Total Campus Report - Efficient & valuable curated higher ed developments delivered once per week. |
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Publication Update: Total Campus Report will be taking a break until January 8, 2023. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! |
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NCAA Selects Next President |
SBJ & The Athletic broke the news Thursday morning of the NCAA selecting Massachusetts Governor Baker to succeed President Emmert in the role starting March 1, 2023. Baker, a former MBB student-athlete at Harvard, has served two terms as governor and is credited with bringing bipartisan leadership to the commonwealth. Baker: "The NCAA is confronting complex and significant challenges, but I am excited to get to work as the awesome opportunity college athletics provides to so many students is more than worth the challenge. And for the fans that faithfully fill stadiums, stands and gyms from coast to coast, I am eager to ensure the competitions we all love to follow are there for generations to come.” (link)
+ More from Baker during his intro presser thanks to Sports Illustrated’s Dellenger: “I think it’s worth doing. Yeah, it’s big and complicated, but so have been a lot of things I’ve done in my life. [...] I've always believed sports have tremendous power to bring people together. We are in a bit of a pivotal period for the NCAA. [...] I think the transfer portal is one element of a whole series of elements that needs to be part of the conversation going forward.” (link)
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Insights & Reactions…
+ Knight Commission CEO Perko via the AP’s Russo on a key challenge for Baker: “The NCAA receives zero dollars from the CFP, but it remains liable for the legal and health costs of FBS football. The explosion of revenues, just for FBS football, is at the heart of much of the controversy about the future of all of college sports.” (link)
+ SI’s Dellenger: “The NCAA targeted several former governors in the search. The organization wanted someone politically connected and got it.” (link)
+ The Athletic’s Auerbach: “This hire — and finalist pool — certainly signals the priorities of the NCAA's highest governing body right now. Success in other sectors a plus. Political experience key. The position goes to someone who had not previously worked in college sports (like recent P5 commish hires).” (link) + D1.ticker/Fox Sports’ Fischer: “Charlie Baker turns 67 next year and replaces a 69 year old retiring Mark Emmert. Does not portend to be a long term hire by the Board of Governors, but one chiefly focused on one issue only: getting that antitrust exemption.” (link)
+ The Athletic’s O’Neil: “This is the NCAA’s idea of out-of-the-box thinking. As transformations go, opting for a politician over a university president is like splitting the last hair on a bald man’s scalp. [...] He hits all of the W columns, and no, that’s not wins. He’s White, well-educated and wealthy, thanks to his job running a healthcare company. (He’s also about to get wealthier. His government job paid just $185,000; Emmert made $2.99 million.) [...] The NCAA chose him for one reason: not to transform the NCAA, but to protect it.” (link)
+ Extra Points purveyor Brown: “We're about to enter what should be an especially polarized legislative environment. Will Baker be able to make friends with lawmakers that he could afford to ignore while he was Governor? Could he replicate his governing coalition to ignore extremist types? Is such a thing even possible now? [...] It's still a complicated and quirky industry, but it's clear that the skill sets have shifted. Baker has a lot of experience in delegating and getting up to speed on new industries. How big of a deal will it be that he's never led a university or an athletic department before? Will he be swallowed up by the proverbial system, or will he have the 'juice' to push through any changes?” (link)
+ ESPN’s Thamel and Connelly on Baker’s position, with Thamel noting: “I think the first problem that Charlie Baker is going to have is you don't have control of football and football controls everything. … Also, Charlie Baker, welcome to your job, you have the single worst television contract in the history of college athletics – the NCAA basketball television contract which runs through 2032.” Connelly: “This job matters a lot and could matter and if Charlie Baker can come in and not just basically beg Congress to save all the things that NCAA is doing wrong, right now, if they're going to actually create a path moving forward … It would be amazing if the NCAA actually just sort of with whatever power it had actually stepped in and tried to provide leadership and a vision.” (link)
+ U.S. Representative Trahan (D-MA), a former Georgetown Volleyball student-athlete: “Governor Baker has been an extremely effective leader in Massachusetts, having steered our Commonwealth through some of the most difficult moments in recent history. The NCAA is at an inflection point where athletes and the millions of fans who root them on have largely lost faith in it as an organization. The association desperately needs a proven leader who personally understands the unique needs of the nearly 500,000 college athletes it serves and who is prepared to do what’s necessary to right the ship.” More from Sportico’s McCann & Caron. (link)
+ Interestingly, per Morning Consult, Baker is America’s most popular governor. (link) |
