FOCUS: The Role Of Athletics On Campus

At colleges nationwide, athletics play a major role in campus life. Though primarily known for its academics, Harvard boasts the most Division I teams of any institution in the country.

The debate about the role of athletes on campus rages both within and outside these gates. Lawmakers pass legislation about college athletics programs. National media outlets explode over college sporting events. Like it or not, college sports matter at Harvard as they do everywhere else.

Amateurism On and Off the Field
By HARRY R. LEWIS
Friday, April 21, 2006 2:01 AM
Being a good athlete is fine, but there is something wrong with becoming a very good athlete.

Ivy’s Dark Underside
By CHRIS LINCOLN
Friday, April 21, 2006 2:02 AM
As one Ivy coach put it, “The irony is that the Ivy League, by trying to be ‘holier than thou,’ has made the athletic recruiting process uglier than in any other Division I conference in the country.”

A Reality of Inequity
By EMMA M. LIND
Friday, April 21, 2006 2:06 AM
There lingers a persistent and intangible biased distribution of social clout between high profile male athletes and lower profile male and female athletes.

Finding a Voice For Athletes
By NATHAN T. PICARSIC and JOHN F. VOITH III
Friday, April 21, 2006 2:07 AM
The separation between athletics and academics need not span the Charles.