University of virginia

Statement of the Problem

There are three types of four-year, not-for-profit universities in the United States Religious-affiliated schools are universities and colleges which are owned, governed, or run by a recognized religious institution. Secular private schools do not have a current overall religious identity and are not operated by state governments. Both religious-affiliated and secular-private are considered private schools meaning that no part of the university is run by the state or federal government. However, students of private schools are eligible to apply for federal loan and grant assistance and the universities themselves can receive public funds for scholarship, research, and the building of academic buildings. Private universities, both religious and secular, are typically more expensive to attend with tuition rates upwards of $50,000 dollars for one academic year. Public universities are somewhat supported by state funds and the tuition for in-state residents is typically less expensive than at a private college. The other unique feature about public universities is that they are run by state governments and the board of visitors is often appointed by the governors of the respective state.⁶ Public schools are typically connected through a state run university system.

According to the U.S Department of Education, there were 2,400 four-year universities in America under the Higher Education Act’s Title IV in 2009.⁷ These schools must follow the guidelines of the federal student aid program. ⁸ The students attending these schools can receive federal student loans, grants, and work-study programs.⁹ The majority of Title IV schools are private, not-for-profit, religious-affiliated schools. Religiously-affiliated schools are in every state in the union, and feature undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs. Although there may be an abundance of religious-affiliated universities in America, they are somewhat regulated by the same standards as the non-religious private and public universities when it comes to anti-discrimination admission practices. Religious-affiliated schools have a large impact on the whole of the United States by providing education and research. Even under federal guidelines many religious-affiliated universities are able to keep their religious identities. While religious-affiliated schools out number secular schools in the United States the level of faith at each religious-affiliated school differs. Some religious-affiliated schools have the atmosphere of secular universities, and the sponsoring religion is a minor detail to the overall identity of the school. They might offer several options for worship outside of the sponsoring faith or do not require students to actively participate in worship at all. Other schools require students, faculty, and staff to completely comply with the ruling doctrine, including attending worship and taking time away from school to go on mission trips. Inter-collegiate athletics fulfills this role at many secular private and public universities in the United States.

History of College Athletics

With these beginnings college athletics have grown from club games between rival universities into a multi-billion dollar industry for the universities and private companies. College athletics grew largely because it was one path for immigrants and minorities to have access and opportunities to American colleges in a way that had not been previously available.¹³ As the twentieth century began, American colleges were no longer designed exclusively, or even primarily future ministers and wealthy sons and daughters. Instead, colleges became the gateway for Americans to move into the middle or upper classes.¹⁴ After World War II, with so many GIs earning their degrees, the role of college athletics grew to become one of America’s favorite pastimes and the university’s biggest marketing tool.