UAB shuts down football program - does this impact Greek Life?

[DubaiSis]

And think of the law suits they just eliminated, from head injury, to sexual assault, to drunken fights at tailgates. If the over/under is they get rid of football and then spend more money on academics, I'm all for it. Hopefully it's a trend that will continue.

[Hartofsec]

Originally Posted by DubaiSis

And think of the law suits they just eliminated, from head injury, to sexual assault, to drunken fights at tailgates. If the over/under is they get rid of football and then spend more money on academics, I'm all for it. Hopefully it's a trend that will continue.

There are certainly people who share that sentiment -- some people feel that UAB should invest in what they do well going forward instead of investing heavily in improvements necessary to support the football program.

It seems to be a situation ripe for knee-jerk disappointed reactions (understandable) and internet misunderstandings. I haven't heard from any credible source that there are any plans to ever do away with undergraduate studies. And the Honors Program has not been disbanded:

http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/08/stir_over_uab_honors_program_w.html


I don't know if the lack of a football program will affect undergraduate enrollment, but I would be surprised if there was any significant decrease in numbers. Most students planning to attend UAB are probably not expecting a campus atmosphere that rallies around football like some of our other state universities, and probably do not choose UAB for that reason.

UAB is a very different campus "feel" -- 79% of students live off-campus/commute. The Greek community is extremely small (especially considering UAB's location) -- 2.9% of women and 2.4% of men are Greek (source).