It is more than a coincidence that teams from Carleton have gone on to compete at the national level in both my fall and winter sports seasons this year.

Before looking at the numbers, let's establish the basics. Carleton is currently the fifth-ranked liberal arts college in the nation and Macalester is 26th. Our admissions departments operate with similar standards, our coaches recruit overcoming similar obstacles and our athletes are students first.

In an Admissions summary provided by the athletic department, statistics show Macalester lost 54 of their 261 admits to Carleton this year. This number is almost twice as many as any other competitor.

This summary proves that Admissions is not fully to blame for low numbers in athletic participation. In 1997, the college received 482 applications from highly-rated athletes. Of these applicants, 356 were admitted (73.9%) and only 84 enrolled. This year, the applicant pool decreased to 362, but the admissions rate was similar to 1997 at 72.1%. Still, just 80 athletes enrolled. The drop in applicants over the past six years should be a major concern and it is not the sole responsibility of Admissions. With over 100 less applicants, they have much less to work with.

There is a traveling all-sports trophy awarded to the school that tallies the most points from conference finishes each year. Eleven points are awarded to first place for men, twelve for women and so-on down to last place. Macalester actually donated the women's trophy in 1983-84, a year after women's competition began in the MIAC. Ironically, we have not seen it since. The men last captured the title in 1967-68.

Macalester and Carleton used to consistently finish within several points of each other. In 1998-99, the Macalester women finished 10.5 points ahead. The point differential has drastically increased in Carleton's favor. Last year, they outscored us by 32 points. Currently the tally is at 59.5 Carleton, 42.5 Macalester.

The men's differential is less striking, but in 1998 Macalester outscored them by 13 points. Carleton has finished ahead the last two years and is leading by 10 this year as well.

A look at individual team performances between those same years (1998-99 vs. 2002-03) expands on the all-sport trophy point system. Comparing the conference finishes for each school, only five out of Macalester's nineteen varsity teams remained the same or improved. However, fifteen of Carleton's eighteen varsity teams remained the same or improved on their 1998 finish. Carleton's athletics programs have clearly improved. Ours have not.

The comparison extends beyond official varsity sports. The Carleton sports information director noted that at least 90% of their student body participates in an intramural or club sport on campus.

Macalester intramural director, Steph Schleuder estimates that just less than 50% of students here participate in intramurals. The good news is that the program has grown from 586 students since she took over in 1998 to 985 this year, a 40% increase.

Schleuder also said the program is severely limited by facilities. All competitions are scheduled on Sundays because of the conflicts with Varsity sports during the rest of the week. Macalester is in desperate need of a new athletic complex, not only to better accommodate our athletic programs and help with recruiting, but also to make recreation and fitness opportunities more accessible for the entire student body.

We should follow Carleton's example. Their new field house was built mainly to accommodate intramurals and the campus community. The mission of the new facility is stated as follows on their web site: "The Carleton Recreation Center will provide a broad program of sport, recreation and fitness activities for students, faculty, and staff to enhance their personal lifestyle and improve the quality of life on the Carleton campus."

Why have Carleton athletics grown more competitive than ours over the last few years? Why is their campus so active? It is not because they have more athletes participating. In statistics published by the US Department of Education, Macalester had 383 participants on the first day of scheduled contest for 2000-01 compared to Carleton with 373 in 2001-02. Our team expenses are reported at $1.19 million, while they reported $1.1 million. Coaching staffs are similar in size and salaries are almost equivalent.

Carleton enters competition with about the same number of athletes and they face the exact recruiting and admissions challenges. They do not have a bigger athletic budget. Their coaches are not paid more. However, there is one distinct difference that puts them ahead of us. Athletics and fitness are a priority for Carleton and everyone assumes responsibility for their promotion.

For the current state of Macalester athletics to improve, we need support from outside the Athletic Department. We need sports, health, recreation and competitiveness to be emphasized at the top. We need people who care about athletics in the positions that will make a difference. We need the community to continue asking the right questions. It is unacceptable for this pattern to continue and for these questions to remain unanswered when there is an opportunity for change.