Quote from: Pat Coleman on March 17, 2025, 04:03:57 PM

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMThat's a good pickup for the SCIAC. Should ease scheduling. I'd love to see DIII pick up a D2 conference in the southeast and fill in some holes. Something like D2's SIAC moving to D3 would really help with scheduling for the the southeastern D3s. And I still struggle to see the benefits of D2 for smaller private schools.

Everytime I hear about an E&H or a Ferrum I just shake my head. I get it, they are trying to stand out in a crowded D3 environment, but I find it hard to believe it makes economic sense.

Good job picking up Azusa Pacific. They were a D2 orphan, so it makes sense.

So many of those SIAC athletic departments are so underfunded. I don't know that they'd do any better in D-III.

We might have a better chance of getting Big South members to come to D-III. Would love to have them fill in our map.

Do you mean the PacWest's (where Azusa Pacific is coming from) athletic departments are underfunded?  Some of the SCIAC departments are underfunded too, but many of the PacWest schools are poorer and the conference travel is quite expensive, especially with having to fly out to Hawaii every other year to play the three teams located on the islands.

No, I mean literally the SIAC that jknezek mentioned.

https://thesiac.com/sports/2018/7/9/gen_0709184210.aspx?path=gen

Quote from: Pat Coleman on March 17, 2025, 04:56:07 PMNo, I mean literally the SIAC that jknezek mentioned.

https://thesiac.com/sports/2018/7/9/gen_0709184210.aspx?path=gen

Gotcha.  I read it too quickly and thought you were saying SCIAC, rather than the DII SIAC.

Quote from: Kuiper on March 11, 2025, 06:59:40 PMInteresting data on DIII enrollment/financial issues in the midwestern conferences

https://x.com/d3bubble/status/1899076542493315516

Ohio schools have suffered brutal drops in enrollment over the last decade.  John Carroll with a 25% drop and Wittenberg and Capital with 32% drops?

Trine is the glaring outlier of robust health in that list.

Moral of the story: Put a golf course on your campus.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMThat's a good pickup for the SCIAC. Should ease scheduling.

Definitely, and while Kuiper is right about Azusa Pacific not being up to par with the rest of the SCIAC in terms of academic reputation this is perhaps a response to the ongoing problem of being an island conference in terms of D3 geography. Gray Fox might want to chime in on this, but in some respects this looks a bit like Chapman, Pt. 2 in terms of SCIAC expansion. I mean, the island conference problem is only going to get worse, because in this current financial climate for D3 schools I have to think that cross-continental travel for D3 athletic programs for anything other than national tournaments and meets will diminish.

The big question for me in terms of APU joining the SCIAC is how the Cougars will fit into the SCIAC landscape in terms of actual competition. APU has flexed a lot of muscle since the days when Christian Okoye was running roughshod over NAIA tacklers as a Cougar RB in the early '80s. APU was a major all-sports power in NAIA before it moved to D2, and it's finished in the Top 20 every year of D2's version of the Learfield Directors' Cup and won all of the Commissioner's Cup trophies in the GSAC since joining that league. Granted, the GSAC isn't what it used to be in terms of D2 competition since losing all-sports powerhouses such as Grand Canyon and Cal Baptist over the past dozen years, but that's still impressive -- and it makes me wonder if APU is going to be the 600-pound gorilla of the SCIAC, even after the scholarships are gone.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMI'd love to see DIII pick up a D2 conference in the southeast and fill in some holes. Something like D2's SIAC moving to D3 would really help with scheduling for the the southeastern D3s. And I still struggle to see the benefits of D2 for smaller private schools.

Everytime I hear about an E&H or a Ferrum I just shake my head. I get it, they are trying to stand out in a crowded D3 environment, but I find it hard to believe it makes economic sense.

Enthusiastically agree on both counts.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMGood job picking up Azusa Pacific. They were a D2 orphan, so it makes sense.

Only in football, and only in a theoretical future sense. That orphanhood would've only existed had APU stayed in its current league, D2's Great Southwest Athletic Conference, because the GSAC doesn't sponsor football. The decisions to transition to D3 and the SCIAC, and to reinstate the Cougars football program after abandoning it half a decade ago, seem to have been made in tandem -- or at least that's how Azusa Pacific is presenting it.

Quote from: Gregory Sager on March 18, 2025, 12:10:09 PM

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMThat's a good pickup for the SCIAC. Should ease scheduling. I'd love to see DIII pick up a D2 conference in the southeast and fill in some holes. Something like D2's SIAC moving to D3 would really help with scheduling for the the southeastern D3s. And I still struggle to see the benefits of D2 for smaller private schools.

