Rutgers Professor’s Comments About Minority Student-Athletes Called Racist
TRENTON, N.J
A longtime critic of Rutgers University’s drive into big-time sports is being criticized over a newspaper article comment that university officials have branded as racist.
October 1st, 2007 at 3:35 pm
A professor making an argument for not lowering academic standards to cater to athletes is not racist. It’s the hard truth to accept. Fortunately for the race-baiters in the academic world, if you don’t like the message then the messanger must be racist.
October 2nd, 2007 at 10:04 pm
In his laudable attempts to support academic integrity and diversity Dr. Dowling seems to have lost emotional control. There is never any excuse, intellectual or otherwise, to target a racial group as “functional illiterates”. At every public land-grant university in this country a small percentage of students are admitted who may be deemed at risk and they represent ALL races. They have academic promise and often many other talents (music, writing, acting, problem-solving, leadership, and yes, athletic). Again, they represent ALL races. The land-grant mission involves offering opportunity to a wide range of learners from different economic, social, and educational backgrounds.
The questionable interrelationship of athletics and institutional support should be investigated on SOME campuses but minority (mostly African American) athletes should not be made the scapegoats of such politically- charged discussions. For those who support Dr. Dowling’s position I await your public outcries about the “legacy” admissions of white students who are “at-risk” but whose alumni lineage and/or political support allow them to quietly enter the university under the appearance of well-healed regular admits. Three years ago at Texas A&M University we took race and legacy out of the admissions process yet were able to maintain our commitment to diversity and high standards of academic excellence. That decision was supported by all constituent groups and the strong leadership of former president Robert Gates.
My question to Dr. Dowling is: Why didn’t you balance your wholesale public disparagement of minority athletes at Rutgers with an outcry of public support of those athletes, minority and majority, who were deemed “at-risk” upon entry but who now are academic success stories. I guess you didn’t read about that on the back of the cereal box.
October 8th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
It is pathetic that our minority youth are being used as pawns by majority institutions and Professors, including Dr. Dowling. To those students who are desirous of obtaining an excellent education and the opportunity to participate in athletic and other activities, we welcome you to Bowie State University.