WSSU FIRES A.D. (...Headed Back to Div. II ?)

[aggierattler]

WSSU fires athletics director of 9 years

By John Dell
WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL REPORTER

Chico Caldwell, the athletics director at Winston-Salem State since 2000, was fired yesterday by Chancellor Donald Reaves.

Caldwell, who was hired by former chancellor Harold Martin, had been instrumental in steering the Rams athletics program to NCAA Division I status. The program is in its third year of transition after having left Division II and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

When reached yesterday by phone and asked why he was fired, Caldwell said: "I don't know -- that's what I'm trying to find out."

Reaves, who was hired in February 2007, did not return a phone call to discuss his decision but said in a prepared statement that it was time for "new leadership."

"A stated goal in my short tenure as chancellor is to implement a talent strategy that has the right people in the right position at the right time," Reaves said in the statement. "The university, including its athletics program, is at a critical transition point where fresh ideas and approaches are needed, and in keeping with my commitment to the talent strategy, I believe that the athletics program and our stu2dent-athletes will benefit from new leadership."

Reaves named Tonia Walker, the associate director of athletics and senior women's administrator, as the interim AD. She has been at the school since August 2000, when she was hired as the volleyball coach and assistant AD after spending eight years as the director of public relations for the CIAA.

Walker, a two-sport athlete in college, received a bachelor's degree from Hampton in 1993 and a master's degree from Old Dominion in 1998. At WSSU, she has twice been named the CIAA senior women's administrator of the year.

Caldwell, 61, was just the fourth athletics director in school history. He was hired in the summer of 2000 after Anne Little was fired.

Little was the AD for three years. He followed Al Roseboro, who retired in the spring of 1997. Roseboro took over in 1990 to replace Big House Gaines, who until then had been the school's only AD. Gaines died in April 2005.

One of the biggest issues the athletics department faces is the transition to Division I.

On Friday, the board of governors of the University of North Carolina system will vote on WSSU's request to increase student athletics fees. That vote could determine whether WSSU continues to Division I or returns to Division II and the CIAA.

Caldwell has stayed behind the move to Division I since it was announced in December 2004, but it hasn't been easy. According to the school's budget, the athletics department will most likely be short about $1.5 million at the end of this academic year. That's one reason Reaves requested the fee increase.

WSSU's move also has been slowed by an NCAA sanction for underfunding scholarships in women's tennis, adding a year to the transition and pushing the completed move from 2010 to 2011.

Reaves said that there will be a national search to replace Caldwell.

Yesterday morning, Caldwell attended a committee meeting for the MEAC basketball tournaments, which will be played at Joel Coliseum next month. Caldwell provided a big push, with help from the city, to land the tournaments for the next three seasons.

Candidates to replace Caldwell, sources say, include Tim Grant, a former basketball player and assistant coach at WSSU, and Dee Todd, a former basketball player at WSSU and former AD at N.C. A&T.

Grant, 50 and currently the director of Winston-Salem's recreation and parks department, could not be reached for comment. He played basketball for Gaines, graduated from WSSU in 1980, worked as an assistant coach under Gaines from 1981 to 1994 and also was an assistant athletics director. He is on the school's hall-of-fame committee and its foundation board.

Todd, a 1972 graduate of WSSU, was the athletics director at A&T from May 2005 until December 2007, when she was reassigned to A&T's school of education as the director of special initiatives. "First of all, I have to get over the shock because I thought Chico was doing a good job," Todd said yesterday. "As an alumnus of Winston-Salem State, I really admire what they are doing over there."

Roseboro, who has remained active as an alumnus since retiring, endorsed Grant.

"Based on the position of an AD and what it takes when it comes to being in the community, Tim has all the attributes you would want," said Roseboro, a former football player at WSSU.

Roseboro says there is an obvious gap between the athletics department and some older alumni. "Tim has the people skills, was a former athlete, and he has the respect of a lot of folks," Roseboro said. "It's what is needed right now, especially with what's going on with the question about going Division I or going back to Division II."

■ John Dell can be reached at 727-4081 or [e-mail].

[JeffAggieFan]

If WSSU does drop to Div 2 do we still play them in football. Maybe try to have a setup like Norfolk and Va State.

[Bornthrilla]

If WSSU does drop to D2 in football, how does that affect Wheeler's fundraising plans?

In his first press conference, Wheeler stated that his ultimate dream was to create a big classic game with WSSU in football - mirrored after the Florida Classic.

Will that type of event still be possible if WSSU drops down and it was deemed that they are at a competitive disadvantage???

[DOOMS]

That could be a problem. It's ironic that Wheels' predecessor was the entity that argued for the conference to get rid of d-2 opponents and now his budget could be hamstrung as a result.

