REPORT OF THE
NC
OCTOBER 24, 2006, MEETING
ACTION ITEMS.
·
None.
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.
1. Public and Media Relations Issues Associated with the Announcement of NCAA Division I Academic Performance Program (APP) Rates and Penalties. The NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance discussed the schedule for the public release of member institutions’ NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate (APR), APP rewards and APP penalties. Graduation Success Rate (GSR) data for all teams will continue to be released in the fall. The announcement of team APR and all penalties (i.e., contemporaneous and historical) will occur in late spring and the release of top performers is scheduled to occur in late spring or early summer. The committee also expressed interest in considering a change in the terminology used to describe penalties (e.g., contemporaneous and historical) to facilitate easier communication and greater understanding among the membership and the general public. The staff will provide a comprehensive-communications plan that complements existing strategies and outlines initiatives designed to highlight the academic success of student-athletes, to communicate relevant APP information and to identify steps that should be taken early in a student’s career to ensure higher education is accessible.
2. Annual GSR and Federal Graduation Rate Announcement. The committee reviewed a summary of the most recent GSR and Federal Graduation Rate data and noted the increase in the overall Division I student-athlete GSR from 76 percent in 2005 to 77 percent this year. The first of two GSR data releases was announced September 27, 2006, and focused on team GSR and Federal Graduation Rates using a four-class aggregate of entering classes from 1996 to 1999. The second release, scheduled to occur November 9, 2006, will include additional GSR and federal graduation data, including specifics related to gender and ethnicity.
3. Improvement Review
within the Historical-Penalty Model. The committee agreed to use the Fishers Exact
Test (FET) as the statistical model to identify meaningful APR improvement within
the historical-penalty review process.
This analysis takes into account squad-size differences that impact
observed APR variations, as well as the difference between a penalized
team’s APR and pre-established benchmarks (e.g., 925)
within the APP. Teams identified through this
methodology with FET scores of less than or equal to 0.4 will satisfy this
review factor. In addition, teams
will be evaluated using the most favorable of two methods to evaluate
improvement: (1) A comparison of the
team’s most recent single-year raw APR to the previous single-year raw
APR (e.g., 2005-06 single-year APR compared to 2004-05 single-year APR); and
(2) A comparison of the team’s most recent single-year raw APR to the
multi-year raw APR (e.g., 2005-06 single-year APR compared to 2003-04 and
2004-05 combined APRs).
4. Occasion-Two Historical-Penalty Structure. The committee approved, in concept, the penalty structure for Occasion-Two Historical Penalties and agreed to circulate the model for membership comment. Specifically, the committee supported a two-tiered penalty structure that emphasizes improvement and imposes meaningful penalties in the areas of recruiting, financial aid and playing/practice seasons. The first tier of penalties would apply to teams that demonstrate significant improvement, yet do not favorably meet a second review factor (i.e., by-sport review or one of two institutional characteristics). The second tier of penalties would apply to teams that do not meet the “improvement” review. Applicable recruiting penalties would impact the number of official visits a team may provide and financial aid penalties would apply to the amount of aid awarded by the institution in the penalized team’s sport, rather than to the NCAA maximum. Playing/practice seasons penalties would reduce the number of hours per week a team is allowed to practice. The committee noted the Occasion-Two Penalties will encourage underperforming academics teams to improve. [Attachment A]
5. Student-Athlete Retention and Transfer Issues. The committee reviewed a comprehensive document that provided the history of the NCAA Division I academic-reform movement, detailed how the current model for calculating the APR was devised and outlined related student-athlete transfer issues. The committee noted the importance of considering an additional year of data, which will permit the examination of two years of student-athlete transfer behavior. Data will be prepared for such a review to occur during the committee’s April 2007 meeting.
6. Appeals of Occasion-One and Occasion-Two Historical Penalties. The committee adopted a waiver directive to provide guidance to the NCAA staff, committee and membership regarding evaluation of appeals for relief from public warning, recruiting, financial aid and playing/practice seasons penalties. This directive was developed with the understanding that the staff and committee may use discretion in its application. Further, exceptions to this directive may be applied by the staff or the committee when warranted by the circumstances of a specific case. [Attachment B]
7. Historical-Penalty Appeal Procedures. The committee revised its historical-penalty policies and procedures to provide institutions adequate time to file such appeals. The new policy requires institutions to submit an appeal of a historical-penalty waiver within 21 days from its first opportunity to file the waiver. The online waiver program notifies institutions of its first opportunity to appeal historical penalties.
