July 14, 2000
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THE UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA July 14, 2000 |
| Being a varsity athlete in the Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union (CIAU) has just become a far more lucrative affair. In the past, Canada lost a large number of top university athletes to the lure of the U.S. and the high-profile National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA). The NCAA provides the best college athletes with the benefit of full academic scholarships, something unavailable to atahletes choosing to stay in Canada — until now. In June, the CIAU came to an agreement with its 48 university members on a plan to offer student athletes scholarships covering all tuition and compulsory fees (e.g. UPASS, health services plan, etc.). The changes mean an approximate $1,300 increase in funding for UVic athletes, nearly doubling the $1,500 per year maximum previously offered. To qualify for the additional funding, student athletes in their first year of university will now need a mininum high school completion average of 80 per cent. Otherwise, they must successfully complete two full-time semesters of university study. After that two-semester trial, the athletes will be eligible for award money retroactively. The additional funding won’t be taken from the existing university budget, but will be raised by the athletics department. This means that fundraising by UVic’s athletics department will need to increase dramatically if the university hopes to continue enticing top young athletes and remain one of the elite members of the highly competitive Canada West conference. “We’re going to need support from the community and alumni if we expect to compete with Alberta and UBC,” says Wayne MacDonald, UVic’s manager of athletics and recreational services. “It’s a long-term project. We’ll be educating the public, letting them, the kids and the schools know that the changes have been made.” |