Essay Sample on Division I Student-Athletes

Abstract

This research discusses on the criteria that can be used to recompense Division I student-athletes, recompensing is a way of rewarding someone for a quality work and in order encourage reoccurrence of a positive behavior and improvement in the future. This paper aims at the research carried out in the University of Houston found in Houston in Texas. The university was found to be one of the champions in athletics in Texas and had much contribution to the national teams. Some of the criteria found to be used by the university in compensating their players are; free boards, free meals, scholarships and monetary rewards. The student-athletes were happy on how they were being handled and this needs to be a lesson to all other institutions.

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Dedication

This work is dedicated to my sweetheart Florida and my two children Feinarda and Chris for their continued support. Your encouragement and support went a long way in helping me make this research a success .My sincere thanks also go to my loving mum Cecilia who did everything in supporting me.

Acknowledgment

Special acknowledgement to the almighty God for his protection during the period of this gratitude study. Sincere to my supervisor for his guidance and moral support. I sincerely acknowledge the management of Houston University for allowing me conduct the research in their school. .I also want to thank the student athlete of university of Houston for allowing me conduct my research successfully. Their participation in answering questions went a long way in making this research a success.

Chapter 1

Introduction

The debate over the management of the revenue from successful student-athlete programs has been a prominent fixture in the industry for decades (Murphy & Pace, 1994). Students who are normally ineligible for admission to institutes of higher education receive admission and tuition remission in exchange for their participation in the college's sports programs (Murphy & Pace, 1994). The organization governing collegiate athletes is the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which earned a $16 billion profit in 2015 (Chudacoff, 2015). While the business of collegiate sports is profitable for the managing entities, the student athletes who contribute their athletic skills to create these profits typically receive compensation in the form of access to education, free tuition, and free board. In fact, while college athletic programs and the NCAA have earned profits totaling in the billions since the formation of the NCAA, these authorities have prohibited student athletes from financially benefitting from their talents (NCAA, 2017).

As college athletic programs grew, the gross revenue they generated grew as well, and, in 1989, one of the first billion-dollar contracts was signed in connection with the successful business administration of college sports programs (Murphy & Pace, 1994). Profits from collegiate sports have continued to grow exponentially. In 2010, the NCAA collaborated with CBS and Turner Sports for a 14-year, $10.8 billion agreement for the media rights to collegiate men's basketball teams. During the 2013-2014 school year, the NCAA collected $497,600,000 in gross revenue (Grimmett-Norris, 2015). In 2018 alone, the NCAA generated over $11 billion in revenue (Staurowsky, 1996). It then distributed part of this revenue among participating higher education institutions, but with an understanding that they use funds from the NCAA to reinvest in their sports programs. Many have begun to argue that distribution of the revenue versus the financial needs of student athletes is disproportionate; therefore, creating a viable payment model is fundamental to motivating and rewarding these students for their work (Bertolas, Krejci, & Stanley, 2018; Grimmett-Norris, 2015; Roessler, 2016; Sanderson & Siegfried, 2015).

Financial inequity between athletes and the NCAA is especially problematic given that most college athletes identify as minorities and come from financially challenged backgrounds (Harper, 2018). Many view playing college sports, followed by professional sports, as a means of social and economic upward mobility (King & Springwood, 2001); however, less than 2% of college athletes become professional athletes after they leave college (Leeds, von Allmen, & Matheson, 2018). For the overwhelming majority of collegiate athletes, college sports serves as their only opportunity to benefit financially from their athletic talent (NCAA, 2018).

Although only a small number of collegiate athletes advance to professional careers (Leeds et al., 2018), under NCAA eligibility rules, once a student works out with a professional team, he or she is no longer eligible to play for a collegiate program (NCAA, 2018). These exceptional student athletes often experience self-imposed pressure to decide between continuing to play college sports while earning a college degree or foregoing a full college education to earn a considerable salary in the short term. Media scrutiny often heightens the pressure these student athletes experience concerning this decision (Chudacoff, 2015). These exceptional student athletes who choose to end their college careers for professional sports may experience great financial success at a young age, but they will face greater challenges maintaining and managing their economic status without a degree (Bush, 2017).

Those opposed to compensating college athletes argue that doing so diminishes the financial contributions that college sports provide to academic functions on campus, ultimately hurting all NCAA-affiliated institutions (Pflum, Nadler, & Miller, 2017). Many higher educational programs already struggle to meet student needs; many publicly funded institutions have used income generated by their sports programs to substitute for state-level funding cuts, and they claim their academic mission would fail without the added compensation from NCAA-generated events (Sheetz, 2016). In that sense, they argue, ensuring that collegiate athletic programs remain vigorous is a key component of meeting all students' needs. On the other hand, the NCAA and sports programs at collegiate institutions have begun to consider both the ethical and financial implications of financing models that rely on the free labor of college students who are largely from underprivileged homes. This study examines these arguments, and it closes with a recommendation that addresses the ethical and financial obligations that this debate raises.

Conclusion

Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to the history of the NCAA and its policies on compensation of student athletes. This exploration includes the policies that influence both the organizations' and players' incentives to accept an alternative compensation model. A summary of recent developments that have sparked a conversation about the need to reconsider collegiate athlete compensation follows. The discuss...