The NCAA: What IS Their Mission?

If you visit the NCAA's homepage, the organization boldly declares "Student-athlete success on the field, in the classroom and in life is at the heart of our mission."

Let's evaluate that claim with two recent statements made by the NCAA:

1. In response to a recent wrongful death lawsuit brought by a college athlete, the NCAA stated "it has no legal duty to protect student-athletes." [Here is a terrific recap of this case and the NCAA's response by Dennis Dodd.] Quick history lesson, the NCAA was founded in 1906 to promote the safety of the college athlete.

2. In response to the academic scandal unfolding at UNC, the NCAA stated it did not have a "duty to ensure the quality of the education of student-athletes." So apparently, when NCAA executive director Walter Byers created the term "student-athlete" in the 1950s to ostensibly shield the NCAA from worker's compensation claims, the concept of "student" was merely an empty label.

In sum, the NCAA is declaring that their aforementioned lofty mission does not include any responsibility to protect either the STUDENT or the ATHLETE.