Whitman College skiers fight to stay in the NCAA

The global economic crisis has reached the Whitman College Ski Team in Walla Walla, Washington. Immediately following the 2009 ski racing season the school’s administration announced March 10 that the college’s NCAA Division I alpine and nordic skiing programs will be converted to club sports. The cut will save the school a reported $200,000 per year. The ski team and its supporters, however, have not take the news lying down. Since the announcement athletes, parents and alumni have rallied together to fight the decision.  

A ski team forum was held at the college April 6, in which the administration presented their plan and reasoning to athletes, parents and students, who, intern, were able to voice their opinions on the proposition they starkly oppose. Students arrived at the forum wearing blue t-shirts donning the phrase “Save The Ski Team” in protest to the school’s proposal.  

The decision was announced in a statement by college President George Bridges. Bridges, as well as Treasurer Peter Harvey, Athletic Director Dean Snider and Provost and Dean of Faculty Lori Bettison-Varga were in attendance at the forum to explain the plan, which moves the teams to the club-level of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association.
 
“It has been very difficult for me to be involved in this process,” Bridges told the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin after the announcement was made. “I am a skier, so it’s very difficult. But we have to balance our budget and meet our fiscal responsibilities.”

Bridges’ release cited the competitive demands of the NCAA, of which Whitman has been a part since 2002, as the leading factor in the decision. “Despite tremendous efforts in recruiting and coaching, Whitman’s recent transition to NCAA competition in skiing has been more difficult than anticipated or desired,” Bridges wrote in his release. “The challenge of competing in the (NCAA) Western Regional has been extraordinary; many of the competitors in the region are attending universities on full scholarships and are recruited internationally. Our skiers and coaches have acquitted themselves well, even under these circumstances.”

Skiers at Whitman have not received athletic scholarships, a fact that Bridges admits has hindered their ability to attract top talent and be “truly competitive” in the NCAA. “Doing so,” Bridges says, “would require a permanent infusion of new resources and athletic scholarships to recruit and retain some of the most capable collegiate skiers from the U.S. and other countries. Making this commitment would require resources that Whitman doesn’t have and a philosophical shift that we are unwilling to make… and it would conflict directly with the mission of Division III athletic programs — the level at which all of our other varsity sports compete.”

Bridges does not expect ski team members to jump ship, and hopes they will stay on and compete at the club level. “I fully expect that skiing, like many of our outstanding club teams, will remain a vital and a successful part of Whitman athletics long into the future.”

Bridges release revealed the ski teams to be by far the most expensive varsity sport at the school, making it an obvious target for budget cuts. This year each ski racer burned through $5,625, mostly in travel. According to Snider, the ski program soaks up 95 percent of the overall athletic travel dollars. The next highest varsity athletes – basketball players – each spent $2,600 per student.

As a club sport the ski teams would receive $40,000 per year for men’s and women’s alpine and nordic skiing, guaranteed over the next three years. The administration’s proposal would also call for nordic coach Calisa Schouweiler and alpine coach Tom Olson to be laid off. Even after the hefty cut skiing would remain the school’s highest spending club. The teams would be expected to raise the $13,970 difference to reach the projected $53,970 needed to operate at the club level.  

But the ski team’s supporters are doing far more than just making t-shirts. A group of athletes and parents have put together a proposal to allow the teams to retain their NCAA Division I status for nearly half of the sport’s current budget. The 59-page proposal, sent to administrators April 4, calls for the school to spend $120,000 per year.

The proposal’s creators believe that cutting the varsity ski team, what they call the school’s most successful varsity sport, will hurt campus diversity, national prestige and alumni giving. The document also criticizes administrators for drawing up their plans to cut the teams behind closed doors, not allowing the voices of supporters to be heard. The proposal includes 40 pages of letters from alumni and community leaders supporting the ski team’s plight.
 
School administration, and ski team athletes, parents and coaches plan to reconvene in the near future to discuss the counter-proposal. The Board of Trustees originally planned to make their final decision April 10, but, in light of the recent resistance, have postponed their meeting to allow said meetings to take place. 

“I don’t think [the forum] is a scenario conducive to what needs to get done. I think we need to meet and find a place in the middle,” alpine skier Lexie Drechsel told the Whitman Pioneer. “We will also have a chance for Tom [Olson] to give his input. We need a smaller meeting with the coaches input because it is crucial to have their expertise in managing the ski team.”

The ski team isn’t the only group at the school that is feeling the pinch, Harvey and Bettison-Varga cited several cuts including the suspension of five tenure-track teaching jobs, a $20,000 decrease in library and athletics budgets, and five percent cuts across the entire school.

The expense of operating ski teams has lead to several schools looking at ways to stop the financial bleeding. Last week the University of Massachusetts also cut their varsity ski teams, converting them into much cheaper clubs.

Information for this story was provided by Jim Buchan of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin and Matt Manley of the Whitman Pioneer.

