April 2005 NCAA Executive Committee minutes

[Note: These minutes contain only actions taken (formal votes or stated "sense of the meeting") in accordance with NCAA policy regarding minutes of all Association entities. While certain items on the Committee’s agenda were acted on at various times throughout the meeting, all final actions within a given topic are combined in these minutes for convenience of reference.]

The meeting was called to order at 5:08 p.m. by the chair, President Cartwright. All members were present as noted above.

1. Welcome and announcements. President Cartwright thanked everyone for attending. She welcomed new members Philip Austin, the incoming chair of the Division I Board of Directors, and Kathryn Martin, the new chair of the Division II Presidents Council, noting that neither President Austin nor President Martin was unable to attend the meeting. President Cartwright also recognized Walter Harrison the incoming chair of the Executive Committee.

2. Approval of January 10, 2005, meeting minutes.

It was VOTED

“To approve the Executive Committee minutes of the January 10, 2005, meeting as distributed.”

3. NCAA President’s Report.

a. Strategic plan update. President Brand provided a brief update on the ongoing implementation of the Association’s strategic plan. He noted that several key alliances had been established and that overall good progress has been made.

b. Internal review of enforcement policies and procedures. President Brand informed the Committee that the NCAA has retained the services of an external consultant to oversee a team of external attorneys or accountants as they engage in a comprehensive review of enforcement and membership services policies and procedures. The review is expected to be completed by early fall. He further noted that the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche continues in its overall assessment of the Association’s potential risks. The enforcement/membership services review is the first of several internal strategies to be implemented in response to key recommendations generated through the risk assessment process.

c. Presidential Task Force on the Future of Intercollegiate Athletics. President Brand informed the Committee that a presidential task force on the future of Division I intercollegiate athletics has been formed to identify key issues in intercollegiate athletics that could benefit from presidential leadership. The task force will be subdivided into four key areas: (1) implications of academic values and standards; (2) fiscal responsibility; (3) presidential leadership of internal and external constituencies; and (4) student-athlete well-being. The group of approximately 50 individuals is comprised primarily of institutional presidents and chancellors, as well as some public members. The first meeting will occur June 9-10 in Tucson, Arizona. It is anticipated that the task force will complete its work in 18 to 24 months. [Note: Subsequent to the Executive Committee meeting, it was determined that this task force will be officially called the Presidential Task Force on the Future of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics.]

d. Title IX resolution. Judith Sweet alerted the Committee to the issues surrounding recent U.S. Board of Education clarifications related to Title IX. She noted that this clarification allows institutions, under the third prong of the three-part test, to ascertain interest in additional women’s sports merely by conducting an e-mail survey. Further, the clarification allows institutions to treat a lack of response to the survey as a lack of interest in participating in additional sports. Ms. Sweet noted that all three divisional presidential groups supported a resolution to urge institutions to decline use of those procedures set forth in the clarification as a measure of conformity with Title IX.

4. NCAA Executive Committee Finance Committee report.

a. Second quarter budget-to-actual. The Committee reviewed the second quarter budget-to-actual statement and is satisfied that revenues and expenditures were within expected budget parameters.

b. Fiscal Year 2005-06 base budget recommendations. The Committee reviewed the Executive Committee Finance Committee budget allocation recommendations for fiscal year 2005-06, the second year of the biennial budget.

(1) A recommended increase of $2.5 million under investment income is the result of the Executive Committee action in January that begins to allocate investment earnings to the quasi endowment. This allocation will reduce the investment earnings allocated in the general operating budget from $6.5 to $4.0 million. Future budget allocations will be required to fund the remaining $4.0 million.

(2) The committee recommends a staff compensation pool of $1.53 million, distributed entirely on merit. The percentage increase was benchmarked against salary survey data from conferences, not-for-profits and higher education institutions.

(3) Insurance is allocated an increase of $1.025 million or a six percent increase of the total insurance budget. The allocation will fund increased costs for student-athlete catastrophic injury coverage; directors' and officers' insurance; and general liability insurance.

(4) The recommended $500,000 increase in technology resources provides funding to complete accelerated applications development scheduled for high priority projects in membership services and enforcement. Additional funding resources have been provided from surplus monies the past two years.

(5) The $300,000 recommended increase to the drug-testing program will allow the Association to offset the additional laboratory costs for its testing and to maintain historical testing levels for postseason competition. The three-year contract averages a 4.5 percent annual increase.

(6) The championships program and staff support recommended allocation of $274,000, representing increases for officiating fees and improvement programs; student-athlete banquets; mementos; broadcast initiatives; and staff support.

(7) The $183,000 increased allocation to the miscellaneous program contracts will maintain contractual commitments that are under review and negotiation.