I think it would be well-attended whether or not Winston was d-1 or d-2. That being typed, it'd probably be much more well-attended if Winston was d-1.

[Aggie One]

Shades of FAMU froma few years ago - biting off more than they could chew. A $1.5 million dollar debt is nothing to sneeze at and I don't think the board of Governors are going to vote to increase fees, not when they are cutting teaching jobs and laying people off in the UNC system. Football costs are simply too far off the charts for making a move upward and Chico should have known better aand paid the price.

As far as the Winston game is concerned, make it a annual Labor Day weekend event in Aggie Stadium and give them a nice guarantee or percentage. It'll be more money than they would make on their own homecoming.

[DOOMS]

Man, tain't no way they get approval to increase fees. They should be lined up and slapped for even thinking about asking.

Division I is fool's gold for most hbcus.

You can't help but wonder how long they'd been planning to fire Chico. They probably wanted to wait until after signing day.

A-1, that Labor Day idea is too good to pass up.

[Bornthrilla]

I think Wheeler was hoping to sell out a bigger venue than Aggie Stadium

The Florida Classic draws about 65,000 fans a year.

[DOOMS]

More like 80,000. But we have to keep in mind that BCC and FAMU are pretty much the only hbcus in Florida (not to disrespect Florida Memorial or Ed Waters). They've got a captive audience.

I think NC has more hbcus than anybody. Somebody correct me on that.

But in any event, we simply don't have that same captive audience. I guess you could try to create it, but there's plenty of competition.

[JayBee]

Feb 10, 2009 13:15:45 GMT -5 DOOMS said:

I think NC has more hbcus than anybody. Somebody correct me on that.

That's a true statement!

Is this the 1st or 2nd request to raise student fees for WSSU? Didn't NCCU raise their student fees when Bill Hayes was still there? If they did, then there budget is not going to cut it either at $4.9 million.

[@ProfBellamy]

Feb 10, 2009 13:31:47 GMT -5 JayBee said:

Feb 10, 2009 13:15:45 GMT -5 DOOMS said:

I think NC has more hbcus than anybody. Somebody correct me on that.

That's a true statement!

Is this the 1st or 2nd request to raise student fees for WSSU? Didn't NCCU raise their student fees when Bill Hayes was still there? If they did, then there budget is not going to cut it either at $4.9 million.

But a 31% Fee increase is just ludicrous! I know when I sat on our Tuition and Fee committee a fee request like that would've been shot back before even being thought about being brought to the BOT or BOG.

Chico needed to have expanded their fund raising arm a while ago and pushed for more ambitious fee increases in the last few years.

[aggiejazz]

Everybody is blaming Chico for the move to D-I but a move like this requires serious input and blessing from power brokers and major decision makers.

Putting the university on the hook for millions of dollars takes a lot of backing from those people who calls the shots and "ain't no" HBCU AD has the kind of power to call this shot alone, not by a long shot.

Both the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees, at the time of the decision was made, are the main people to blame for this mess.

[DOOMS]

Well, the Chancellor that championed it is gone and the BOT ain't fin to put themselves out there...

I remember a vastly overpaid head coach at a certain NC hbcu whose experience in no way qualified him to be above an assistant. The Board, the A.D. and the Chancellor signed off on it. The Chancellor skipped town and the Board wasn't about to take credit. Who got tossed?

[Gator]

The inputs and outputs/outcomes didn't match the presentation. We all knew it was coming.

[DOOMS]

You got that right Gator. Of course "Hey y'all, I've got a great idea! Let's move to a vastly more expensive division during a recession!!!" doesn't really sell that well.

Paying extra cash for a coach who is a school alum, has no intention of leaving, not wanted by anybody else, and coming off a losing season couldn't help much either.

[@ProfBellamy]

Feb 10, 2009 16:02:04 GMT -5 aggiejazz said:

Everybody is blaming Chico for the move to D-I but a move like this requires serious input and blessing from power brokers and major decision makers.

Putting the university on the hook for millions of dollars takes a lot of backing from those people who calls the shots and "ain't no" HBCU AD has the kind of power to call this shot alone, not by a long shot.

Both the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees, at the time of the decision was made, are the main people to blame for this mess.

We also have to think about the change in system administration, Bowles set the 6.5% cap as a way to stabilize tuition increases. While the privileged campuses have had sizable increases (even UNC-CH increased their Athletics Fee last year), the smaller campuses have had more restrained fee increases. So I believe the Chancellor and BOT were assuming that they were going to do 15%-20% athletic fee increases per year to get them to the point where they can support this move. However, with the new caps and a fiscal conservative General Admin, this move was being forced to look into a new direction.