8. NCAA Proposal No. 2005-97 Academic Performance Program – Academic Progress Rate – Exception – Student-Athletes Who Have Graduated With Remaining Eligibility. The committee received an update regarding the NCAA Division I Board of Director’s consideration of Proposal No. 2005-97, which would exclude from the APR cohort those student-athletes who have graduated but have athletics eligibility remaining. The committee maintained its opposition to this proposal and believes it is important to include such student-athletes in the APR cohort. Further, the committee noted that, from a competitive-equity standpoint, student-athletes representing an institution in athletics competition should be engaged academically and should be expected to satisfy a minimum standard of academic performance.
9. APP Data Reviews. The committee received a status report on the data review process for the 15 institutions selected for this year. The data review includes an audit of institutionally submitted APP data from the 2003-04 and 2004-05 academic years. It is anticipated that the NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting will complete all reviews and will provide reports to institutions in March 2007.
10. Policies and Procedures for Review of APP Data. The committee approved various amendments to the auditing policies and procedures for the review of submitted APP data. [Attachment C]
11. Data Submission Requirements for Institutions/Teams Transitioning From Division I or Discontinuing a Division I Sport. The committee amended its policies and procedures regarding the submission of APP data to specify that institutions or teams transitioning out of Division I or discontinuing a Division I sport are not required to submit APP data beginning the academic year the institution has publicly announced its intention to transition out of Division I or its intention to discontinue a Division I sport. The institution must provide the NCAA staff with written notification of the timeline and the effective date of the transition. However, if an institution later rescinds its decision and never discontinues the sport or transitions the athletics program, APP data from any
year that was previously excluded would have to be submitted and any applicable penalties must be taken. This policy will ensure consistency for institutions and teams transitioning from Division I or discontinuing a Division I sport and it is reasonable for these institutions to no longer submit APP data or receive reports generated from that data.
12. Impact of New Legislation Requiring Full-Year Athletics Scholarships. The committee reviewed a supplement that provided background information on NCAA Bylaw 15.3.3.1, which requires institutions to award athletically related financial aid for a period of one year. Due to this legislation, a student-athlete who begins the academic year on athletics aid generally will be included in the APR cohort for the entire academic year. The committee noted concerns raised regarding situations in which teams lose APR points when student-athletes who are preparing for professional-athletics careers exhaust athletics eligibility in the fall term, return for the spring term, then render themselves academically ineligible. However, institutions, at their discretion, can include specific wording in athletically related financial aid agreements that permits an institution to revoke the aid for a term if the institution can demonstrate that a student-athlete is academically disengaged (e.g., low or no class attendance) by a certain date in the term. Under these circumstances, it may be possible for a student-athlete to be removed from the APR cohort, depending on the date the scholarship is revoked. As such, the committee agreed to take no formal legislative or policy action at this time. The committee noted this legislation has a minimal impact on the APP, as it involves a small number of student-athletes, mainly in two sports, who wish to pursue professional athletics as a vocation. Further, since this is the first year the legislation has been in effect, the committee agreed that it may be beneficial to observe the effects of the legislation before taking any formal action. The staff will provide educational updates as appropriate to the membership with regard to institutional financial aid agreements.
13. Impact of Conference Academics Eligibility Rules on APR. The committee reviewed a summary of conference academics eligibility requirements for competition that are more stringent than NCAA academic requirements. The committee discussed the potential impact on the APR when a student-athlete who satisfies NCAA requirements is ineligible for competition under conference requirements. The committee did not support a change to the APP’s definition of “academics eligibility” to exclude conference-academics requirements. The committee charged the staff with collecting additional data that would inform future discussion on this matter.
14. APR Adjustment Procedure for Requests for Ineligible Student-Athletes Who Have Transferred or Withdrawn from Institution. The Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting reviewed and approved a staff procedure for processing APR adjustment requests involving mitigation typically examined under progress-toward-degree waiver evaluations. In review of such requests, the Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting directed the staff to consider the likelihood of the student-athlete graduating within five years, along with equal weight placed on the student-athlete’s overall academic record, the size of the deficiency and the impact of the mitigating circumstances on the student-athlete’s ability to be academically successful. Also, the Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting agreed that institutions should submit a completed electronic adjustment request, a clear explanation of the request, official academic transcripts from all institutions the student-athlete attended and documentation supporting the mitigating circumstances impacting the student-athlete’s academic success. The Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting noted that the APR adjustment directive should include a statement that the successful adjustment of a lost eligibility point does not equate to earning the eligibility point for the purpose of submitting an adjustment request for a lost retention point.
