Student-athletes at Concordia University Ann Arbor say they are confused and frustrated as the school announced that it will discontinue all athletics programs after the 2024-25 school year.
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Student-athletes at Concordia University Ann Arbor say they are confused and frustrated as the school announced that it will discontinue all athletics programs after the 2024-25 school year.
“After the 2024-25 academic year, all intercollegiate athletic programs on the Ann Arbor campus will be discontinued,” Erik Ankerberg, president of Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor, wrote in a statement posted to the Concordia website.
All of the school's athletic programs will continue through the end of the year, as long as their rosters remain at a level required by the university.
“From current reports, roster sizes for most sports appear to meet these requirements,” Ankerberg wrote.
Last week, CUAA announced that it will also be cutting many of its academic programs, leaving only seven academic programs, four undergraduate and three graduate, on campus after the 2024-2025 academic year. Students with majors in all other programs have the option of finishing their degree online or transferring to the Concordia University Wisconsin campus.
Trey Acker is a rising junior on the baseball team. He is a right-handed pitcher. In 2023 he played in 14 games, had a 2 to 0 record, pitched 32 innings and struck out 22 batters.
“I would say athletics getting cut has a big impact on me because going into my junior year, knowing this will be the last year at Concordia, means I won’t be able to experience my senior year here," Acker told A4. "Concordia has been a special place for me because of all the lifelong relationships I have built here, and it’s sad that no future athletes will get to experience this program.”
Marcus Bugeja, a senior on the baseball team who is also in one of the majors that will move online, was frustrated by the news.
“Finding out that all athletics are going to be cut after this upcoming academic year is very difficult," Bugeja said. "The impact that this has had on, not only the baseball team, but all teams on campus is very significant. For baseball, it has caused a great number of my teammates to really evaluate their futures at Concordia. It is unfortunate to see the news about Concordia looking to cut academic programs. Ever since I saw the news about this, it has caused not only myself, but everyone I know a great amount of stress and anxiety of not knowing if our program is going to be the one that is going to be cut or not. Every possible outcome from this has been swirling through my head and I do not know what the future is going to bring me right now.”
