UNC Professor Mary Willingham Receives Death Threats After Bombshell Research on College Athlete Illiteracy

I reported on this earlier, "Universities Admitting Illiterate Athletes."

And now at CNN, "Death threats and denial for woman who showed college athletes struggle to read."

Also at AP, "UNC Professor Receiving Death Threats For Revealing Athletes' Low Reading Levels (VIDEO)":

Willingham, who hasn't returned calls or emails from The Associated Press, has said in interviews that she has received death threats and hate mail. UNC police spokesman Randy Young said investigators have contacted her and "are responding appropriately."

Illiterate thugs --- black thugs especially, but you're not supposed to say that!

BONUS: Brooke Baldwin has a great follow-up with commentary from Ben Ferguson. A nice clip, "Report: College athletes behind in reading."

University of North Carolina Apologizes for Fake Classes, Promises Real Change

At Business Week (via Instapundit).



PREVIOUSLY: "Universities Admitting Illiterate Athletes," and "UNC Professor Mary Willingham Receives Death Threats After Bombshell Research on College Athlete Illiteracy."

Also, "University of North Carolina Suspends Athlete Illiteracy Research by Mary Willingham," and "Illiterate Athletes a Symptom of Nationwide Problem."

Illiterate Athletes a Symptom of Nationwide Problem

From Luke DeCock, at the Charlotte News & Observer, "North Carolina now a national symbol of dysfunction in college athletics":

As bad as things are at North Carolina, the truth is, North Carolina is far from alone. This time, everybody else is doing it.

We’ve been told a million times that it’s OK for athletic departments, bowls and television networks to make billions of dollars on the backs of these kids, primarily basketball and football players, because “they get a free education.”

Well, what if they don’t?

What if they’re admitted unprepared for college, given just enough help to stay eligible, and then given the boot when their time is up, no better prepared for real life, no better educated than they were when they first arrived on campus?

That’s not compensation. That is, as McAdoo put it, “a scam.”

The exploitation of college athletes, unpaid employees in an industry that generates billions of dollars, is crooked enough even when they get the education they’re promised. If they’re just being shuffled along, ignored or put deliberately into sham classes, it’s not only intellectually dishonest, it borders on fraud.

More at that top link.

I've been aggressive in covering this story because it hits so close to home. Athletes are the least prepared and least successful students in my classes. I've complained about it for years on campus, but even lowly community colleges have a huge investment in big-time sports programs. And LBCC is a large community college with a big athletic program. Needless to say, blacks are the very least prepared of all my students. It's such a problem, and so frustrating, I pull my hair out every semester. But there's little discussion institutionally, and little sympathy with the faculty on the matter.

Universities Admitting Illiterate Athletes

I saw this yesterday, on Jake Tapper's show, "CNN analysis: Some college athletes play like adults, read like 5th-graders."