June 6, 2006
When UC Davis students approved the Division I referendum three and a half years ago, many people thought it was the wrong move for the quiet, academically oriented school. Some claimed it was unfair that increased student fees were paying for new division-appropriate facilities and funding a scholarship program for incoming athletes. Others merely believed that athletics would begin to take precedence over academic excellence at UC Davis.
But just three quarters of the way through the transition period, the shift to D-I already seems like the obvious right move. The way the school has positively grown since it began the transition shows that D-II simply wasn't a good fit for UC Davis anymore.
Whether a sports fan or not, attending a D-I institution increases the value of one's degree because athletics attract media attention. Is Ohio State an academically competitive institution? Who knows. But almost everyone has heard of the school due to its exceptional football program. UC Davis' wins over Stanford in football and men's basketball this year put the school in the national spotlight. Future athletic achievements will surely do the same.
And even as UC Davis becomes more athletically competitive, administrators have kept academics a priority. Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef has asserted throughout the transition process that athletes will continue to be held to the same academic standards as other UC Davis students when granted admission and through their undergraduate careers.
There is no doubt that the Aggies will succeed athletically in D-I - in fact, they already are. The women's basketball and water polo teams, for example, both enjoyed phenomenal seasons and better recruiting, even though they were often unevenly matched. Though many of their fellow athletes still faced losing seasons, almost every team improved from the previous year.
Some may find it unfair that the impact of D-I is not immediately visible, but this transition could not have happened without financial and other sacrifices from this generation of students and athletes.