Here’s the full transcript from yesterday’s intro presser with new NCAA President Baker. Notably: “I’ve always just believed that sports have this tremendous power to bring people together. You just see it over and over again, the way in which athletics can transcend so many other divisions. I really do believe that we are at a bit of a pivotal period for the NCAA, and I really do think that the enthusiasm, the life and professional experiences I've had, the people I've gotten to know, the relationships I have can be a big part of helping all the folks involved in the NCAA, wherever they fit in that very significant organization, benefit from what we can put together going forward if we work together. [...] I think one of the things the job is, is it's an exercise in listening. My father always used to say to me that you will learn a lot more listening than you will talking. I think in my career, both in the public and private sector, one of the things I've done very well is listen. [...] For me, when people talk about the transitional period and the number of different things that are going on at this point in time, the question becomes how do you figure out a way to build a platform and get the support for that platform given where everybody sits and stands that can work going forward to serve the very different elements of the very large NCAA constituency, so that jewel, that opportunity that young people have to be part of a team, to learn about themselves and to build a foundation which in many cases will frame the rest of their lives can happen. That to me is the jewel.” (link)
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Charlie’s Challenges…
+ Sports Illustrated’s Forde: “For now, let’s grant Baker the benefit of the doubt and assume he will have some legitimate influence and stature. If that’s the case, four of the six most powerful people in college athletics will have arrived within the past three years—and from completely outside the space. … Now, the NCAA is going straight politician. The last career campus administrators in the group are Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey and Atlantic Coast Conference commish Jim Phillips. The pivot away from that profile, which had proliferated for decades, indicates how badly the previous generation screwed things up by being stubborn, tone deaf, greedy and myopic. It also indicates the shifting needs of the constituents. The conferences want deal-makers who can market them to media companies for the highest possible dollar. The NCAA wants someone who can convince politicians to produce legislation that keeps the association viable and out of its current barrage of lawsuits.” (link)
+ The Athletic’s Staples: “If you are relying on the federal government to produce the framework of the rules your business will run by, you’re not doing it right, but that’s what they think they have to do instead of just actually figuring out a solution on their own. … It’s clear what they want to do is have a voice in Washington D.C. and do this politically, instead of just coming up with common sense solutions for how to get their arms around this. It doesn’t mean it is impossible to figure this stuff out, but just thinking ‘Oh we’ll hire a politician and he’ll get Congress to save us,’ it’s not smart.” (link)
The Athletic’s Auerbach joins Connect/D1.ticker’s Fischer to discuss the appointment of new NCAA President Baker. Auerbach, who alongside SBJ broke the news: “I think they expected more of a response when they told me the name, but some people had gotten in my ear recently about politicians connected to Massachusetts and had pointed out that Baker was not running for reelection, so it was definitely a surprise, but it wasn’t totally out of the blue like some of these past hires, like the Big 12, Big Ten or Pac-12 hires. [...] But what I have been told about the finalists pool and others involved, this was not an outlier hire. [...] It really points to what the NCAA believes it needs right now to ensure its future looks somewhat like its past or at least the important tent pole items continue to exist.” On what feedback Auerbach has heard from industry sources: “A lot of people think it’s a good hire. There’s a lot of optimism around it. [...] The idea of having someone with a bipartisan background, even though dealing with this Congress is going to be a different thing, but I think people like the idea of someone who is going to be able to build bridges.” Lots more background on the search & what it means for membership. All on Connect. (link)
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By an 11-5 vote, UCLA is officially headed to the Big Ten. However, the Bruins will have to deliver an annual subsidy of $2M to $10M to Cal, implement a series of mitigation protocols to ensure student-athlete health & wellness, as well as academic focus measures, that cumulatively will cost a couple of million a year given the additional travel associated with its new league. UCLA AD Jarmond: “We’ve always been guided by what is best for our 25 teams and more than 700 student-athletes, and the Big Ten offers exciting new competitive opportunities on a bigger national media platform for our student-athletes to compete and showcase their talent.” (link); From Big Ten Commissioner Warren: “The Big Ten Conference is grateful to the University of California Board of Regents for respecting the decision of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to join our conference in 2024. The landscape of collegiate athletics is evolving, and the Big Ten Conference is in a position of stability and strength with unmatched opportunities, exposure and resources for our member institutions and student-athletes. With the collective goals to prioritize the health and well-being of our student-athletes and forward our academic and athletic mission under the umbrella of higher education, we will continue our methodical integration process of UCLA and USC into the Big Ten Conference.” (link); JohnCanzano.com’s namesake: “San Diego State becomes even more important. But I anticipate there could be at least one other expansion partner seriously considered. UNLV? SMU? Boise State? Gonzaga in multiple sports? Some other prospective member currently in a Power Five Conference?” (link)
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Presidents & Chancellors in the News |
