Yet Another – Brown Drops Program

The men’s and women’s fencing teams, men’s wrestling team and women’s ski team will be cut, if President Ruth Simmons and the Corporation accept a plan recommended by the Athletics Review Committee. If the Corporation approves the plan at its meeting next month, these cuts will be implemented immediately, effective at the beginning of the 2011-12 academic year. The committee outlined the plan in its report released today at 5 p.m.

The reduction from 37 to 34 intercollegiate teams is only one part of the committee’s larger set of recommendations. Another element of the plan outlined in the report would increase the annual athletics budget by roughly 10 percent, according to committee chair Richard Spies, executive vice president for planning and senior adviser to the president. The budget increase and the reallocation of funds from the eliminated teams will support increased salaries for current staff and the hiring of additional administrative and medical staff in the department.

The report also includes a recommendation to decrease the number of recruited athlete admission spots from 225 to 195. Half of this decrease will occur through the elimination of admission spots for the four cut teams, but the remainder “can be realized through some selective tightening” by the athletics and admission offices, according to the report. The other 15 spots will be taken from the remaining varsity teams. Several teams will then “go forward without any dedicated admissions slots,” the report states. A decision on which teams will lose recruiting positions has not yet been made, Spies said.

As part of the decision to eliminate two men’s and two women’s programs, a women’s club team will be raised to varsity status “in order to ensure equitable participation by gender as required by Title IX.” The report stated the chosen program would be recognized as an official varsity program by fall 2012.

Title IX is a federal law banning gender discrimination in athletic departments receiving federal funds. The University lost a Title IX lawsuit in 1995 after eliminating four programs — including the women’s gymnastics and volleyball teams — because of budget constraints.

The committee provided separate reasons for discontinuing each of the three sports.

The report cited the need for “a large investment in facilities, infrastructure and coaching to bring the fencing program to the necessary level,” as a reason for cutting the teams. It also cited the “small number of fencing programs nationally.” Six of the other seven Ivy League universities currently have varsity women’s fencing programs, and five of the seven have men’s programs.

The University also “cannot offer facilities to support competitive skiing in any reasonable way,” according to the report. The committee also cited concerns about the safety of ski team members traveling to New Hampshire and western Massachusetts for practices and competitions.

The wrestling program is one of the most expensive University athletic programs, and also “requires a large number of admissions slots,” according to the report. The sport also “presents major challenges” in terms of equitable gender participation — there are 28 males and no females on the wrestling team.

The release of the athletic committee’s recommendations does not finalize any implementation plans. There will be a period of time for feedback from community members before recommendations are brought before Simmons and the Corporation.

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