Stugray2,

Without the budget crisis, Chicago State is not dipping into their reserves. That is just a fact. They have had plenty of other issues for decades. They have had bad management, falling enrollment and low graduation rates. The budget issues have made these problems much worse. Many schools in the state are going into their reserves, laying off employees, dropping classes and have falling enrollment, but Chicago State was a school that could not handle this crisis as well as other schools have.

So what do they gain by fulfilling your dream and dropping down to NAIA? Last year they had a 6.2 million athletic budget. They supposedly got by on half of that. They brought in revenues of about $750,000 from money games and NCAA tournament revenue. How do they make that up? The 7,000 seat Jones Convocation Center is already used for purposes other than baskketball. It is bought and paid for, less than a decade old. They have a new baseball stadium. What do they gain by dropping down? How much money would they save and how do they make up for the loss in revenue?

The new board will figure this all out once the budget crises has been resolved. I would expect them to maintain the athletic program at the D1 level. With new management the enrollment numbers will get corrected. If the WAC can find a better fit for the conference than Chicago State, then they could be let go. But the Summit League needs baseball and men's soccer help, so I think Chicago State would find a home in that league.