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Sign of tough times: WIAC tightens belt, limits travel
by Erin Murphy TH staff writer * emurphy@wcinet.com , Telegraph Herald
In the face of trying economic times, the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference has implemented a cost-reduction plan in order to ease budget issues at its member schools, including the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Most of the cost-cutting measures focus on reducing costs related to travel, one of the largest expenditure items for NCAA Division III athletic departments. "We "? recognize and accept the fact that athletics is not immune from the economic challenges facing our institutions, and we will share in that burden accordingly," WIAC commissioner Gary Karner said in a statement.
Among the initiatives: * limiting postseason brackets in all sports to a maximum of six teams (down from as many as eight); * suspending the 2009 football and basketball media days; * establishing later start times for contests in order to minimize the number of overnight stays for traveling teams; * restricting teams to no more than one trip outside an established regional perimeter during the regular season; * exploring the feasibility of scheduling one additional WIAC football team as a non-conference game beginning in 2011; * freezing officiating fees at the 2008-09 levels. The WIAC estimates these cuts will save more than $250,000 in direct budget expenditures. UWP aids Jamaican school: For the second straight year, the Pioneer Student-Athlete Advisory Council donated and delivered supplies to the Cave Valley Basic School in Jamaica as part of its community service directive. UWP athletic director Mark Molesworth helped deliver the 115 pounds of supplies collected by Pioneer athletes to the 35-student school for 4- to 6-year-olds. "All of the students and staff were so thankful and beside themselves," Molesworth said. "For PSAAC and myself, to see what a huge impact this has, because they have so little, makes it very rewarding."
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