- Education Fund Releases Major Research Report: Improving Academic Outcomes in NCAA Division I Revenue Sports and HBCU Limited Resource Athletic Programs - A new report by The Drake Group Education Fund (TDGEF) highlights the low graduation rates of Division I football and basketball players, especially Black athletes at Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs). It urges universities to improve academic support for these athletes, who face pressure to succeed in both academics and sports. Julie Sommer, Executive Director of ... Read more
- Face Time: The Exploitation of the Black Athlete and Academic Integrity of College Sports - Jon Ericson, founding member and former Director of The Drake Group, draws on 35 years of higher education experience to describe how the system is fixed, who fixes it, and how the ‘race card’ is played to intimidate those who seek to expose exploitation of Black athletes. Ericson also explains how faculty and administrator conduct ... Read more
- Racial Injustices in College Athletics - Athletes of color comprise the majority of all Division I football and basketball players and graduate at rates lower than their athlete and non-athlete peers. These athletes make the most money for their colleges and coaches, yet often have the least control over their academic opportunities and overall future success. See the full story
- Follow Up Notes: Webinar #7 – Racial Exploitation in College Sports: A Continuing Disgrace - WEBINAR #7 FOLLOW-UP NOTES AND Q&As-Racial Exploitation in College Sports
- Webinar #7 – Racial Exploitation in College Sports - Intercollegiate athletics, especially at its highest levels, exploits people of color. Panelists examine the many ways that Black and brown college athletes are used for their talent, denied opportunities to excel in the classroom, and are excluded from leadership positions in college sports administration and coaching. Experts and an activist former college athlete speak on ... Read more
- A Continuing Disgrace: Intercollegiate Athletics Race Issues - The Drake Group believes that the commercialization of intercollegiate athletic programs has not only challenged the academic integrity of higher education but resulted in a predominantly White community of higher education administrators, athletic department administrators, coaches, and staff turning a blind eye to the racism underlying the economic, education and other forms of exploitation harming ... Read more
- Eyes of Texas is a “Yes, Coach” Moment - The Drake Group urges reflection on the example of The University of Texas refusing the request of Black football players not to play “The Eyes of Texas” at the end of each football game, because of its offensive and degrading history and impact on these and other students. READ FULL PRESS RELEASE
- The Drake Group Applauds “Intentional Discrimination” Lawsuit Alleging NCAA Discriminates Against HBCUs - The Drake Group, a national organization of college faculty and others whose mission is to defend educational integrity in higher education from the corrosive aspects of commercialized college sports, applauds the ‘Intentional Discrimination’ class action lawsuit (“Manassa vs the NCAA”) recently filed in the Southern District of Indiana. This lawsuit alleges that the NCAA’s academic ... Read more
- Drake Group Honors Scholar Author for Exposing Black Athlete Exploitation - Billy Hawkins, 2016 Hutchins Award Recipient Drake Group Honors Scholar Author for Exposing Black Athlete Exploitation The Drake Group, an organization whose mission is to defend academic integrity in higher education, has selected Billy Hawkins, a professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Georgia, to receive the Robert Maynard Hutchins Award. The ... Read more
- Alan Page Speaks Out On Education - Alan Page is an associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. Most people realize that Page, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, had a stellar athletic career while playing for the Minnesota Vikings. What many people do not know is that in 1988, Page and his wife Diane founded the Page Education ... Read more
- Reform Due for Big-Time College Athletes - The plantation analogy is hyperbolic, but universities at the most athletically competitive levels are routinely admitting athletes, some of whom can barely read or write, and subjecting them to physical and psychological demands that deny them the education necessary for upward mobility in a society that is becoming increasingly stratified. Follow this link to read ... Read more
