By Bill Raack, KWMU/WSIU-Carbondale
Carbondale, MO – Southern Illinois University trustees today approved a plan to elevate the athletics program at the Edwardsville campus.
Members of the board of trustees voted to move SIU-E to division one status in the NCAA but were divided over whether or not the change was fiscally responsible. Student trustee Jesse Phelps, who represents the Edwardsville campus, says the move would increase costs for students,
"I see student after student who is struggling trying to pay for the necessary costs of an education and this is an optional one that again when you do the cost-benefit analysis I do not see the benefit as overwhelming the cost."
The reclassification will take five years. During that time, the school has to seek a conference affiliation and raise funds to cover the larger budget for staffing, recruiting and facilities.