The Governance Challenge in College Athletics

Ross Mugler, CEO and President AGB

Peter Eckel, senior fellow and co-director, Penn Project on University Governance
Karen Weaver, academic director, The New Athletics Enterprise Certificate Program, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education

This federal policy overview examines congressional activity and proposed legislation shaping the future of college athletics. Trustees, presidents, and chancellors will explore key policy developments, assess their potential institutional impact, and consider the governance questions boards and senior leaders must address as the federal landscape continues to evolve.

Robert Mangas, shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, LLP

College athletics can advance institutional mission, strengthen community, and support student success—but only when governing boards provide focused, informed oversight. How can trustees ensure athletics programs align with institutional values, academic priorities, financial strategy, and long-term goals? Participants will explore the governance questions boards should ask, the risks of mission drift, and the need to balance competitive ambitions with fiduciary responsibility.

Speakers:
Jon Alger, American 250 Fellow, American Council on Education and the American Association of Colleges and Universities; former president American University and James Madison University
Sarah Hubbard, regent and former chair, University of Michigan Board of Regents

The business model for major college athletics is broken. Rising costs, revenue sharing, facility demands, legal exposure, and competitive escalation are straining institutional budgets. Boards must weigh competing priorities, assess financial and reputational risks, and determine what level of investment is sustainable. This session will explore the difficult conversations that presidents and boards must have about institutional strategy and the role of athletics in it.

Moderator:
Karen Weaver, academic director, The New Athletics Enterprise Certificate Program, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education

Speaker:
Cheryl McConnell, president, St. Joseph’s University

The economics of college athletics demand new approaches to revenue, investment, cost management, and institutional support. This session will examine how boards can evaluate alternative business and financing models that reduce financial vulnerability while preserving mission, competitive opportunity, and student-athlete well-being. Participants will explore strategic partnerships, shared services, new revenue structures, capital priorities, and other options for building a more sustainable athletics enterprise.

Moderator:
Kim Schatzel, founder, CEOHigherEd, former president Towson University and University of Louisville

Speaker:
Eric Monday, executive vice president for finance and administration and co-executive vice president for Health Affairs

As authority over college athletics shifts toward conferences, commissioners, media partners, and investors, institutional accountability remains with presidents and governing boards. Decisions about media rights, outside capital, revenue sharing, and conference structures can affect institutional strategy, finances, risk, mission, and reputation. Trustees and presidents will explore how to preserve presidential leadership, ensure meaningful board oversight, and clarify where management authority ends and fiduciary accountability begins.

Moderator:
Peter Eckel, senior fellow and co-director, Penn Project on University Governance

Speakers:
Kirk Schulz, member, Knight Commission, former president Washington State University and Kansas State University

Three trustees will share the most consequential lessons they took from the conference and connect those insights to boardroom action. Drawing on discussions of institutional governance, presidential leadership, financial and reputational risk, student well-being, and the changing intercollegiate sports landscape, they will highlight the questions boards must ask, the risks they must oversee, and the priorities they should advance when they return to their institutions.

Oliver Luck, regent, West Virginia University Board of Regents, member Knight Commission, president of Palmetto Trust Company, LLC and chairman of Altius Sports Partners; former executive vice president for Regulatory Affairs and Strategic Partnerships of the NCAA; and athletic director of West Virginia University
Jon Steinbrecher, commissioner, Mid-American Conference; chair, Valparaiso University
Blake Flanders, president and CEO, Kansas Board of Regents

Intercollegiate athletics is changing rapidly, with new pressures involving NIL, agents, media rights, financial instability, sports gambling, and evolving governance structures. The session will begin with a concise overview of the forces reshaping college sports and their implications for boards and presidents. Most of the time will be devoted to facilitated discussion, allowing attendees to compare experiences, identify emerging risks, and consider how boards can govern effectively amid continued uncertainty.

Karen Weaver, academic director, The New Athletics Enterprise Certificate Program, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education
Dan Radakovich, executive director, FBS Athletics Directors Association