(8) The recommended increase of $175,000 to student-athlete programs is the final allocation in the Association’s budget to fully fund the student-athlete programs that were formerly supported by the NCAA Foundation.

(9) The $130,000 recommended increase for central services will fund central contract services such as print production, property management, maintenance and audit services.

(10) The recommended increase for special events of $120,000 will fund production and food costs for special events and seminars such as Woman of the Year, Final IV Salute Dinners, Honors Dinner and regional rules seminars.

(11) The $75,000 recommended increase is to fund assistance with daycare support under section 125 daycare flexible spending accounts for staff members. This initiative will enhance the NCAA benefits program for working families.

(12) The corporate sponsorship recommended increase of $55,000 will provide staffing support as CBS adds additional corporate partners. This funding is contingent on CBS increasing the number of corporate partners and will supplement the funding the NCAA will receive from CBS.

It was VOTED

“To approve the fiscal year 2005-2006 budget.”

5. Centennial celebration. The Committee received an update regarding the NCAA centennial celebration. The celebration is designed to commemorate 100 years of intercollegiate athletics, by focusing on the student-athlete, in a manner that honors the past; highlights the advocacy and reform initiatives of the present; and provides a look into the future. The Committee was updated on an agreement with ESPN to air two one-hour specials to highlight the top 100 most influential student-athletes. ESPN also will produce vignettes highlighting the NCAA’s greatest moments. These specials will air during ESPN coverage of collegiate sporting events throughout the year 2006. The Convention planning team also noted that an invitation has been extended to President George W. Bush to attend and provide the keynote address during the 2006 NCAA Convention opening business session. The group is optimistic that he will be able to attend. Finally, the Convention planning team will develop a communication strategy to sustain the year-long campaign to support the centennial celebration.

6. Litigation update. The Executive Committee received a report from the NCAA general counsel regarding litigation and settlement actions.

Ÿ NCAA Constitution Article 2. The Committee received a report from the chair of the Executive Committee Subcommittee on NCAA Constitution Article 2 recommending that the Committee endorse the following approach to address the issue of whether the Association should amend the NCAA infractions process to investigate and find violations of principles of student-athlete welfare as set forth in Constitution Article 2:

(1) No new overarching bylaws intended to address situations of general misconduct by students, faculty and staff should be adopted as those matters should be addressed at the institutional level.

(2) The terms of NCAA Bylaw 6.01.1 (institutional control) should not be expanded to mandate the existence of an institutional grievance or appeal procedure for misconduct, given that such an expansion would result in redundancy with some of the requirements of the certification process in Division I and the self-study guides in Divisions II and III.

(3) The Division I athletics certification program along with the self-study programs in Division II and III should be reviewed by the respective Division I Committee on Athletics Certification and the Divisions II and III Membership Committees and appropriate staff to determine whether the processes are helpful in ensuring grievance procedures are in place to address such allegations and to consider whether modification or enhancement is appropriate.

(4) The NCAA president should be authorized to communicate directly with an institution's president regarding allegations of misconduct involving that institution's staff or student-athletes (when the NCAA president is made aware of such an allegation).

(5) Bylaw 10.1 (unethical conduct) should be amended to provide that unethical conduct may include "knowing involvement in offering or providing a student-athlete prescription or banned drugs to change athletics performance."

It was VOTED

“To endorse the subcommittee’s recommendations as reported.”

7. NCAA Division I Board of Directors and Divisions II and III Presidents Councils reports.

a. Division I Board of Directors. The Committee received an update on the actions of the Division I Board of Directors:

(1) Alcohol advertisements. The Board received a presentation on the NCAA’s policies regarding alcohol consumption and advertisements during NCAA championship events and other intercollegiate contests, and it asked the Executive Committee to develop a comprehensive policy regarding the advertisement of alcohol during broadcasts/telecasts of intercollegiate athletics contests.

It was VOTED

“To authorize development of a comprehensive policy regarding the advertisement of alcohol during broadcasts/telecasts of intercollegiate athletics contests.”

(2) New legislation. The Board of Directors considered proposals receiving final support from the Management Council during its April 11 meeting. The Board adopted the large majority of proposals brought forward by the Management Council, including the recruiting and access packages of the National Basketball Coaches Association and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Additionally, the Board adopted NCAA Division I Proposals Nos. 2004-115-B and 2004-145. Proposals Nos. 2002-82 and 2003-23-A were referred to the Management Council for consideration in August.

(3) Proposal No. 2004-72. Division I-A representation on the Board of the Directors supported the 12th game in football with the statement: "It is the intent of this Board to preserve the definition of a "deserving winning team" for purposes of bowl eligibility. Division I-AA members did not support the proposal.