Everytime I hear about an E&H or a Ferrum I just shake my head. I get it, they are trying to stand out in a crowded D3 environment, but I find it hard to believe it makes economic sense.

Enthusiastically agree on both counts.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMGood job picking up Azusa Pacific. They were a D2 orphan, so it makes sense.

Only in football, and only in a theoretical future sense. That orphanhood would've only existed had APU stayed in its current league, D2's Great Southwest Athletic Conference, because the GSAC doesn't sponsor football. The decisions to transition to D3 and the SCIAC, and to reinstate the Cougars football program after abandoning it half a decade ago, seem to have been made in tandem -- or at least that's how Azusa Pacific is presenting it.

APU is in the PacWest conference, not the GSAC, but the PacWest also doesn't sponsor football.  I think you must have meant the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, which APU used to be an affiliate member of for football before dropping the sport.  There simply aren't any DII football programs in California that are part of a conference (Lincoln University in Oakland operates as an independent), and the GNAC no longer sponsors football, which is why APU would be a football orphan in football if they revived the football program without moving divisions.

Yeah, that's my bad. I meant PacWest, not GSAC. My point about APU avoiding future orphanhood by joining the SCIAC, rather than already being an orphan, stands.

Quote from: Kuiper on March 18, 2025, 12:29:09 PMAPU is in the PacWest conference, not the GSAC, but the PacWest also doesn't sponsor football.  I think you must have meant the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, which APU used to be an affiliate member of for football before dropping the sport.  There simply aren't any DII football programs in California that are part of a conference (Lincoln University in Oakland operates as an independent), and the GNAC no longer sponsors football, which is why APU would be a football orphan in football if they revived the football program without moving divisions.

Lincoln is not affiliated with the NCAA, NAIA, or any other association, but has somehow convinced half the internet that they're D2.

Quote from: Inkblot on March 18, 2025, 01:57:53 PM

Quote from: Kuiper on March 18, 2025, 12:29:09 PMAPU is in the PacWest conference, not the GSAC, but the PacWest also doesn't sponsor football.  I think you must have meant the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, which APU used to be an affiliate member of for football before dropping the sport.  There simply aren't any DII football programs in California that are part of a conference (Lincoln University in Oakland operates as an independent), and the GNAC no longer sponsors football, which is why APU would be a football orphan in football if they revived the football program without moving divisions.

Lincoln is not affiliated with the NCAA, NAIA, or any other association, but has somehow convinced half the internet that they're D2.

Interesting.  I think I just assumed it was based on its opponents and the fact there seem to be two Lincoln Universities in D2.  Turns out they are MO and PA!

On a totally different note, apparently the "future of D3" includes conferences buying loyalty, as the American Southwest Conference has secured a ten-year commitment from McMurry and Schreiner to join in 2026.  The D3sports.com report on the move states "{i}t was widely reported that a significant financial incentive was provided to bring Schreiner and McMurry back into the field" and other sources have indicated the amount to be in excess of a million dollars per school.   The conference itself reported income and total assets under $300k each in 2023, so the money either came from the four remaining schools in the ASC, donors, or a combination of the two. 

I don't know that I've ever heard of a financial incentive associated with joining a conference in D3, and I hope to never hear of one again.  That's probably a fool's wish, sadly.

Quote from: Gregory Sager on March 18, 2025, 12:10:09 PM

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMThat's a good pickup for the SCIAC. Should ease scheduling.

Definitely, and while Kuiper is right about Azusa Pacific not being up to par with the rest of the SCIAC in terms of academic reputation this is perhaps a response to the ongoing problem of being an island conference in terms of D3 geography. Gray Fox might want to chime in on this, but in some respects this looks a bit like Chapman, Pt. 2 in terms of SCIAC expansion. I mean, the island conference problem is only going to get worse, because in this current financial climate for D3 schools I have to think that cross-continental travel for D3 athletic programs for anything other than national tournaments and meets will diminish.

The big question for me in terms of APU joining the SCIAC is how the Cougars will fit into the SCIAC landscape in terms of actual competition. APU has flexed a lot of muscle since the days when Christian Okoye was running roughshod over NAIA tacklers as a Cougar RB in the early '80s. APU was a major all-sports power in NAIA before it moved to D2, and it's finished in the Top 20 every year of D2's version of the Learfield Directors' Cup and won all of the Commissioner's Cup trophies in the GSAC since joining that league. Granted, the GSAC isn't what it used to be in terms of D2 competition since losing all-sports powerhouses such as Grand Canyon and Cal Baptist over the past dozen years, but that's still impressive -- and it makes me wonder if APU is going to be the 600-pound gorilla of the SCIAC, even after the scholarships are gone.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMI'd love to see DIII pick up a D2 conference in the southeast and fill in some holes. Something like D2's SIAC moving to D3 would really help with scheduling for the the southeastern D3s. And I still struggle to see the benefits of D2 for smaller private schools.

