Essay on Academia vs. Athleticism - 1100 Words

Children’s hopes and dreams are embedded in their hearts and minds from when they are in elementary school. Some may mention they want to be doctors, nurses, and artists while others answer â€Å"I want to be famous.† There is no bigger dream among childhood sports than making it into a professional league. Those children feel a little bit of exposure will be enough to open the door and answer their prayers of stardom. The instructions are well known even among some of the youngest of players. They just need to play well in high school, then accept an athletic scholarship to a university, and excel in that sport while getting airtime on television. More often than not, the kids do not value their education, and they do just enough†¦show more content†¦In order to compete, the colleges were obligated to graduate at least half of their athletes (Real Sports). This change in the requirements resulted in students going to the top athletic schools with elemen tary scholastic abilities. While the colleges are allowing this disservice to their athletes, it is the NCAA that regulates and penalizes these institutions. In order justify students’ academic abilities, some schools have labeled these athletes as having learning disabilities; whereas, other schools have found their loophole by creating classes that did not require students to attend a class, and resulted in graduates with degrees that amount to nothing (Real Sports). Since the schools are behind the rules, the oversight would be weak making it difficult to reprimand. From time to time, they realize the need to discipline obvious offenders in order to remind other colleges of their power. In the article, â€Å"The NCAA and the Athletes It Fails,† a University of Texas classics professor argues, â€Å"The NCAA leadership will never take action that will kill the golden geese that generate huge television revenues and support the high salaries of its executivesâ⠂¬  (Palaima). He identifies the NCAA does not investigate these institutions because it is in the business of making money. The athletes bring the fans, and the fans bring the money. Athleticism has taken priority over