Laurinburg Institute
| Laurinburg Institute | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
|
125 McGirts Bridge Rd. Laurinburg, North Carolina 28352  United States
|
|
| Coordinates | 34°46′59″N 79°27′24″W / 34.783179°N 79.456594°WCoordinates: 34°46′59″N 79°27′24″W / 34.783179°N 79.456594°W |
| Information | |
| Motto | Deeds, not words |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Nonsectarian |
| Established | 1904 |
| CEEB code | 342176 |
| Head of school | Mr. F.H. McDuffie, Jr. |
| Teaching staff | 9 |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Enrollment | 80 |
| Team name | Tigers |
| Website | www |
Laurinburg Institute is a historic African American preparatory school in Laurinburg, North Carolina. The school was founded in 1904 by Emmanuel Monty and Tinny McDuffie at the request of Booker T. Washington.
The school is particularly noted for its output of highly accomplished alumni as well as a rich basketball tradition, having produced several All-Americans. Its most notable basketball alumni include Sam Jones, NBA Hall of Famer with the Boston Celtics, and Charlie Scott, an All-American at UNC and NBA All-Star.
Despite its storied history, Laurinburg may be caught up in a relatively new effort to rein in so-called “basketball academies,” which are typically new private schools tied to a church or municipal basketball league that try to lure students with big hopes of becoming a star and earning a lucrative NBA contract.
The schools have picked up since 2006 when the NBA implemented new draft eligibility rules that require players to be at least 19 years old and one year removed from high school graduation. Since college experience is not needed, students may attend these institutions, throughout and after high school, to focus more on their basketball skills than academics.
That same year the NCAA began routinely reviewing prep schools for academic irregularities, including reviewing the transcripts of prep school student-athletes seeking to play at NCAA-member institutions. (By virtue of meeting state requirements, public schools do not receive the same scrutiny.) The irregularities found in students’ transcripts at schools sanctioned as “not cleared” include dramatic academic improvement over a short period of time and the taking of sequential courses at the same time. In Laurinburg’s case, the NCAA, after two on-site visits, raised concerns about the curriculum and quality control, among other issues.
McDuffie says he’s tried and failed to learn from the NCAA what precisely is wrong with his school and how he can fix it. “I gave up communicating with them last fall,” he says.
NCAA spokeswoman Jennifer Royer says the NCAA does not disclose to the public the findings of its investigations, and she declined to comment specifically on the Laurinburg Institute, other than to confirm that the institute’s appeal was denied.
...
Wikipedia