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Our deepest condolences to the Iowa community, who mourns the passing of UI’s 15th president Sandy Boyd. Boyd served as president from 1969-81 before returning as a faculty member in 1996 and serving as interim president from 2002-03. President Wilson: “Sandy was beloved by the entire university community, and he will always remain one of the major figures in University of Iowa history. His impact and influence are deeply embedded in the character and excellence of this institution to this day. He represented who and what we are as an institution with integrity, grace, compassion, humor, and humanity, and he changed the university—and our society—for the better in profound and lasting ways.” (link)
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Interim Michigan State President Woodruff pens on the need for a “tech-talented future” and MSU’s leadership as an economic driver for the state in Crain’s Detroit Business, reporting that 58% of MSU engineering graduates choose to work in Michigan’s innovation ecosystem. Woodruff highlights the university’s recent tech-driven initiatives, such as a partnership with Apple for the first-in-the-nation Apple Developer Academy and research into autonomous vehicles and associated technology. Woodruff: “I am especially enthusiastic about plans for a new MSU engineering and digital teaching and research innovation center, which will help lead our efforts to steer the industries of the future. This facility will enhance MSU’s strengths in disciplines such as advanced mobility, material science, advanced manufacturing, quantum computing, composite materials and solar cell technology. Partnership in this center with the state of Michigan and industries that rely on our students, together with the governor’s new Michigan Achievement Scholarship program, is the leavening we need to see a rise in economic growth for all.” (link)
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In an op-ed, Nebraska System President Carter advocated for the university as the most powerful driver of workforce development in the state, calling for an urgent increase in a talented worker pool as the state faces 80K open jobs despite having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country. As part of the system’s efforts to increase enrollment, Nebraska will look to increase scholarships and implement creative pricing strategies for out-of-state students. Carter: “If we want to make a serious dent in filling those 80,000 open jobs, we need to grow our workforce by leaps and bounds. That includes keeping our home-grown talent here, and also attracting many more skilled workers to our state. As a primary driver of workforce development for Nebraska, it’s the university’s job to help lead the way. …if Nebraska is going to meaningfully grow its population base, the University of Nebraska System must be much more competitive for students, within our state and beyond.” (link)
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In a subscriber-only column, the Columbus Dispatch asks: could former Ohio Governor Kasich be a candidate for Ohio State’s presidency? (link) |
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Sports Illustrated's Johnson details what an HC search looks like from an AD’s perspective and notes that search firms can serve a number of purposes. “Sometimes it can just be for the logistics of setting up interviews to keep the process extremely close to the vest. Some other commonly cited reasons to hire a search firm have to do with plausible deniability, confidentiality and to cover your bases on a background check.” Anachel CEO Cecil tells Johnson HCs “are de facto CEOs. Good athletic directors and even general managers understand the importance of having a coach who understands, and is prepared to be that public-facing CEO. It is more than the X’s and O’s. The X’s and O’s are why they’re in the room, however, staying in the room can be impacted overnight by a reputational fumble of their public persona. Progressive ADs or GMs want to do everything that they can to make sure that that their football CEO is not only representing their billion-dollar business but their constituents, which are thousands of student-athletes, [players], alumni, donors, boosters, legislators, and supporters who where their logo across the globe. The business has changed.” Lots more. (link); The Athletic’s Ubben writes on why more (and longer) guaranteed football head coaching contracts are going to hit the market. An unnamed AD: “When something like this happens a few times in college sports, it’s only going to be more and more accepted and the outlier eventually becomes the norm.” Another: “You can say you won’t make a deal like that, but in the new market, not making a deal like that is the difference between getting a coach and not getting him.” Ubben: “Drawing that line and hiring a coach who doesn’t measure up to the success that other big-time candidates surely would have had (imaginary success, it’s worth reminding) is a gamble that could cost an athletic director his or her job. Do the big contract? Write the big check? An athletic director can more easily point to the market rate or the pressure from boosters and pass the blame if it doesn’t work.” (link)
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Iowa will relaunch the search for its next vice president for medical affairs and Carver College of Medicine dean after pausing the initial search in October. (link) |
The University System of Maryland named Baltimore Associate Provost Caraco as its next associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. In the position, Caraco will work closely with the provosts of all 12 USM institutions, leaders of community colleges, the Maryland Higher Education Commission and Maryland State Department of Education. (link) |
Michigan appointed Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering Associate Director Duraisamy to a three-year appointment as director, effective January 1. (link) |
