Larry DeBrock Q&A
May 19, 2011 9:47 AM
What are some of the issues and challenges facing a new athletic director?
Ron has a pretty good organization set up. There's a great deal of integrity. We're pretty proud of what's going on in terms of sticking to the rules. What people don't know a lot about is Ron has really built up a completely first-rate academic structure. The coaches will tell you how much Ron backs up the academic staff as well the faculty on the committee. ... The challenge going forward is sustaining the strong growth we've had in fundraising. Our tuition at Illinois has gone up and that's a big expense because (the department has) to pay the campus for scholarships. It's an ongoing concern. Ron has tried very hard to become an active money raiser to help offset that. ... Given the realities of state funding of higher education across the country, tuition is going to be a more important part. And, obviously, the Illini Nation, no matter how good you are in year X, they would like to see you better in year X plus 1.
Chris Hine
Ron has a pretty good organization set up. There's a great deal of integrity. We're pretty proud of what's going on in terms of sticking to the rules. What people don't know a lot about is Ron has really built up a completely first-rate academic structure. The coaches will tell you how much Ron backs up the academic staff as well the faculty on the committee. ... The challenge going forward is sustaining the strong growth we've had in fundraising. Our tuition at Illinois has gone up and that's a big expense because (the department has) to pay the campus for scholarships. It's an ongoing concern. Ron has tried very hard to become an active money raiser to help offset that. ... Given the realities of state funding of higher education across the country, tuition is going to be a more important part. And, obviously, the Illini Nation, no matter how good you are in year X, they would like to see you better in year X plus 1.
Chris Hine
Filed under: Illini Basketball, Illini Football
