Division III Presidents Council Looks at Membership Cap, Increase in Sports Sponsorship

INDIANAPOLIS --- The Division III Presidents Council, facing a September 1 deadline for sponsoring legislation for consideration at the 2006 Convention, moved forward an assortment of proposals addressing the Future of Division III – Phase II issues during its August 4 meeting in Indianapolis.

Those proposals touch a wide range of issues – including membership growth and diversity – raised two years ago by the resolution that created the Phase II initiative, 2004 Convention Proposal No. 66.  The actions are a result of more than one and a half years of research, membership discussion at last year’s Convention and feedback through Virtual Focus Groups, which in turn prompted recommendations from a variety of Division III committees.

Key mission points from those discussions include a commitment to integration of student-athletes into campus life, broad-based athletics programs and the role of university presidents in leading the division.

"This process may present challenges to institutions, however, it is intended to be about the future of the division and the commitment to the division’s philosophy in both word and action,” said Phillip Stone, chair of the Division III Presidents Council and president at Bridgewater College.  “The peak was the passing of the reform agenda two years ago, but we need our presidents to stay interested and committed to what is happening in this division.  We need to hold on to, or better yet advance, that reform package.”

The Council agreed to review 13 membership-sponsored proposals at its October meeting and agreed in principle to oppose those proposals that undermine the reform agenda adopted in 2004.

Other proposals recommended through the governance process, and endorsed by the Council include a proposal that would increase the minimum sports sponsorship requirements to six sports for male/mixed teams and six sports for female/mixed teams for institutions with enrollment greater than 1,000 students, with a delayed effective date of August 1, 2010, and a related waiver provision.

The Council also endorsed proposals to create a Conference Self-Study Guide (CSSG) to assist in a formal process for evaluation of conference members’ shared philosophy and practices, and to amend the Division III philosophy statement to explicitly support efforts to ensure that student-athletes are admitted to institutions under the same policies used for other students, that they perform at least as well academically as other students once enrolled, and that they are involved in athletics programs that are integrated into the campus culture and educational mission.

Altogether, the Council approved eight legislative recommendations stemming from the Future of Division III – Phase II initiative, including a proposal to allow two years for institutional realignment within conferences following completion of the initial CSSG without loss by affected conferences of championships automatic qualification.

"This is an extension of the reform effort legislation passed two years ago at Convention which has continued with a survey of the membership, virtual focus groups and general feedback from folks at our institutions and conferences through our Management Council communications efforts,” said Michael Miranda, chair of Division III Management Council and faculty member at Plattsburgh State University.

In discussing the proposals to increase sports sponsorship, Miranda said, “We want Division III institutions to have balanced, broad-based athletics programs – that is a driving concern.  We want to have better opportunities for student-athletes to be a part of a team.  Increasing sponsorship to six and six seems like a modest step and not too terribly burdensome, especially considering there would be an exemption for smaller institutions.  This seems to be a reasonable way to do it.”

The Management Council met in July in Garden Grove, Calif., where it looked the same proposals and forwarded them on to Presidents Council with its recommendations.

In addition to the Future of Division III—Phase II proposals, the Presidents Council also agreed to sponsor several other legislative proposals originating from committees within the Division III governance structure.

The Council will sponsor proposals to:

• Revise Bylaw 14.1.9 to allow a student-athlete who previously earned an undergraduate degree to transfer into a Division III institution and be immediately eligible for participation, so long as the student-athlete meets requirements of the general transfer exception per Bylaw 14.5.1.1 and has at least two semesters or three quarters remaining on the 10-semester/15-quarter clock;
• Permit a coach meeting specific criteria to provide private lessons to prospective student-athletes;
• Permit institutions to donate used athletics equipment to youth groups (including high schools);
• Prohibit a transfer student-athlete's participation in any NCAA championship during the required academic year in residence (including vacation periods immediately after one of the terms of that year).

The council also:

• Approved the proposed schedule for the 2006 Convention, including a Division III Forum focusing on proposed legislation on Sunday morning, January 8, and the Division III business session on Monday, January 9, which will include a "Celebration of the Division III Student-Athlete" as part of the programming to celebrate the NCAA Centennial. Council members, noting that several legislative proposals address topics that have been of particular interest to institutional chief executive officers at recent conventions, also discussed ways of ensuring that CEOs are fully informed about the 2006 Convention agenda and are encouraged to attend and participate in debate;
• Received information about plans to increase conferences’ involvement in and responsibility for administering grant programs under the Division III strategic plan;
• Agreed to sponsor proposals that also are being considered in Divisions I and II.  One specifies appropriate use of names and likenesses of current student-athletes in permissible promotional activities involving commercial entities.  However, council members made their support contingent upon excluding entities engaged in sale of alcohol, tobacco, performance enhancing drugs, gambling-related entities or other inappropriate products.  Another proposal would make providing to student-athletes impermissible substances (for example, prescription drugs) that affect athletics performance a violation of the NCAA’s Code of Ethical Conduct.  The third proposal would amend the definition of the Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) on an Association-wide basis due in part to concerns raised by NCAA general counsel as to whether the designation could be perceived as a job classification.  The amendment will be coupled with an educational campaign to educate institutions on the appropriate manner in which to designate the SWA including specific communication to presidents and directors of athletics.

The council will meet again in October in Indianapolis.