During Friday’s Michigan State Board of Trustees meeting, Trustee Foster commented that there is “not a viable path” to reinstate Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving. "Most prohibitively, without sufficient existing fundraising, there is not a path to build a new competition pool without assessing a fee to the entire student body, something we do not wish to do." MSU is currently building a new $154M rec center with a competition swimming pool, but student fees will fund the center. (link)
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The Minnesota Board of Regents is considering a proposal to ban members from taking positions with the university following former regent McMillan's appointment as chancellor of the Duluth campus. Regent Rosha, one of two regents who opposed McMillan’s appointment, is pushing for the ban, saying it would send the message to the public that regents are “not here for personal advancement." (link); The board also voted to appointment regent and retired federal magistrate judge Mayeron as vice chair. (link)
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Perez Morris Founding Partner Perez will join Ohio State’s Board of Trustees. (link) |
Wisconsin Chancellor Mnookin named a 17-member search committee tasked with working with executive search firm WittKieffer to identify the university’s next provost and chief academic officer. (link) |
Wisconsin held on-campus conversations with two finalists for the open Chief Human Resources Officer position: interim Associate Vice chancellor and Chief Human Resources Officer Sheehan and Tennessee Associate Vice Chancellor for Human Resources Lucal. (link) |
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The National Science Foundation released its updated data tables on Higher Education Research and Development for FY21. In its list of all higher education institutions based on total R&D expenditures, Michigan ranks No. 3 with $1.6B, followed by Wisconsin at No. 8 with $1.4B, Ohio State at No. 12 with $1.24B, Maryland at No. 17 at $1.14B and Minnesota at No. 22 with $1.07B in the top 25. Full list in Table 5. (link)
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Iowa State Auditor Sand concluded a four-year review of a $1.2B, 50-year deal made by Iowa for the private operations of its utilities system, not identifying any conflicts of interest or regulatory violations but noting that it amounts to the “largest financial obligation ever held by Iowa taxpayers.” Sand: “In the event the university’s investment of the proceeds does not meet the return on investment needed to pay the amounts due to the concessionaire, Iowa taxpayers may be responsible for making up any shortfall.” (link)
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Michigan released its 2022-23 Faculty and Staff Salary Disclosure Report, indicating that faculty and staff salary increases averaged 4.1% while merit salary increases for executive officers averaged 4.19% and for deans averaged 5.15%. (link, full report - link)
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Minnesota FB HC Fleck’s new seven-year, $42M deal adds $1M to the AC pool, effective February 1, 2023, bringing it to approximately $5.5M. New deal runs through the 2029 season. Should Fleck leave, he owes the Gophers $10M in 2023, $7M in 2024, $5M in 2025, $4M in 2026, $3M in 2027, $2M in 2028 and none in 2029. On the flipside, the school owes him 65% of base salary and supplemental compensation for the rest of the contract if he is fired without cause. $500K for a CFP championship game appearance, plus other bowl-related bonus opportunities and extra comp for a winning record in Big Ten play in the amount of $50K per win above .500. Board of Regents approval is pending, next meeting is December 16. (link)
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Nebraska’s “Open Nebraska” program has saved students $13M in textbook costs over recent years by making access to digital course materials more widely available. (link) |
Penn State’s Giving Tuesday event had its largest show of support to date, with 10,746 alumni, faculty, staff, students and supporters contributing 13,170 gifts totaling over $1.25M for 150 participating campaigns. (link) |
Penn State alumnus Houston made a seven-figure estate commitment to establish the Robert J. Houston Military Excellence Scholarship in the Eberly College of Science, an annual award for undergraduates and graduates who are military veterans, enrolled in ROTC or from military families. The inaugural awarding will begin with six separate $10K scholarships. (link)
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Penn State’s Office of Government and Community Relations is circulating a petition asking PSU stakeholders to support the university’s request for increased state funding in 2023-24. The petition seeks to raise awareness of the discrepancy in funding between PSU and other state schools in Pennsylvania, with PSU receiving the lowest funding in the state on a per-student basis. For the upcoming budget year, PSU is requesting a 47.6% increase in general support appropriations to match the state’s per-student investment at other public universities. The petition currently has over 3,500 signatures and runs through January 8. (link)
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The Purdue Board of Trustees approved the naming of the Evan and Sue Ann Werling Comparative Oncology Research Center, part of the College of Veterinary Medicine, in recognition of a $10M gift from the Werlings. The gift will also fund the Evan and Sue Ann Werling Professorship of Comparative Oncology and establish an endowment to provide unrestricted funds for cancer research and clinical trials. (link)
