BOSTON - The America East Conference has once again been selected as a recipient of the C.A.R.E. Model Conference Grant, as announced by the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics on Tuesday, September 15.
The grants were awarded to the five conferences through the Knight Commission’s C.A.R.E. Model Conference Grant program by meeting the criteria for connecting athletics revenues with the educational model of college sports.
“The America East Conference is proud to receive the C.A.R.E. model grant from the Knight Commission for a second-consecutive year,” said America East Commissioner, Brad Walker. "This prestigious honor reflects the core values that the conference and its member institutions practice every day by putting their student-athletes first. Our commitment to providing a positive broad-based experience has already been positively impacted through the C.A.R.E. grant and we look forward to building upon that this year.”
After receiving a grant of $25,000 last year, America East is the recipient of a $10,000 C.A.R.E. Model Conference Grants. The financial awards recognize and support each conference’s commitment to the C.A.R.E. Model principles in their distribution and use of shared athletics revenues.
“These recognitions come at a moment of significant financial change across Division I athletics,” said Amy Privette Perko, CEO of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. “Amid that change, the five C.A.R.E. Champions continue to keep education, gender equity, and student-athlete well-being at the center of how they distribute and spend shared athletics revenue, demonstrating that values-based policies can endure even as the business of college athletics evolves.”
The C.A.R.E. Model (Connecting Athletics Revenues with the Educational Model of College Sports) financial framework was created to assist conferences and national entities in bolstering accountability and ensuring that both the distribution and spending of shared athletics revenue prioritize college athletes’ education, health, safety, well-being, equity, and opportunity. This holistic model supports the educational mission and includes four universal principles and requirements:
- Transparency
- Independent Oversight
- Incentives for Core Values of Education, Gender Equity, and Opportunity
- Financial Responsibility for Education, Health, Safety, and Well-Being
Knight Commission Co-Chair Len Elmore emphasized that values-based decision-making isn’t a one-time commitment. “Earning this recognition once shows intent. Earning it again — and, for two of these conferences, a third time — shows that these values are embedded into how a conference operates, not just how it responds to a single grant cycle,” said Elmore. “As Division I conferences navigate evolving financial pressures, these repeat C.A.R.E. Champions show that education-centered principles can, and should, continue to shape responsible financial policy in college athletics.”
Each conference can use its C.A.R.E. Model Conference Grant to implement the principles and educate institutional leaders, staff, college athletes, and other stakeholders about how this framework positively impacts student-athletes’ experiences.
About America East
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
About the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
The Knight Commission, founded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in 1989, is an independent group that leads transformational change to prioritize college athletes’ education, health, safety, and success. The Commission has a legacy of influencing NCAA policies that have helped propel record-high graduation rates of Division I athletes. The Commission’s ongoing efforts focus on governance, equity, opportunity, and financial reforms, as well as providing education on the changing landscape of college sports. For more, visit knightcommission.org.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation is a national foundation with strong local roots. We invest in journalism, in the arts and in the success of cities where brothers John S. and James L. Knight once published newspapers. Our goal is to foster informed and engaged communities, which we believe are essential for a healthy democracy. For more, visit knightfoundation.org.
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -