Stanford – known for being one of the few universities who continues to stress the term “student-athlete” – has come under investigation by California Watch, an independent investigative editorial, for handing out a list of supposed “easy courses” for athletes.
The list, entitled “Courses of Interest”, and which has since been removed from the athletes’ resource center, named 40 classes athletes could take between the hours of 9 a.m. and 12 p.m. for each academic quarter.
Stanford officials asserted the list was designed to accommodate athletes’ demanding schedules, and not a guide to “Easy A’s”. Stanford’s student catalog, however, has nearly 200 courses in those time slots, according to the Watch.
But a closer look at the list shows courses such as “Beginning Improvising”, “Social Dances of North America III” and “Interpersonal Relations”.
If only UNT had offered me the latter two…
Unless you have two left feet, it doesn’t take a Stanford grad to know that no one should be getting anything under a B in “Social Dances of North America”.
In fact, several athletes who have taken courses from the list told the Watch that they’re easy courses.
It’s understandable that Stanford would be embarrassed that the list was leaked because, you know, they’re Stanford. But they needn’t be.
The idea of any college is the same: students are going to get out of it what they put into it. If a student wants to take “Underwater Basket Weaving” and skate by doing the bare minimum, more power to ‘em. Or, like Cardinal fullback Owen Marecic, they can be on the honor role* an Academic All-American studying human biology. The choice is theirs.
Stanford’s job is to provide the resources.
*intelligence fail
