Rose-Hulman Rifle Team Forced To Shut Down - Speak Out INGO

[JeremiahJohnson]

OK. Just got one of the published stories but don't/can't post it. I can e-mail it to anyone interested. PM me with an e-mail addy and I'll forward it.

 

[chipbennett]

Good. This is the letter I sent:



President Conwell,

Rifle Team Head Coach Jason LaBella has passed along information regarding the Rose-Hulman Rifle Team. It is my understanding this will be the last season for the rifle team at your request. It is also my understanding the reason was to reallocate resources, yet very few resources are provided by the university. From the outside looking in it appears Rose-Hulman is anti-gun, strange for rural Indiana. My son is a junior at Rose and tells me a good number of rural Indiana kids attend Rose and most reflect the common world view of fly-over America - definitely not anti-gun to say the least.

Also, from the outside looking in, it's odd Rose would want to drop a sport that has enjoyed so much success. The team consistently places nationally in the top 25 and competes with division I schools across the country. You would think the rifle team - or any team with this much success - would be a PR selling point for the Institute complete with color glossy pictures in the tri-fold.

I am disappointed Rose-Hulman is dropping an opportunity for their students to compete in the NCAA at the Division I level. My son tells me there were at least 50 kids trying out this year for the 4 open spots on the team. He and his best friend were two of those four. The interest is there, the resources to sustain the sport are very low, the success rate is very high, from a business standpoint it appears the ROI is very high.

Asking that you reconsider,

V/R

I just emailed the coach. After I get confirmation from him, I will email the office of the president. I will inform him that, as an alumnus, any annual contribution I would have made will now be made to the Second Amendment Foundation.

 

[rosejm]

I'll certainly mention my past donations when writing my letter as well as reconsideration of future giving.
Geez, you'd think that they could find less successful programs to consider cutting.

 

[SteveM4A1]

I just emailed the coach. After I get confirmation from him, I will email the office of the president. I will inform him that, as an alumnus, any annual contribution I would have made will now be made to the Second Amendment Foundation.

Please post any confirmation you get. I don't want to go sending emails to the president without confirmation. I will get a hold of some of the guys in my class and have them send emails as well.

 

[terrehautian]

Someone email me the article, I will suggest it as a story idea at work (I work at the best rated local tv station). Not saying the story will run, but I will suggest it.

 

[rob63]

Likewise, I will send an email as soon as confirmation is posted. Sad, rifle shooting as part of the ROTC course was still a requirement for freshmen when I went there.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

I've e-mailed the story to two people so far. Anyone else wanting the story PM me your e-mail addy.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Someone email me the article, I will suggest it as a story idea at work (I work at the best rated local tv station). Not saying the story will run, but I will suggest it.

That would be awesome! Attention is exactly what this story needs - it's so far being ignored.

PM me your e-mail and I'll forward it to you.

 

[Rookie]

Why can't you post it?

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Why can't you post it?

It's a *.pdf file...if you know how I'd be happy to forward it to you...

 

[rob63]

Don't know how well this will work, but I took a screen-shot of the article.

View attachment 33659

 

[Rookie]

No, I don't know how. I was trying to figure out why you couldn't post a link. It never occurred to me that it wasn't actually a link.

 

[rosejm]

Can't seem to select the text at the moment, but I've attached a screenshot of the article here


And I figured it out:

Bethany Martin • editor in chief
Rose-Hulman’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Rifle Team is in its last season of operation. According to team coach and Rose- Hulman alumnus Jason LaBella, he was called to meet with Athletic Director Jeffrey Jenkins and President Dr. James Conwell before the 2014-15 school year started. He was surprised to hear that there was a change in policy and that the Rose- Hulman rifle team would end operation at the end of this season.

“At this time a decision was made to cancel the program after this year as we have decided to go in a different direction,” Jenkins said.

Dr. Conwell clarified the policy change came from the NCAA. He said that there are new regulations that “say you can only compete within your division.” He also said that “there are a small handful of [D3] schools that have a rifle team,” and explained that this put them in a difficult place to find schools to be competitive against.

