The University of California, Davis, will begin a program to offer grants-in-aid to student-athletes in all 23 intercollegiate sports in the fall of 1998, campus administrators announced Thursday (Oct. 17). The move marks the first such aid in the 85-year history of intercollegiate athletics at the university. UC Davis has been one of only nine schools among the 246 at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association that do not offer athletics grants. "This new direction is a proactive response to both changes in student financial aid and the environment for Division II athletics in the West," said Chancellor Larry N. Vanderhoef. "The single greatest incentive for taking this step now is to ensure our ability in the future to recruit, as we have in the past, student-athletes of the highest scholastic standing. Our new circumstance and immediate future in Division II athletics is complicated -- far different from anything we've experienced in past decades -- and offering grants-in-aid is surely a controversial change in policy. In the last analysis, however, and after extensive consultation, we have realized that this change is necessary to ensure the continuation of our proud traditions." Initially, grants of up to $2,500 will be offered to student-athletes at UC Davis beginning in the fall quarter of the 1998-99 academic year. The awards will be administered by the athletics department in compliance with existing NCAA guidelines. Awards will be made on a one-year renewable basis and can be split at coaches' discretion to offer aid to a greater number of student-athletes. Available funds will be distributed equitably in terms of participation levels, gender and among all teams. The goal of the new program will be to provide funding to as many student-athletes as possible. Money will be raised over the next two years to create a reserve fund for athletics grants. The funds will be generated from development programs, gate receipts and corporate marketing. No resources already allocated to athletics through registration fees or the student initiatives passed in 1993 and 1994 will be used. The campus will continue to maintain its academic integrity throughout the process, Vanderhoef emphasized. "We will make no changes in our current admission and retention policies and procedures that have resulted in such a positive educational experience for our student-athletes," he said. "We will remain committed to achieving a graduation and retention rate for student-athletes that equals or exceeds that of the general UC Davis population." The addition of athletics grants at UC Davis is part of a broader campus effort to offset rising costs for higher education. Student-athletes and non-athletes alike will benefit from the decision to offer grants-in-aid, according to Bob Franks, associate vice chancellor for student affairs. "The costs of attending UC Davis have seen an unprecedented escalation in the past five years," Franks said. "Student-athletes will benefit from grants-in-aid because, otherwise, many of them would be forced to work rather than compete in intercollegiate athletics. Other students will benefit because some donors who would not otherwise give will give to support athletics. This will make more support dollars available and will have a spillover effect on the total student aid fund." Said Greg Warzecka, director of athletics: "We should be prepared to recruit academically qualified students who will thrive here. We hope to offer them the best possible chance for equitable competition and a positive experience, without the burdens of too little time and too much debt. Grants-in-aid will allow us to continue a successful athletics program grounded in the best tradition of student-athlete and teacher-coach." UC Davis will discuss its decision to offer athletics grants with members of the Northern California Athletic Conference at the league's fall meeting Oct. 20-21 at Humboldt State.