15. Requests for Retroactive Relief of Penalties Based on Amendments, Adjustments and Delayed-Graduation Points Amended for Prior Academic Years. The Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting discussed its current policy, which states that any amendments, adjustments and delayed-graduation points amended for prior academic year(s) data will not affect the status of any previously earned penalties or incentives. Further, an institution may not request retroactive relief from contemporaneous penalties or retroactive incentives based on the award of a delayed-graduation point, amendment or adjustment to data made in subsequent academic year(s). The Subcommittee on Data Collection and Reporting directed the staff to examine this policy and explore possible alternatives to this policy to be discussed at its next meeting.
16. Contemporaneous-Penalty Waiver Policies and Procedures. The committee amended its policies and procedures for the review of conditionally approved contemporaneous-penalty waivers to permit the staff to forward a denied waiver to the NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance Subcommittee on Appeals for its review. Allowing the staff to forward a staff-denied waiver directly to the Subcommittee on Appeals will decrease the administrative burden on an institution and ensure that a waiver is reviewed by the staff and the Subcommittee on Appeals in an expeditious manner.
17. Head-Coaching Change as a Mitigating Factor for Contemporaneous-Penalty Waivers. The Subcommittee on Appeals reviewed the issue of a head-coaching change as a mitigating factor in a contemporaneous-penalty waiver. Specifically, the Subcommittee on Appeals reviewed the impact of a head-coaching change on the retention and eligibility of student-athletes. As part of its review, the Subcommittee on Appeals examined previously submitted contemporaneous-penalty waiver requests citing a coaching change as a mitigating circumstance. The Subcommittee on Appeals agreed that head-coaching changes should be considered as mitigating circumstances for relief of contemporaneous penalties, provided there is a demonstrated correlation between the head-coaching change and the team’s APR. However, the Subcommittee on Appeals noted that such reviews must be considered within the context of the contemporaneous-penalty waiver directive.
18. APR Improvement Grants. The committee reviewed preliminary draft guidelines for the proposed APR Improvement-Grant Program and supported its development in an effort to assist institutions in its efforts to increase team APR and graduation rates. The group will continue to refine the guidelines and requirements for the proposed program in preparation for review by the Board in January.
19. APR Improvement Plan Requirements for Institutions Subject to Historical Penalties. The NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance Subcommittee on Penalties and Rewards received an update regarding the development of APR improvement plan requirements for teams subject to historical penalties. The ad hoc group will continue to refine the APR improvement plan draft materials, which address the following areas: admissions, retention, academic support and graduation. The Subcommittee on Penalties and Rewards will review a final draft of these documents during its January 2007 meeting.
20. APP Educational Initiatives. The committee received a report regarding various educational initiatives to assist institutions in understanding academic reform and the APP, including ongoing updates to existing educational materials and tutorials, APP workshops, teleconferences and Web casts. The NCAA staff has established partnerships with the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) and the National Association of Athletic Academic Advisors (N4A) to develop additional initiatives to be launched later this year. The NACADA partnership will focus on delivery of an online course and a summer institute covering academic reform and principles of student-athlete academic success. In addition, the staff and N4A leadership are exploring concepts
regarding student-athlete retention and potential educational initiatives designed for coaching staff members.
21. Degree Completion Incentive Concept. The Subcommittee on Penalties and Rewards reviewed a recommendation from the NCAA Division I Academics/Eligibility/ Compliance Cabinet Subcommittee on Financial Aid regarding degree-completion grants as a possible incentive program. The Subcommittee on Penalties and Rewards delayed further discussion until the Division I membership has acted on Proposal No. 2006-70 [Financial Aid – Eligibility of Student-Athletes for Institutional Financial Aid – NCAA Degree Completion Award], which would permit an institution to provide athletically related financial aid to a student-athlete who is selected for an NCAA Degree Completion Award.
22. Incentive Concepts to Motivate Graduation of At-Risk Student-Athletes. The Subcommittee on Penalties and Rewards began discussing a possible incentives concept that would provide rewards to teams and/or institutions that demonstrate success with “at-risk” student-athletes.
Committee Chair: Walter Harrison,
Diane
Dickman,
Kevin
Lennon, Membership Services
Todd
Petr, Research
Bill Regan, Membership Services