Dark Knight: Rutgers' Spend On Athletics Troubles Some Students

Group Of Rutgers Students Upset With School's Plan To Move Ahead With Stadium Renovations

Several Rutgers Univ. (RU) students said that they "could not help but link their own hardships to news that the state university planned to move ahead with $102[M] in football stadium renovations or that the athletic department received more than $2[M] in state earmarks when overall financing to Rutgers was being cut," according to Katie Thomas of the N.Y. TIMES. RU student Usha Persaud said, "It’s ridiculous, because there are so many more things they could be spending their money on, like technology in the classroom." RU increased tuition, room and board for undergraduate students by 6.5% this year, and the mood at the school "is sour here these days," as recent reports about "lax and sometimes secretive spending in the athletic department ... have come as students are being asked to accept new sacrifices." Sentiments on campus "have changed dramatically since" '06, when the football team was ranked as high as No. 2 in the country. But Thomas noted "even some football fans are reassessing whether university officials moved too quickly to capitalize on the team’s success, including authorizing the stadium renovation plan that is now likely to be scaled back because of the economy and anemic private donations." New Jersey state Sen. Raymond Lesniak said that he "hoped to raise about $10[M] in private donations, not enough to close the $30[M] financing gap, making it 'certain' that the stadium renovation would be delayed." RU BOG member George Zoffinger: "They had one good year, and everybody said this is the beginning of a trend. One year doesn't make a trend. That's the problem." But RU officials noted that the athletic department spend "did not come at the expense of student services," as the school's $50M athletics budget "accounted for less" than 3% of the school's total budget. And "even if the football team is not doing well, Rutgers's rise in athletic prominence has had positive effects on the university" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/18).

PROGRESS REPORTS: In N.Y., Peter Applebome wrote under the header, "Lure Of Big-Time Sports Propels Rutgers Despite Fiscal Worries." RU President Richard McCormick said that while the school "faces a severe cash crunch that is likely to scale back" the stadium project, "turning back from big-time sports is not an option." McCormick: "This is a policy that's been in place for a long time. We're going to stay the course." Applebome noted "whatever the costs and flaws, the lure of big-time sports in public institutions, and the idea of a payoff in applications and prestige for winning teams, seem to be stronger than ever" (N.Y. TIMES, 10/19).