“There [are] eleven students on the team … and it just doesn’t seem to be a real effective sport or use of our resources and efforts,” Dr. Conwell said. He said that it is a logistics issue and not a financial issue, and that “at the end of the day I’d like to make sure we have emphasis on the sports that are larger.”

Dr. Conwell did not make this decision lightly. He acknowledged that the sport has been around for a long time and the situation compares to when the wrestling team was dissolved. He said that the decision to end the rifle team had nothing to do with safety concerns or insurance issues.

“It was more of an emphasis on having larger groups participate in organized activities that we already support, through our clubs and other athletic events,” Dr. Conwell said. “The Collegiate Rifle Coaches Association, who works with the NCAA on rules and regulations, has no knowledge of such a change,” LaBella said. The NCAA was contacted but was unable to give an official comment yet.

The rifle team generally competes against D1 schools like Ohio State, Morehead State, and Murray State with Anschutz match rifles and Walther air rifles. They practice three hours a day for three days a week in a ten-point shooting range located beneath the Cook Stadium bleachers.

The rifle team has not been funded by the institute, excepting administrative costs and utilities, since the institute’s athletic department eliminated funding for the wrestling team and rifle team in 2009. LaBella said that a major percentage of the rifle team’s funding has come from his pocket and that the rest comes from a scholastic shooting trust and alumni.

“I’ve donated back anything I make here, I was told I couldn’t strictly volunteer, so I basically donate back everything I am paid,” he said.

In each match, contestants take 60 shots with an air rifle and then 20 shots in a prone position, kneeling position, and standing position each with a match rifle. The team can boast that they have never had a physical accident of bodily harm other than the occasional wrist injury.

Their last match will be Saturday Feb. 21, 2015 in Fairbanks, Alaska. Rose-Hulman’s rifle team has been a part of the Rose community for eight decades according to the team website and has held a prestigious reputation.

They have been a NCAA affiliated team since the creation of the sport by NCAA in 1980 and before the NCAA took over, the competitions were administrated by the National Rifle Association (NRA). They nearly always rank in the top 20 in the nation, though they slipped to 21st this past season. This list consists of Division I, II, and III teams (D1, D2, and D3).

“NCAA rifle is the only sport in which male and female athletes compete directly against each other, making it a true manifestation of Title IX and gender equality,” LaBella said.

Allison Carlson, a senior chemical engineer and cocaptain of the rifle team, has been on the team for all of her four years here as well as two years in high school. She said that Rose-Hulman should have a rifle team so that “students with different interests [still have] a team to be involved in.” She also said that the rifle team is the only reason she knew that Rose-Hulman existed when she was searching for colleges.

The range has recently gone under some small renovations. The backstop’s canvas was replaced as the old one was worn and torn. It has now been replaced with a rubberized gel mat to catch and stop bullets. They have also purchased new safes to lock up their equipment.

LaBella will be inducted in the Hall of Fame this weekend for his accomplishments on the rifle team during his time as a student at Rose-Hulman. The rifle team has a match against Ohio State on Sunday. They will have the range open to visitors and spectators and are inviting them to use the rifle team’s electronic trainer.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

 

[jwh20]

Thanks for that! As an alumnus, I'll register my displeasure since this smells of liberal-elitist dogma to me rather than some baloney NCAA rule. I'm NOT a fan or Mr. Conwell as the new president of the Institute and this action just confirms my suspicions about him.

And yes, this sort of thing DOES affect my decision to support Rose-Hulman and I plan to let him know that.

 

[jblomenberg16]

I wonder if since the team is largely self funded, if there could be a petition to remain as a "club" team?

 

[terrehautian]

I forwarded the story onto a news reporter, it might be a sports story, but I done my part.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

I forwarded the story onto a news reporter, it might be a sports story, but I done my part.

I hope so. There doesn't seem to be much interest about it, but hopefully that's because the right people don't know.

 

[rhino]

This is troubling news. I am just now getting to a point in my "career" where contributing to the school in a significant amount as an alumnus is a possibility. I shall write a letter as well.

 

[Leo]

I have one family member with my same last name, and a couple of business owners as well as a a retired Marine officer who are Rose Hulman graduates in my contacts.

I carefully crafted a letter to Mr Conwell. Hopefully it will help.