A topic of discussion slated for the Board of Trustees’ retreat Saturday at Charleston Country Club will be intercollegiate athletics, following a discussion at an April executive committee meeting about possibly eliminating some sports teams.

Though the idea of deleting four athletic programs was talked about, the specific programs were not named.

The possible eliminations were brought up again at Friday’s Board of Trustees meeting during the Faculty Senate’s constituent report.

Ellen Corrigan, speaking on behalf of the senate, said the cutting of sports teams was talked about at a Faculty Senate meeting.

“It’s difficult not to notice the difference in treatments of sports teams being considered for elimination, being anonymously identifed,” she said, while pointing out that academic programs that were up for elimination during the spring semester were publicly named.

The Faculty Senate, Corrigan said, urges Glassman, the board and others involved in this decision- making process to review and carefully weigh the proposed outcomes under consideration ,not only on athletic programs but the university as a whole.

“If we are EIU what hurts one hurts us all and what benefits one should benefit us all as well, or at least do no harm,” she said.

Eastern President David Glassman said after the meeting he does not know when the administration will announce what athletic programs are being considred for deletion.

The names may or may not come up when the board discusses intercollegiate athletics at the retreat Saturday, he said, and the issue is complex.

“It’s very important for trustees to understand all elements of the issue,” he said. “That’s what’s taking place tomorrow, so everyone has full understanding of the athletic programs that we have,the revenue generated from them and the expenses brought into having them.”

Glassman said once this happens, there will probably be recommendations for actions to take place at the next Board of Trustees meeting.

The four athletic programs anonymously identifed at April’s executive committee meeting are just being used as examples as opposed to recommendations for elimination, he added.

“It’s just to give them some idea of how different sports have revenues, some different sports have expenses,” Glassman said. “They weren’t picked for any other reasons other than that.”

During the vitalization project, Workgroup no.4, which looked at intercollegiate athletics, recommended that individual sports teams be evaluated for elimination possibilites, but did not identify which sports should be evaluated.

“That’s what we’re doing now,” Glassman said.

Other items on Saturday’s agenda include a presentation by the Thorburn Marketing Group, an admissions update and recruitment initiative and new academic programs in the works.

Cassie Buchman can be reached at 581-2812 or cjbuchman@eiu.edu