UNC-system President Thomas Ross is taking the right step in creating a task force to change hiring practices at North Carolina’s public universities. But he must take care to ensure that due consideration is given to the specific needs of each school’s athletic program.
On the whole, the working group he plans to assemble to set these regulations has the potential to make significant and necessary improvements.
One of the major issues Ross hopes to highlight is the sometimes-neglected relationship between coaches’ compensation and their athletes’ academic performance.
The working group should follow Ross’ vision and lay out new regulations that encourage hiring committees to make bonuses for coaches at least partially dependent on how well athletes do in the classroom.
All contracts for new coaches should be designed to reward the coaches if all their athletes graduate, or it they maintain a high GPA.
These bonuses would not be all that different from those given to coaches if their teams are invited to bowl games or win a national championship.
Given the embarrassment UNC-CH faced in the wake of the 2010 football scandal, Ross is absolutely right to make this a priority. All UNC-system schools will benefit from these regulations, but UNC-CH in particular needs help rehabilitating its academic reputation.
What the working group must avoid are heavy-handed regulations that could inhibit each campus’ ability to make hiring decisions suited to its particular needs.
A one-size-fits-all approach could weaken the UNC-system’s athletic programs, one of our university’s greatest sources of pride. There is no need for micromanagement, only oversight.
