Early in her career as a learning specialist, Mary Willingham was in her office when a basketball player at the University of North Carolina walked in looking for help with his classwork. He couldn't read or write.
Wes Welker went to my friend's middle and high schools -- according to legend, he can't read. No doubt exaggerated, but the rumor is still repeated at her old school. EDIT: the funny thing about reading one of these sorts of stories with statistics about how things have changed and lots of stock quotes from important deans and so on -- all you have to do to know it's all a crock is to attend a couple of gen-ed non-major classes with stupid-sounding names at any large university in America. No one with any money wants the status quo to change, so as a collective we turn a blind eye very obviously. I find that kind of thing hilarious.
A CNN investigation found public universities across the country where many students in the basketball and football programs could read only up to an eighth-grade level.
this is ridiculous. They'll suspend a player for drug use, petty crimes etc but let them play or even ATTEND a top school without the ability to read at even a high school level. If you were interested in knowing what the priorities of most Americans is, well there you go.
I wouldn't even say that. You suspend a player for drug use or conduct that is against the law, that is saving face on the universities end. However, admission is a completely different story. Look at how much money colleges bring in from College Football alone (granted, this is probably the majority of sporting revenue for most colleges). From a business perspective, letting in a handful of athletes that are clearly not cut out for the academic rigor in exchange for millions of dollars is a no-brainer.
Agreed, if I were in charge of a Universities P&L and someone suggested I do something to jeopardize the revenue stream from my basketball or football program because the players couldn't read I'd probably say "hooked on phonics worked for me!"