A couple of days ago I discussed the story of Jerrell Powe, a
defensive tackle football player who has been fighting the NCAA for academic
eligibility to play for Ole Miss. At
issue was Powe’s high school record, which included courses taken at Penn
Foster High School.
In a press release issued today, the NCAA announced that it “partially
approved” an initial eligibility waiver.
What this means is that while Powe will be allowed to receive athletically related
financial aid, he is ineligible to actually practice or play…the reason why
Powe is getting that financial aid in the first place. Under this decision, the earliest Powe will
be eligible to play is Fall 2008. Ole
Miss officials have stated they plan to appeal the NCAA decision.
“The idea for determining if student-athletes
are academically eligible to participate in college sports is to ensure that
the rigors of practice and competition do not interfere with the primary reason
student-athletes enroll in college – to get an education,” said Kevin Lennon,
NCAA vice president of membership services. “Mr. Powe has not achieved
sufficient academic success under NCAA rules to permit athletics participation.”
In a separate ruling, NCAA officials expressed concern that
Powe had completed such a large amount of high school coursework “in an
unusually limited amount of time – much shorter than the average time it takes students
to complete similar courses. “ That
determination led NCAA officials to invalidate a portion of Powe’s high school
records.
According to an earlier report, Powe’s attorney was quoted
as saying he provided the NCAA with “2,000 pages of documents” from Penn
Foster High School
alone in an effort to gain eligibility for his client.
I wonder if the NCAA is aware that Penn Foster offers
self-paced programs? That means you can
move as slowly, or as QUICKLY, through the program as you are able to
successfully complete the work and pass the examinations. If the sticking point for the NCAA is that
Powe finished his work quickly, shouldn’t he actually be commended for doing
well academically and finishing his studies in an efficient manner? Instead, Powe is penalized for taking
advantage of a self-paced program…a program that is meant to be finished
quickly if a student applies themselves to their studies.
I see this as bad news not only for Penn Foster students,
but self-paced distance learning programs in general. If an organization like the NCAA is going to
turn up their noses at a distance-learning program which can be finished faster
than traditional brick-and-mortar programs, what does that mean for adult
students (like me) who are trying to wrap up their degrees for better
opportunities in the workplace? There is
already enough bias against distance learning programs without the NCAA adding
fuel to the fire.
Plenty of colleges and universities whose athletic programs
are governed by the NCAA also offer distance learning programs. If these schools offered a “fast-track”
degree of some kind would the NCAA cast a wary eye on their programs and the
athletes which participate in them?
I think the NCAA misses the point of what self-paced
programs are all about. I’m glad to see
this decision is being appealed, and I hope things work out in Jerrell Powe’s
favor.