Timeline

Brand originally attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering, but he quickly realized he did not enjoy it. With the help and guidance of his teacher Robert Whalen, Brand instead found his love for philosophical discussion and graduated from RPI with his Bachelor’s in Philosophy in 1964.

Brand enjoyed applying his philosophy to administrative positions, which offered opportunities to enact change and improve the lives of others. After a year as Assistant Chair at the University of Pittsburgh, Brand became Chair of the Philosophy Department at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He remained Chair until 1981, when he moved to the University of Arizona and became the Head of the Philosophy Department there.

In 1986, Brand made the pivotal decision to become the Provost and Vice President at Ohio State, his first administrative role outside of his academic discipline. His time as Provost was a marked shift from his usual philosophical pursuits, preparing Brand for his future presidency and a lifetime of leadership.

After he revived the University of Oregon, other universities began to recognize Brand as a powerful agent of change—and a good candidate for their administration. For his part, Brand longed to move back to the Midwest and the world of Big Ten athletics. So, when Indiana University offered, he accepted. In 1994, Myles Brand became the 16th President of Indiana University’s eight campuses, where he served until 2002.

Brand faced one of the most controversial decisions of his career when Coach Bob Knight was accused of a pattern of verbal and physical abuse against students and staff. Brand conducted an investigation and issued a zero-tolerance policy that outlined the university’s expectations. After several months on probation, Coach Knight violated the sanctions he had agreed to follow and was relieved of his duties.

When Cedric Dempsey announced his retirement in 2002, the NCAA began looking for a new president who could lead the organization into an era of academic reform. After a seven-month search process, the Executive Committee unanimously selected Myles Brand to serve as President of the NCAA. Brand was the first university president to ever lead the NCAA, providing a unique perspective that prioritized the academic success of student-athletes.

Part of Brand’s academic reform plan included new, more accurate ways to assess academic progress and hold universities accountable for their student-athletes’ success. The Academic Progress Rate (APR) was designed to track a team’s academic performance each term, which allowed the NCAA to enact sanctions if a team was underperforming. The Division I Board of Directors first agreed to begin collecting data for the APR in the 2003-2004 academic year, though no penalties would be assessed until 2005.

After another year of advocating for reform, Brand’s 2005 State of the Association Address sought to debunk some of the commonly held misperceptions about intercollegiate athletics. He again asserted that college sports must prioritize student-athletes and their education, and he reminded the nation that he was not “the czar of college sports.” The NCAA made decisions as an association of members, and true change was only possible through the consensus of its university presidents.

Under Brand’s leadership, the NCAA launched a Presidential Task Force consisting of fifty university presidents regarding the Future of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics. After eighteen months, the task force released a report with recommended guidelines for university presidents that centered around: fiscal responsibility, student-athlete well-being, the integration of athletics into the university mission, and strong presidential leadership relating to internal and external constituencies.

In 2006, the NCAA celebrated their 100-Year Anniversary, honoring the first century of united leadership in collegiate sports. In his NCAA State of the Association Address that year, Brand wrote a speech examining the bedrock principles that shaped the organization’s past—and how those values would remain their mission and foundation as they looked to the future.

In light of his continuing advocacy efforts, Brand titled his State of the Association Address during the 2007 NCAA Convention: “In All, Fairness.” He recalled the NCAA’s underlying values of sportsmanship and fairness as a critical lens to examine the issues of the day—from the academic reform initiative, to the importance of Title IX, to the ongoing fight for diversity and inclusion.

Brand’s speech at the 2008 NCAA Convention reflected on the role of the NCAA and intercollegiate athletics as a whole. He passionately spoke about the value of sports to create community, promote social justice, and augment the classroom experience. As a former university president himself, Brand emphasized that universities and their athletic programs were joined together in an “extraordinary union”—for the ultimate betterment of both.

Because of his health, Brand was unable to deliver his final State of the Association Address in person. Instead, a shortened version of the speech was publicly delivered by Vice President Wallace Renfro at the annual convention. Brand’s original written speech is included here in full, examining the necessity for balance between commercialism and idealism in college athletics. He intended the speech to be a blueprint for the NCAA going forward.

Sadly, after a life of service and leadership, Myles Brand lost his fight with cancer and passed away on September 16. He was honored with a televised tribute hosted by Jim Nantz and remembered by many as a visionary, a leader, and a friend.