Hibbing Community College's football program has been suspended, Provost Ken Simberg announced Wednesday. There will be no football team this fall, he said.
A committee of faculty members will be formed to assess the situation and determine whether football will be resumed in fall 2008, Simberg said.
The issue arose after about five years of sub-academic performance by members of the football team, Simberg said. From 2001 to 2006, the football team's cumulative grade-point average was 1.81.
College officials say they will use the $50,000 to $60,000 it cost to run the program to pursue other student opportunities to provide diversity for the student body.
About 80 percent of the football team's members are black. Hibbing Community College staff and faculty members will help football players transfer to other community colleges in Northeastern Minnesota, providing they are academically eligible.
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The decision comes after about a week of deliberation by Simberg.