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Rutgers hired Huron Consulting Group to assess the athletic department’s finances and the firm has delivered a draft of the report to RU Executive VP/CFO Gower. Former Big Ten Commissioner Delany and former Duke AD White, both of whom now work with Huron, were brought in specifically for this review. Gower: “The report, which is intended to provide an overall review of the options for increasing revenues and for enhancing the business operations at the Department of Athletics, is not final. I anticipate that we will have some comments on the report when it is finalized.” Scarlet Knights Senior Associate AD/Chief Communications Officer Phillips: “This report was not commissioned by athletics, and we understand it is still being worked on. We look forward to any professional review.” NorthJersey.com says Rutgers will pay Huron “as much as $200,000” for its work. (link)
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The UW Board of Regents awarded every system chancellor a 2% salary increase, bumping Wisconsin Chancellor Mnookin’s salary from $750K to $765K. (link) |
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Ohio State’s Max M. Fisher College of Business celebrated the groundbreaking of the Daley Family Pavilion and Daley Family Terrace, which will provide over 13K-sq. ft. of permanent entertaining space and expanded educational activities via an all-season structure and outdoor area. Construction is expected to begin in early 2023 for an opening in late 2023. (link)
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Iowa Governor Reynolds issued a directive banning the TikTok app from all state-owned devices, with Iowa Board of Regents President Richards passing the order to all institutions, including Iowa and Iowa State, under the board’s jurisdiction. Of note, the order requires institutions to “cease the creation, posting, and active management of content on all TikTok accounts owned or controlled by the institution.” (link)
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In October, Iowa posted its first of three court-ordered Title IX monitor reports as part of its required action items following a settlement with female student-athletes who sued the school for violating Title IX. Iowa City-based attorney Larew, who represents the ladies, penned a letter to Tulane Sports Law Program co-Founder Feldman, whom Larew nominated to serve as UI’s Title IX monitor for the next three years as part of the settlement: “We have concerns that are both procedural and substantive regarding the initial report. … First, as a matter of process, we were surprised to first learn of your initial report by reading about it in the newspaper. Neither we nor our clients were ever contacted during your initial review process nor in what was described in media reports as a one-day visit to the University of Iowa campus in August…. Second, as a matter of substance, the initial report sets forth conclusions, but does not describe the data reviewed or relied upon, or the modes of analysis used.” More on the 11-page report, including Feldman’s assessment that “in the aggregate” the school appears to be in compliance, and where he did find discrepancies, such as equitable facilities and athletic opportunities, he found the Hawkeyes are on track to comply. (link)
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The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear an appeal from Michigan State regarding the impact eliminating its men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams had on its Title IX compliance. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed with an initial district court ruling in MSU’s favor and sent the case back, saying that it needed to base its decision about MSU’s compliance with the proportionality standard in a different way than the percentages. The three-judge panel ruled that the decision needs to be based on the numerical gap in the school's men's and women's athlete populations caused by the women's team's elimination and how that number compares to the size of a "viable" team. MSU made its bid for appeal of that ruling to SCOTUS in late July, but in the meantime, the case continued moving forward in the lower courts. MSU: “While disappointed, we accept the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision. Over the coming days and weeks, MSU will focus on the trial court proceedings, including the submission of a compliance plan.” (link)
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Michigan Court of Claims Judge Swartzle has given Michigan State 10 days to turn over to the Detroit Free Press agreements between the school and two of its largest donors, Ishbia and St. Andre. In his opinion filed on Monday, Swartzle: “MSU has not pointed this Court to a single authority applying Michigan law that supports its contention that the amounts of the gifts, the payment schedules, or the donors' expressed desires for how the university should use the funds constitute private or confidential information. Both Ishbia and St. Andre made non-anonymous donations to MSU (a public entity), and their subjective belief that the amount of those gifts would remain confidential does not establish that the agreements contain private or confidential information.” (link)
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The Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that it would not re-hear unsettled federal lawsuits against Ohio State regarding sexual abuse by late team doctor Strauss. (link) |
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Deals, Partnerships & Collaborations |
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Wisconsin and the U.S. Department of Defense will partner on a two-year pilot program that includes training, consultation and resources for environmental-related issues for the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne). The Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies will serve as the campus lead for the partnership. (link)
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