(4) Proposal No. 2002-96. The Board of Directors adopted Proposal No. 2002-96, which would formally establish the Division I-AA/I-AAA Presidential Governing Committee.

(5) Authority vested in the Board of Directors to initiate legislation. The Board used its emerging authority to adopt legislation to allow the Board of Directors to initiate legislation into the Division I annual legislative cycle. As a matter of legislative policy, the Board of Directors shall be allowed to submit legislative proposals into the annual legislative cycle until the conclusion of the fall Board of Directors meeting.

(6) Board authority to restore a Management Council defeated proposal. The Board used its emerging authority to adopt legislation to provide the authority to:

(a) Restore a proposal defeated by the Management Council in January to the same position as it would have been at that time but for the action of the Management Council.

(b) Resurrect a proposal defeated by the Management Council at its April meeting to allow for Board consideration of the proposal on its merits by the Board at either its April or August meeting.

(7) Division I-A football membership standards.

(a) The Board adopted emergency legislation to provide that, effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A member shall demonstrate during a rolling two-year period at least one season in which it averages a minimum of 15,000 in actual attendance for all home football games, or at least one season in which the institution averages a minimum of 15,000 in paid attendance for all home football games.

(b) The Board adopted emergency legislation to provide that, effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A institution may use one win each year against a Division I-AA opponent (i.e., has averaged 90 percent of the permissible maximum number of grants-in-aid per year in the sport of Division I-AA football over a rolling two-year period) for bowl eligibility.

(c) The Board adopted emergency legislation to provide that, effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A institution may use one game each year against a Division I-AA opponent (i.e., has averaged 90 percent of the permissible maximum number of grants-in-aid per year in the sport of Division I-AA football over a rolling two-year period) to satisfy the home game scheduling requirement for Division I-A membership (for 2005, four home games; for 2006 and thereafter, five).

(d) The Board of Directors requested that the NCAA staff, Collegiate Commissioners Association (CCA) and Division I Management Council evaluate editorial and other changes in the NCAA Manual to provide that, for football competition purposes, references to Division I-A and I-AA be changed to distinguish Division I football members by reference to those eligible for bowl games in contrast to those eligible for the Division I football championship.

(e) The Board of Directors agreed that the Board should continue to support additional enhancements that may impact the NCAA budget that would encourage stability of the Division I-AA group and participation in the Division I football championship. Also, attention to low- and no-scholarship programs and evaluation of regular season and postseason opportunities for these programs, would serve to benefit the long-range viability of football.

b. Division II Presidents Council. The Committee received an update on the actions of the Division II Presidents Council:

(1) New members. The Presidents Council welcomed three new members: David Danahar, Southwest Minnesota State University; Antoine Garibaldi, Gannon University; and James Netherton, Carson-Newman College.

(2) Vice-chair. Arthur Kirk Jr., Saint Leo University, was reelected to serve a second year as vice-chair, from September 2005 to September 2006.

(3) Division II committee frequency. The Presidents Council approved the exceptions for the following Division II committees to conduct a third meeting in 2005-06: Championships Committee; Legislation Committee; and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

(4) Division II Football Task Force. The Presidents Council approved the creation of a Division II Football Task Force to study a possible new model for football within the NCAA structure. The composition of the task force would include (1) representatives from each Division II football playing conference; (2) representatives from the Division II Management Council, including the chair; (3) chair of the Division II Football Committee; (4) chair of the Division II Membership Committee; (5) chair of the Division II Championships Committee; (6) a representative for independent institutions who have the sport of football; and (7) representatives from the Division II Collegiate Commissioners Association and the Division II Athletics Directors Association. The task force will strive to work with the other divisions and the American Football Coaches Association during its study.

(5) Bylaw 14.5.4.1 – two-year and four-year college transfers – final season of competition. The Presidents Council approved in concept a proposal for the 2006 NCAA Convention that specifies that any student transferring to a Division II institution from a two-year or four-year college, with one season of competition remaining in the sport, must satisfactorily complete an average of at least 12-semester or 12-quarter hours of transferable degree credit acceptable toward a specific, designated degree program at the certifying institution per term of full-time attendance at any collegiate institution. The student-athlete must present a cumulative, minimum grade-point average of 2.000 in those transferable degree credit hours. The Presidents Council is recommending a delayed effective date of August 1, 2007. This proposal is a step to ensure that students transferring to Division II ultimately will graduate with a degree.

(6) Update on the Division II Chancellors and Presidents Summit. The Presidents Council was updated on the Chancellors and Presidents Summit, scheduled for June 24-26 in Orlando, Florida. This Summit, which will encompass a celebration of Division II achievements and a forum regarding the future of the division, currently has 155 Division II chancellors and presidents registered to attend.

