On Jan. 27, the UNM Faculty Senate voted to make some changes in Lobo sports by supporting resolutions proposed by the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics.
The coalition is a national organization of higher education composed of faculty members who want to become involved in the college-sports system.
"The whole intercollegiate sports program is out of control," said Hugh Witemeyer, the UNM faculty senate operations committee president. "Athletics is becoming a community outside of the university."
Witemeyer said the coalition's purpose is to promote improvements in academic standards, student welfare, finances and governance on college campuses. But Witemeyer said the two biggest concerns are athletic budgets and academics.
"There is virtually no university in the United States whose athletics department pays for itself," he said. "Sometimes individual sports do, but not the whole program."
UNM President Louis Caldera said he believes that UNM has a healthy sports program and that it plays an important role in the community.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
"A lot of people love Lobo athletics," Caldera said. "We've got to celebrate that. Then they are likely to support the community in other ways."
Witemeyer said the UNM Athletics Department has improved in these areas in the last 25 years because the faculty has been putting public pressure on the department, but he said academics have been compromised in the past in order to keep athletes eligible to play. The COIA has contended that sports may be becoming counter-productive to education.
Athletics Director Rudy Davalos said Lobo athletes are doing fine academically and they're not looking to change anything.
"For the third consecutive semester, our athletes have averaged over a 3.0 GPA," Davalos said. "We're very proud of our athletes and we don't need to do anything different."
Senior Academic Adviser David Fox agreed that there is not necessarily a problem with academics, but there is always room for improvement.
"Anytime we can get positive feedback from faculty members it would be helpful," Fox said.
The COIA started in 2000 at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Faculty members formed the coalition when education budgets were being cut and plans were being made to expand the multi-million dollar football stadium.
The coalition passed resolutions that called for more restraint on spending in sports and requested professors be given more influence over spending decisions at their universities. Witemeyer said the proposals are now in the hands of Caldera and the regents.
Caldera said he thinks the coalition is more relevant at universities that are involved in the Bowl Championship Series.
"This whole thing was started as a faculty movement in BCS schools that have the most wealthy football programs in America," he said.
Caldera said at this point he is not sure how the coalition will affect UNM.
"There's a lot of things we would agree to, but there are some things we'll have to look at more closely," he said. "Right now it's kind of premature."
