it's that time again. from the Bucknell BOT meeting last week:

"The committee discussed the ongoing confidential discussions about Patriot League membership. The league has developed a two- to five-year timeline for completing any expansion, and is sensitive to the impact that the global recession may have on institutions considering joining the league at this time."

feel free to read between the lines and share your interpretations. at first blush, looks bad to me re scholarships and the schools they are targeting (we need to be sensitive that the recession may keep schools from ramping up their spending to join the PL).

on a more positive athletics (but not football) front:

"At a joint meeting of the Long Range Planning Committee and the Athletics Subcommittee, Vice President Thiede reviewed the University's merit aid and scholarship program timeline. He noted that most institutions within the Patriot League are offering a more extensive merit aid program than Bucknell is via its programs in men's and women's basketball. The committee reviewed materials regarding the current financial aid landscape of the Patriot League and approved a resolution calling for a review of merit aid in athletics at Bucknell, with an intent to report back to the Board as early as November. This review anticipates a broad campus conversation about merit-based aid in general and athletic merit aid in particular."

http://www.departments.bucknell.edu/...html#Athletics