TO THE EDITOR:
The past failures of the Faculty Athletics Committee demonstrate that the University needs an entirely new athletics oversight body, openly elected by faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences from their own ranks. College faculty should take charge of athletic oversight because they teach nearly all courses taken by student athletes.
The department most tarnished by the scandal was in the College. The faculty who accommodated athletes looking for paper classes, free rides or easy grades were in College departments, including the former Department of African and Afro-American Studies and others. The scandal that corrupted UNC’s academic integrity disgraced the College, not our schools of law, medicine or social work.
Unless College faculty respond to this scandal by exercising direct and vigorous oversight of the academic experiences of UNC athletes, we will continue to leave our reputation hostage to others.
Harry Watson
History
Silvia Tomaskova
Anthropology
