

Shaping policy and practice in intercollegiate athletics for the benefit of students and institutions Executive summary (PDF) Background In May 2011, the Knight Commission announced a new initiative to fund research on policy issues in college sports. The program was intended to enhance the Commission’s long-standing legacy of recommending policy changes to improve the management…

Tribute to William C. Friday

Tribute to William C. Friday (July 13, 1920 – Oct. 12, 2012) William C. Friday, the founding co-chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, died on Friday, Oct. 12. He served as co-chairman when the Commission issued its landmark 1991 report calling for reforms to produce presidential control, academic and financial integrity in college…

Growing Impact of High Financial Stakes in College Sports Highlighted at Knight Commission Meeting

[ Sessions and audio with researchers about the role of athletics relating to institutional finances, student tuition and fees ]

The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics met in Washington, D.C. to hear research reports from higher education experts and scholars that reaffirmed the need for different policy approaches and stronger board oversight in college sports.

Research findings highlighted the widening divide in college sports between the “haves” and “have-nots,” and its potential impact on institutional finances, student tuition and fees. The divide also reveals itself in votes on NCAA rules that impact athlete well-being, academic standards and “the collegiate model.”

Thinking Beyond the Payoff from a Playoff

The Chicago Tribune published this opinion by Knight Commission co-chairs, William “Brit” Kirwan and R. Gerald Turner, on June 14, 2012: “Major change is on its way to big-time college football after years of debate among fans, sports media, Congress and even President Barack Obama about how the sport crowns its national champion. The conference…

Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics Supports Knight Commission Concept on Revenue Distribution

On June 13, 2012, the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics (COIA) endorsed the Knight Commission’s concept of revenue distribution from the Bowl Championship Series.  The COIA statement follows: “The Steering Committee of the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics (COIA) welcomes and supports a proposal by the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics to implement a distribution scheme for…

Promoting Academics

Knight Commission executive director Amy Perko was one of several individuals with an opinion published in the New York Times‘ “Room for Debate” forum titled, “March Madness?  What about Midterms?” Advocating policy change to emphasize the “college” in college sports has been the mission of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for more than two…

Knight Commission Memorandum on Distribution of BCS Revenues

The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics has distributed a communication to all FBS presidents and conference commissioners. The purpose of the April 20, 2012 communication is to offer a new approach to distributing shared media revenues that the Knight Commission believes should be discussed and considered by FBS conferences in conjunction with the discussions currently…