University of Virginia Library

Duke Stays In ACC,
Retains Scholarships

Duke's Academic Council met
Thursday and recommended that
the school not disaffiliate from the
and continue to award athletic
scholarships.

Earlier in December Duke's Ad
Committee on Duke Athletics
had recommended that Duke withdraw
from the ACC and discontinue
athletic scholarships. This was
the only section of the Ad Hoc
Committee's report that was not
endorsed by the Academic Council.

The recommendations that were
agreed on were the abolishment of
"Red shirting," the practice of
holding an athlete out of competition
for a year to extend his
eligibility an extra year, the distribution
of scholarships for minor
sports as well as football and
basketball.

The recommendation that athletic
grants-in-aid be done away
with was changed to say that Duke
should not abolish those scholarships
immediately, but take the
initiative to instigate having all
scholarships based on need nationally.

Dr. Barney Jones, chairman of
the Ad Hoc Committee, and Dr.
Bruce Nicklas expressed a concern
that athletes and athletics in American
colleges were becoming professionalized,
but this was not a
widely held view as the Athletic
Council voted down the two
strongest measures.