The global economic crisis has reached the Whitman College Ski Team in Walla Walla, Washington. Immediately following the 2009 ski racing season the school’s administration announced March 10 that the college’s NCAA Division I alpine and nordic skiing programs will be converted to club sports. The cut will save the school a reported $200,000 per year. The ski team and its supporters, however, have not take the news lying down. Since the announcement athletes, parents and alumni have rallied together to fight the decision.  

A ski team forum was held at the college April 6, in which the administration presented their plan and reasoning to athletes, parents and students, who, intern, were able to voice their opinions on the proposition they starkly oppose. Students arrived at the forum wearing blue t-shirts donning the phrase “Save The Ski Team” in protest to the school’s proposal.  

The decision was announced in a statement by college President George Bridges. Bridges, as well as Treasurer Peter Harvey, Athletic Director Dean Snider and Provost and Dean of Faculty Lori Bettison-Varga were in attendance at the forum to explain the plan, which moves the teams to the club-level of the United States Ski and Snowboard Association.
 
“It has been very difficult for me to be involved in this process,” Bridges told the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin after the announcement was made. “I am a skier, so it’s very difficult. But we have to balance our budget and meet our fiscal responsibilities.”

Bridges’ release cited the competitive demands of the NCAA, of which Whitman has been a part since 2002, as the leading factor in the decision. “Despite tremendous efforts in recruiting and coaching, Whitman’s recent transition to NCAA competition in skiing has been more difficult than anticipated or desired,” Bridges wrote in his release. “The challenge of competing in the (NCAA) Western Regional has been extraordinary; many of the competitors in the region are attending universities on full scholarships and are recruited internationally. Our skiers and coaches have acquitted themselves well, even under these circumstances.”

Skiers at Whitman have not received athletic scholarships, a fact that Bridges admits has hindered their ability to attract top talent and be “truly competitive” in the NCAA. “Doing so,” Bridges says, “would require a permanent infusion of new resources and athletic scholarships to recruit and retain some of the most capable collegiate skiers from the U.S. and other countries. Making this commitment would require resources that Whitman doesn’t have and a philosophical shift that we are unwilling to make… and it would conflict directly with the mission of Division III athletic programs — the level at which all of our other varsity sports compete.”

Bridges does not expect ski team members to jump ship, and hopes they will stay on and compete at the club level. “I fully expect that skiing, like many of our outstanding club teams, will remain a vital and a successful part of Whitman athletics long into the future.”

Bridges release revealed the ski teams to be by far the most expensive varsity sport at the school, making it an obvious target for budget cuts. This year each ski racer burned through $5,625, mostly in travel. According to Snider, the ski program soaks up 95 percent of the overall athletic travel dollars. The next highest varsity athletes – basketball players – each spent $2,600 per student.

As a club sport the ski teams would receive $40,000 per year for men’s and women’s alpine and nordic skiing, guaranteed over the next three years. The administration’s proposal would also call for nordic coach Calisa Schouweiler and alpine coach Tom Olson to be laid off. Even after the hefty cut skiing would remain the school’s highest spending club. The teams would be expected to raise the $13,970 difference to reach the projected $53,970 needed to operate at the club level.  

But the ski team’s supporters are doing far more than just making t-shirts. A group of athletes and parents have put together a proposal to allow the teams to retain their NCAA Division I status for nearly half of the sport’s current budget. The 59-page proposal, sent to administrators April 4, calls for the school to spend $120,000 per year.

The proposal’s creators believe that cutting the varsity ski team, what they call the school’s most successful varsity sport, will hurt campus diversity, national prestige and alumni giving. The document also criticizes administrators for drawing up their plans to cut the teams behind closed doors, not allowing the voices of supporters to be heard. The proposal includes 40 pages of letters from alumni and community leaders supporting the ski team’s plight.
 
School administration, and ski team athletes, parents and coaches plan to reconvene in the near future to discuss the counter-proposal. The Board of Trustees originally planned to make their final decision April 10, but, in light of the recent resistance, have postponed their meeting to allow said meetings to take place. 

“I don’t think [the forum] is a scenario conducive to what needs to get done. I think we need to meet and find a place in the middle,” alpine skier Lexie Drechsel told the Whitman Pioneer. “We will also have a chance for Tom [Olson] to give his input. We need a smaller meeting with the coaches input because it is crucial to have their expertise in managing the ski team.”

The ski team isn’t the only group at the school that is feeling the pinch, Harvey and Bettison-Varga cited several cuts including the suspension of five tenure-track teaching jobs, a $20,000 decrease in library and athletics budgets, and five percent cuts across the entire school.

The expense of operating ski teams has lead to several schools looking at ways to stop the financial bleeding. Last week the University of Massachusetts also cut their varsity ski teams, converting them into much cheaper clubs.

Information for this story was provided by Jim Buchan of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin and Matt Manley of the Whitman Pioneer.