(7) Preliminary report on Division II financial study. Jon and Peter Orszag, Competition Policy Associates, Inc. presented the preliminary report of their findings concerning the financial study in Division II. The final report will be presented to those chancellors and presidents who are in attendance at the Summit in June.

(8) Update from NCAA broadcast staff. The NCAA broadcast staff reported that the Presidents Council initiative to use the remaining surplus money from the 2003-04 budget to pay for expanded television coverage of Division II national championships has been very successful. Men’s and women’s basketball semifinals were televised on CSTV and ESPNU; other championships were televised on CBS and ESPN2.

c. Division III Presidents Council. The Committee received an update on the actions of the Division III Presidents Council:

(1) Future of Division III – Phase II. The Presidents’ Council reviewed a series of recommendations from the Oversight Group in five major areas and agreed to keep the following issues on the table:

(a) Management of growth and championships:

· Draft a legislative revision to cap all team sport brackets at 64, once the sports sponsorship access ratio exceeds the current 1:6.5 ratio, except in the sport of football, which will remain at 32.

· Request that the Division II governance structure consider accommodations in the reclassification process to provide additional clarity for those Division III institutions who might wish to reclassify to Division II.

· Consider a legislative revision to possibly increase minimum sports sponsorship requirements. The Presidents Council expressed its preference to retain current sponsorship minimums, absent clear rationale to link any proposed increase to the division's philosophical principles and growth management. The Council also noted the special concerns of institutions with smaller enrollments and the need for any legislation to have a delayed effective date.

(b) Sports sponsorship and broad based programs: Create a conference self-study guide to include priorities identified in the survey; emphasize the importance of a conference-based philosophy; and address issues such as institutional mission, academic profile, geographic proximity, athletics profile and diversity, as well as CEO involvement. Once the conference self-study is completed, encourage division-wide dialogue and establish a limited time period for institutional realignment without loss of automatic qualification to NCAA championships.

(c) Academic success of student-athletes: Amend the Division III philosophy statement to indicate that admissions policies for student-athletes should be consistent with the general student body. Additionally, note that academic performance of student-athletes should be, at a minimum, consistent with the general student body.

(d) Sport and program equity: Maintain NCAA programming and create best practices that enhance opportunities for the recruitment of minority coaches and staff. Additionally, establish NCAA programming to enhance opportunities for the recruitment of minority student-athletes.

(e) Cultural and campus integration: Endorsed a series of recommendations to create best practices.

(2) Strategic planning. The Presidents Council approved a series of recommendations for 2005-06, including:

(a) Adding a “sixth person” – responsible for “athletics oversight” other than the chief executive officer (CEO) – to the NCAA institutional demographic report and mailing list, noting that more than 70 percent of Division III athletics directors report to someone other than the CEO.

(b) Establishing an athletics oversight grant fund to encourage attendance of such individuals at the NCAA Convention.

(3) The Presidents Council supported in concept decentralization of the administration of several Division III strategic initiatives by creating an enhanced conference grant program, effective 2006-08.

8. NCAA Executive Committee Subcommittee on Gender and Diversity Issues report. The Committee received a report from the chair of the Executive Committee Subcommittee on Gender and Diversity Issues.

a. Title IX clarification. The subcommittee supported a resolution regarding the recent U.S. Board of Education clarifications related to Title IX.

It was VOTED

"That the following Resolution shall be adopted and widely distributed to the membership:

"Whereas the U.S. Department of Education, without notice or opportunity for public input, issued an “Additional Clarification of Intercollegiate Athletics Policy: Three-Part Test – Prong Three,” on March 17, 2005, which Clarification allows schools to gauge female students’ interest in athletics under the third prong of the three-part test by conducting an e-mail survey and further allows schools to treat a lack of response to the survey as a lack of interest in playing additional sports;

"Whereas the Additional Clarification is inconsistent with the 1996 Clarification and with basic principles of equity under Title IX because it, among other problems (a) permits schools to use surveys alone, rather than the factors set forth in the 1996 Clarification, as a means to assess female students’ interest in sports; (b) conflicts with a key purpose of Title IX – to encourage women’s interest in sports and eliminate stereotypes that discourage them from participating; (c) allows schools to restrict surveys to enrolled and admitted students, thereby permitting them to evade their legal obligation to measure interest broadly; (d) authorizes a flawed survey methodology; (e) shifts the burden to female students to show that they are entitled to equal opportunity; and (f) makes no provision for the Department of Education to monitor schools’ implementation of the survey or its results;