The NCAA's academic mandates for athletic eligibility: Proposition 48 and its impact on student-athletes restricted by the legislation

In 1983 during its annual convention, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) voted on and approved a proposal aimed at toughening the academic eligibility requirements for incoming student-athletes aspiring to participate in Division I athletic programs. Formally known as Bylaw 5-1-$\{$j$\}$ (presently known as Bylaw 14.3), Proposition 48 mandates successful completion of a high school core curriculum along with attaining a minimum score on a national standardized test. Without successfully attaining these more stringent academic requirements, a prospective Division I freshman student-athlete is, along with other restrictions, barred for one year from practicing and participating in the institution's intercollegiate athletics program.Proposition 48 has caused much debate because of its vast divergence from previous eligibility standards. Prior to the passage of Proposition 48, incoming student-athletes at Division I institutions needed only to have achieved a 2.00/4.00 high school grade point average and graduate from an accredited high school. The themes of many of these debates focus on racial and socioeconomic biases and recruiting practices.This study takes a different direction and is intended to investigate and describe the impact of Proposition 48 as it applies to individual student-athletes. Specifically, this study focuses on how Proposition 48 has impacted the athletic careers, academic aspirations, and social/personal lives of student-athletes restricted by Proposition 48. This study includes separate case studies focusing on four student-athletes who are victims of Proposition 48. With data collected from interviews with the student-athletes, their coaches, their instructors, their teammates, and their academic advisors, the results of this study describe the deeper and more personal consequences of Proposition 48.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio