Academic bridging programs?

[Steve19]

The apparent failure of Josh Chichester to meet academic requirements for admission highlights a question I have had since the APR issues started getting attention.

If the NCAA truly wants athletes to graduate, is there some provision that allows a university to enroll a recruit into a bridging program?

Historically disadvantaged South African high school pupils received an inferior and separate education under Apartheid. So few black students qualified for admission and so many bursaries were available, that any black student who qualified to attend university generally could count on going free of charge.

Universities decided to openly recruit black students who appeared to be qualifiable and then to provide them with special classes and tutors to get through the first year. Once they got through the first year, these students were on their own and their graduation rate was the same as their cohorts.

I understand that NCAA rules preclude athletes from receiving special tutoring, but is there some way to provide a bridging program, so that a student like Josh can have a chance?

 

[Jagdaddy]

They have that. It's called Michigan State University.

More seriously, I don't know if OSU could do this, but I'd personally be disappointed if they did. Brown v. Bd. of Educ. was over fifty years ago, most of its implementation on the ground occurred over 25 years ago, and athletes can already get into OSU with lower, although thankfully apparently not ridiculously lower, academic qualifications than ordinary kids. The time for assuming that certain kids can't cut it based on their skin color or enabling them to not cut it through the curse of low expectations and having special extra coddling for academic black kids (and all athletes do have access to extra tutoring anyway) is long past, if those ever really had merit evn in the immediate wake of Jim Crow.

I can recognize that on average black kids in America probably go to crappier shcools than white kids, but that's not a legal problem anymore, and to the extent it's a societal problem, the University isn't the place to fix it. I'm firmly in the Thomas Sowell, Paul McWhorter camp regarding these types of issues. The fact that life isn't entirely fair is not something that government enabling tends to fix very well.

 

[exhawg]

It's called Prop 48. If a HS student can't make it through the NCAA Clearinghouse, but still get into the school they can pay their own way for a year and take whatever remedial classes they need. They can't practice with the team, but they do have access to all of the academic advantages that the athletic program offers. The year counts against their illegibility, but they can get it back if they graduate in 4 years. They can still use their redshirt as well.
From what I've seen if a HS student can't make it through the NCAA Clearinghouse they don't have a chance to make it into OSU. They would either have to go to a prep school for a year or go to a college with open enrollment or MSU/NCst. :p

 

[OSU1978]

Students like Josh do have a chance. He did not do what he needed to in order to gain admission. Hopefully he makes it at L'ville and excels.

 

[Steve19]

So, athletes are allowed special tutoring? I didn't understand that and I went to great lengths to make myself available to any student who needed assistance when I taught undergrads at Ohio State. Had a few athletes in there but none needed any help, all were very good in the classroom, showed up, did the work, and got good grades (and I graded their exams with identity masked by the way).

It is a real shame that Josh did not make it, but if he didn't, how can he get into Louisville?