UNC Academic Fraud - "Paper Classes" for 1000+ athletes over nearly two decades - Sporting Events and Fantasy Sports

From 1993-2011 there were "paper classes" in the AFAM department, overseen by Crowder, which were completely fraudulent
Over 3,100 students involved
47.4% were student-athletes
50.9% of those were football players
Many “steered” to classes by academic counselors
Some tutors wrote papers for athletes
Many knew or should have known about paper classes
Nine professors/admins have been fired or are currently under disciplinary review

Quote:

A total of 2,152 individual students who enrolled in the paper classes were included in this impact analysis. Of that number, 329 students (including 169 student-athletes) had at least one semester in which the grade they received in their paper class either pushed or kept their GPA above 2.0. In other words, for at least one semester in their college career, each of those students had an actual cumulative GPA above a 2.0 but a recalculated GPA (excluding the paper class grade(s)) below a 2.0. This number includes 123 football players, 15 men’s basketball players, eight women’s basketball players, and 26 Olympic sport athletes. Of that number, we identified 81 students who earned degrees from Chapel Hill whose recalculated final GPA excluding the grade(s) from their paper class or classes was less than the 2.0 required to graduate.

Quote:

Harold Gutmann ‏@haroldgut

One football counselor would give Crowder (AFAM secretary) a list of grades that each player needed to remain eligible

Quote:

They became such a crutch that when Crowder retired in 2009, football team counselors were desperate for the classes to continue, warning coaches the team’s overall GPA would plummet, which it did.

I'm not sure whether or not it's an exaggeration, but it seems like the death penalty could be in play here. Hell, the university's accreditation itself could be in play. From what I can see, you're talking about two decades of massive, unchecked academic fraud for basically the entire UNC athletics program.

Last edited by DannyOcean_; 10-22-2014 at 03:19 PM.

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10-22-2014 , 03:09 PM

5kids2feed

old hand

Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 1,396

now we know how vince carter finished his education while playing in the nba

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10-22-2014 , 03:21 PM

AUGUY55

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I think this warrants it's own thread.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaaf-...181214478.html

First of all...

LOL NORTH CAROLINA

Second, how in the hell is UNC even still allowed to be involved in collegiate sports when this has been going on...FOR 18 YEARS. The article states that for 18 years, 3100 students, about half were student athletes, were taking these bogus classes to ensure their eligibility remain intact.

How the **** is this school still accredited? How has the lolNCAA not slammed them just short of the death penalty by now? I realize this is kinda old news as far as people knowing about this. But it's all confirmed now right? What a joke.

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10-22-2014 , 03:24 PM

CalledDownLight

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Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 88,413

How the hell did all the athletes and other students manage to stay quiet for this long. You'd think one of them would have bragged about how awesome it was in front of the wrong person at some point.

If we are being honest though unc has always been fraudulent so this really isn't breaking news.

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10-22-2014 , 03:26 PM

DannyOcean_

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ha, AUGUY. I beat you by about 10 minutes in making the thread.

The question remains if the death penalty is on the table.

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10-22-2014 , 03:29 PM

Booker Wolfbox

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Shocked! I am shocked that a university might do something shady to preserve the eligibility of one or more money-makin' babies educationally impaired individuals innocent student athletes.

The whole system is corrupt and it isn't going to get any better.

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10-22-2014 , 03:31 PM

Palo

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If the NCAA had any real power left this would be a multi year death penalty for their entire athletics program. As is? Maybe a 1-3 year post season ban for all sports but probably not even that.

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10-22-2014 , 03:32 PM

dlk9s

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I'm actually surprised the percentage of athletes in the sham classes was less than 50%. Who were the other lucky students who got to take them?

I guess UNC couldn't fill the classes completely with athletes or a huge red flag would've gone up much earlier.

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10-22-2014 , 03:35 PM

capone0

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Embarrassing.

At the same time, at every school there are joke classes, this is taken to the next level though.

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10-22-2014 , 03:47 PM

#10

Searix

NFL Swami Overlord

Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 19,233

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...tt6vKTYuE#t=53

One of squidbillies' best episodes

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10-22-2014 , 03:50 PM

#11

vaya

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Unc is a joke school with the biggest gap between perceived and actual quality in the whole country? You don't say.

Last edited by vaya; 10-22-2014 at 04:08 PM.

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10-22-2014 , 03:52 PM

#12

A-Rod's Cousin

banned

Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 37,130

wow I am so shocked. Beside myself with shock at the thought of corruption where athletic programs are tied to schools.

Yawn. Society just doesn't give a **** about this.

SPORTZ YO

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10-22-2014 , 03:52 PM

#13

nath

the second coming of the second coming

Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 68,675

Who's gonna get the death penalty over this, UNC-Wilmington or UNC-Asheville?

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10-22-2014 , 03:54 PM

#14

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 47,023

Best part of the whole thing is that 52.6% of those involved were NOT student athletes. What the ****

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10-22-2014 , 03:55 PM

#15

Noze

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Probably a BCS bowl ban for 2-3 years

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10-22-2014 , 03:55 PM

#16

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Also, lol death penalty. C'mon...

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10-22-2014 , 04:05 PM

#17

CPHoya

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Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 73,265

So like. . .

. . . who were the other students and why were they in these classes? That actually seems more interesting / ripe for an actual controversy.

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10-22-2014 , 04:07 PM

#18

vhawk01

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Quote:

Originally Posted by CalledDownLight

They probably did brag all the time about it. Its pretty ****ing hard to find "the wrong person" in a spot like this.

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10-22-2014 , 04:14 PM

#19

Dr McGriddle

grinder

Join Date: Aug 2012 Posts: 645

could you imagine how many moral high ground/shame on you columns which would be written if this scandal happened at a place like FSU or Alabama?

This is so much worse than some of the other scandals of recent memory (ohio state tattoo deal, Miami booster etc) as it really is institutionalized fraud. Let the wrist slapping commence!

and my favorite part of the scandal, a sample of an A- paper lol:

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10-22-2014 , 04:22 PM

#20

YeahYou

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Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 4,401

This happens in almost every school.

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10-22-2014 , 04:23 PM

#21

CalledDownLight

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Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 88,413

Quote:

Originally Posted by YeahYou

This happens in almost every school.

Yea, ok.

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10-22-2014 , 04:26 PM

#22

Dr McGriddle

grinder

Join Date: Aug 2012 Posts: 645

more lols from the Ny times article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/sp...-athletes.html

In November 2009, Ms. Reynolds and other members of the academic support program convened a meeting of the football coaches to discuss how the departure of Ms. Crowder would affect the players’ academic standing. The counselors and coaches were “painfully aware,” the report said, “that Crowder’s retirement would require the whole football program to adjust to a new reality of having to meet academic requirements with real academic work.”

In the meeting, two members of the football counseling staff explained to the assembled coaches that the classes “had played a large role in keeping underprepared and/or unmotivated players eligible to play.” To emphasize this point, they presented a PowerPoint demonstration in which one of the slides asked and then answered the question, “What was part of the solution in the past?”

“We put them in classes that met degree requirements in which … they didn’t go to class … they didn’t have to take notes, have to stay awake … they didn’t have to meet with professors … they didn’t have to pay attention or necessarily engage with the material,” the slide said. “THESE NO LONGER EXIST!”