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NCAA considering need-based stipend for athletes

The NCAA is still trying to figure out how to work an additional athletic stipend into legislation. The proposal to allow conferences/schools to provide up to an additional $2,000 for athletes was initially passed last fall, but met enough opposition to warrant a suspension until a later date

Now, with a re-vote on the matter likely at the end of summer, the NCAA is exploring a couple new options for an athletic scholarship. According to the Birmingham News, these options are:


  • Allow schools to provide upward of $2,000 to athletes without financial need as a requirement. Factors determining the actual amount would vary based on school and head count vs. equivalency sports (in other words, a baseball player receiving a 50 percent scholarship would receive $1,000). This is the original idea passed last fall.
  • Require athletes to demonstrate need by going through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
  • Allow schools to tap into the Student-Athlete Opportunity Funds for the additional stipend.

NCAA Division I Vice President David Berst said there is no frontrunner so far and feedback is being welcomed.

It’s worth a few minutes to read the BN piece HERE. The NCAA has a lot of work to do before this is resolved -- that is, if it isn’t thrown into the trash altogether out of indecision. The need-based option falls under a more traditional, academic model, but personally, family income and the time an athlete dedicates to his/her sport are two independent and irrelevant stats.

What are your thoughts?