NKU denies report of athletics budget cuts, says scholarships won’t be lost – WLWT
Northern Kentucky University is responding to a recent report that claimed significant budget cuts were coming to its athletic department.
The report was published on Wednesday, claiming that NKU Athletics was set to see a budget cut of 35 percent. It also claimed that scholarships could be frozen amid the cuts.
On Thursday, a spokesperson for NKU refuted those claims, saying the athletic department’s budget will see a three percent change from last year’s approved budget, not 35 percent.
NKU also said that no student athletes are at risk of losing their scholarships and that once a student athlete signs with the school, their offer will not change throughout their time at NKU.
NKU chief communications officer Corey Best said there are no plans for NKU to end their status as an NCAA Division I program.
“We all know that higher education is facing tremendous headwinds right now (and) in spite of those challenges NKU is continuing to thrive. Our campus worked extremely hard to reduce a $24m deficit and that is now behind us,” Best said.
NKU officials did acknowledge that the university is considering ways to adjust future scholarship offerings in the wake of the House v. NCAA settlement that changed how student athletes are compensated in the era of athletes benefitting from their name, image and likeness.
The settlement, which was finalized in June, includes a revenue-sharing agreement in which schools can pay their athletes up to a combined $20.5 million annually.
NKU has more than 20 athletic programs between men’s and women’s sports. That includes men’s and women’s swimming programs, men’s and women’s triathlon programs and a women’s stunt program, which were added last year.
Hearst Television participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.
