School of Thought: 12 Education Activists for 2012

Mark Emmert: The Referee

AJ Mast / AP

2011 was already a tough year for college sports, with scandals at marquee football programs including University of Miami and Ohio State University, but then came the unthinkable — allegations that Penn State University covered up child abuse by a former football coach. That scandal was soon followed by allegations of child abuse at Syracuse University’s basketball program. The task of restoring the reputation of intercollegiate athletics falls to Emmert, president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). He undertook some reforms in 2011, but they were buried under the waves of bad publicity. And while the bulk of what Emmert oversees involves smaller sports and students who are genuinely student-athletes, it’s undeniable that the problems and shoddy academics at a few schools with high-profile programs are tarnishing the image of college sports. Emmert, as the former president of the University of Washington and chancellor at Louisiana State University, is no stranger to big-time college athletics. The question is whether he can change the reality that at too many schools the athletic programs are allowed to play by their own set of rules.

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