There’s a Larger Issue at Stake than UND Women’s Hockey

April 10, 2017 T. Arthur Mason North Dakota

Some issues just won’t go away. And for North Dakota, it seems that the announcement that UND is cutting its women’s hockey program is one of those issues some people just won’t let go of.

In response to UND President Mark Kennedy’s directive to cut $1.3 million from the school’s athletic budget, the school cut swimming and women’s hockey. The result has been disappointment, anger, and now pushback from those who, quite frankly, are steeped in emotion instead of logic.

According to numbers obtained by Rob Port at the SayAnything Blog, UND Women’s Hockey lost over $2 million last year. This isn’t chump change. But there’s an even larger issue at hand here. It wasn’t just the women’s hockey program that lost money. Not a single athletic program at UND was in the black. Every single one took a loss. Even the ever-popular and nationally known UND Men’s Hockey program.

Last I checked, these programs are supposed to be for student-athletes. Notice that "student" comes first in that relationship. The purpose of our schools of higher education is supposed to be… well… education. Now, that is not to say that these student-athletes don’t learn valuable lessons from their athletic programs. But that does not justify taxpayers subsidizing athletic programs that cannot break even.

I love sports. I have since I was a boy. But a little age has thankfully given me the ability to think a bit more rationally instead of emotionally. And rationale tells me that if these programs cannot sustain themselves, then they shouldn’t exist… none of them.

I understand people’s passion for athletics. But the reality is that it’s easy to want to keep something when you’re not the one paying for it. Something has to give and it shouldn’t have to be the taxpayers. Cut it. Cut it all.

Sources:
1. http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/4247255-und-womens-hockey-team-coach-not-ready-throw-towel
2. https://www.sayanythingblog.com/entry/und-sports-programs-lost-13-3-million-2016/

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About T. Arthur Mason 878 Articles
T. Arthur Mason is a native North Dakotan who has spent nearly all of his life in the Peace Garden State. As the third of four children in Western North Dakota, Mason grew to appreciate family and the outdoors. Some of his fondest memories are annual deer hunts with family and friends. In his early teenage years, faith became a central part of T. Arthur Mason's life. He and the majority of his family attend church together on a weekly basis and find this a fulfilling aspect of their lives. Through the influence of his father, T. Arthur Mason became intrigued with politics. As a boy, he attended political events with his father and enjoyed the friendships that resulted as a byproduct of those political associations. As Mason grew older, he became convinced that the quote often attributed to Thomas Jefferson was true, "That government is best which governs least." Today, T. Arthur Mason enjoys time with his wife and children, an occasional hunt, and an increasingly active life on the political scene. This blog is the fulfillment of a dream to design a web site in the realm of politics and to advocate for the principles of Liberty and constitutionally limited government. On behalf of all those that contribute to The Minuteman, we hope you enjoy your time on the site and will share the message with others.

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