Everytime I hear about an E&H or a Ferrum I just shake my head. I get it, they are trying to stand out in a crowded D3 environment, but I find it hard to believe it makes economic sense.

Enthusiastically agree on both counts.

Quote from: jknezek on March 17, 2025, 03:41:31 PMGood job picking up Azusa Pacific. They were a D2 orphan, so it makes sense.

Only in football, and only in a theoretical future sense. That orphanhood would've only existed had APU stayed in its current league, D2's Great Southwest Athletic Conference, because the GSAC doesn't sponsor football. The decisions to transition to D3 and the SCIAC, and to reinstate the Cougars football program after abandoning it half a decade ago, seem to have been made in tandem -- or at least that's how Azusa Pacific is presenting it.

APU is central geographically in the SCIAC.  So travel will be quicker and less expensive for all.  Schedules will not require excessive out of state games. If Oxy attempts to restart football there will be nine football schools.  That would mean eight SCIAC games and one out of state every other year.  So the pressure is now on them. 

Chapman joined the league with much difficulty.  Cal State Fullerton had just dropped (D1) football and many of their players transferred to Chapman.  They crushed all the SCIAC teams, and they were reluctant to make that permanent. But they eventually joined.     

Moody's Downgrades Higher Education Sector from Stable to Negative

QuoteMoody's Ratings on Tuesday downgraded its outlook for the higher education sector from stable to negative due to recent and potential federal policy changes.

The revised outlook comes as the Trump administration has gutted the Education Department via mass layoffs and sought to aggressively overhaul higher education with a flurry of executive orders that have destabilized certain funding streams.

"Actions and potential changes include cuts to research funding, enforcement actions against diversity programs, staff reductions at the US Department of Education, uncertainty over federal student aid, and possible expanded taxes on endowments," Moody's analysts wrote in the report released Tuesday. "These factors are causing institutions to pause capital investments, freeze hiring, and cut spending."

In December, Moody's projected a stable 2025 with anticipated revenue growth of 4 percent—the most optimistic outlooks for the sector among a trio of predictions from key financial organizations. Now the ratings agency notes federal policy changes could prompt revenue shortfalls, particularly at research universities, due to a proposed cap on National Institutes of Health reimbursements for research-related costs. That cap, which is currently blocked by a court order, would mean about $100 million in cuts annually for research universities that spend at least $50 million on research and award 70 research doctorates a year, according to Moody's.

In addition to the NIH rate cut, an increase to the endowment tax would hit wealthy, private universities and likely drive cuts to financial aid or in other spending categories, the report found. The current endowment tax is 1.4 percent for institutions with at least 500 students and $500,000 in assets per student, but recent Republican proposals have floated raising that tax significantly. One proposal has called for a 10 percent tax and changing the per-student endowment threshold from $500,000 to $200,000. Another GOP proposal would set the tax at 21 percent.

Potential disruptions to federal financial aid disbursement, however, would impact all colleges and universities. Moody's noted that "only a select group of wealthy institutions have the financial flexibility to manage such a scenario without likely seeing steep enrollment decline." Given steep cuts to the Education Department, Moody's expressed concern that the Federal Student Aid office could be affected, particularly after last year's overhaul of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which was beset by multiple technical challenges.
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"The administration has said the reductions will not affect the department's statutorily mandated functions such as administering Title IV financial aid and providing assistance to federal student loan borrowers, but the extent to which that will be the case is uncertain," the report noted.

Federal enforcement actions against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives—which the Trump administration has targeted—also pose a financial risk to the sector, according to Moody's. The report cited the potential for "a wide array of funding cuts, including Title IV funding suspension, if [universities] do not comply" with Trump's executive orders clamping down on DEI offerings.

Moody's also flagged potential losses due to the possible reduction in visas for foreign students. Colleges and universities that would be hit the hardest, according to the report, are those that are "reliant on STEM master's programs, or more niche offerings like art and design programs."

The report concluded that the outlook could revert to stable "if many of the federal policies and proposals are reversed or halted by judicial intervention or do not come to pass. Stronger-than-expected investment market returns and operating revenue growth could also lead to a revision of the outlook to stable."

A report on the proposed expansion of the endowment tax from my college newspaper, "The Bachelor."

https://bachelor.wabash.edu/2025/03/college-endowment-at-risk-from-proposed-tax-hike/

Speaking as the former editor-in-chief of his alma mater's student newspaper, that's a remarkably well-researched, well-written, and highly informative piece of journalism. The author and The Bachelor are to be commended.

Thank you, Greg.

Our current editor-in-chief is an outstanding student.