ON THE RECORD
UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETIC DIRECTOR EARL EDWARDS
Can you explain the Division I probationary , or reclassification , period ? When you move from Division II to Division I , there ’ s a four-year reclassification period . While you can compete as a Division I program during those four years , you ’ re not eligible for NCAA championships . The rationale behind the four years is that it gives your program time to become an effective competitor at a higher level of play and to ensure the resources provided to scholar-athletes are of a Division I standard .
Starting next fall 2024 , if we compete well and win conference championships , then we ’ re eligible to move on to the NCAA championships . Using basketball as an example , if we were to win The Big West basketball tournament , then we would go on to March Madness and participate in postseason competition .
What is your relationship like with our scholar-athletes ? What values do you want to instill in them ? We ’ re a Triton family . We want to create a sense of belonging . We emphasize our core values : the pursuit of excellence , innovation , resilience and inclusion .
Our scholar-athletes are phenomenal , incredible individuals , which is why we use the term “ scholar ” rather than the typical term “ student ” as you see normally . They do well in the classroom . The average GPA of our scholar-athletes is 3.38 , which compares to a 3.32 for the general student population . And that success is on top of the amount of time and dedication they have to be engaged in athletics — somewhere between 20 hours a week and sometimes more if you factor in travel . And adding to that , many of our athletes also have jobs , and many are also involved in community service projects . So when you put all those things together , in my mind , these individuals are phenomenal , with all the responsibilities they have . And they not only meet those responsibilities , they do so — consistently — at a high level .
All for One : In 2016 , undergraduates voted to approve a referendum to move the campus ’ 23-team intercollegiate athletics program to NCAA Division I .
Big Time : In 2020 , UC San Diego officially joined the Big West Conference , an NCAA Division I conference with membership institutions in California and Hawaii .
22 SPRING 2024