REPORT OF THE
DIVISION III
STUDENT-ATHLETE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
1. ACTION ITEMS.
a. Appointment to
Fill Vacancies – NCAA Bylaw 21.8.6.9.2.
(1) Recommendation. Sponsor
legislation to amend Bylaw 21.8.6.9.2 (Term of Office) for the Student-Athlete
Advisory Committee (SAAC) only, to appoint members to fill vacancies from the
vacated members’ partner conference for a full term, regardless of the time
remaining on the vacated term.
(2) Rationale. The committee
recently has established a conference partnership program, endorsed by the
Management Council. To ensure that
vacancies occur in proper sequence with the SAAC Conference Partnership
Program, the committee recommends that appointments to fill vacancies should
follow the partnership sequence.
Further, the committee members believe that student-athletes will have a
limited role on the committee if they are limited to the unexpired portion of
the vacated term inasmuch as student-athletes lead a more active role on the
committee when they can serve a full term.
(3) Budget Impact. None.
b. Committee
Composition – Bylaw 21.8.6.9.1.
(1) Recommendation. Sponsor legislation to amend Bylaw
21.8.6.9.1 (Composition) to indicate that not more than one student-athlete
from a playing conference may serve on the committee at any one time (as
opposed to the current limit of two).
(2) Rationale. Based upon the principle of the SAAC
Conference Partnership Program, it is necessary to only appoint one committee
member from a conference to ensure the proper composition of the committee in
accordance with the partnership program.
(3) Budget Impact.
None
2. INFORMATIONAL
ITEMS.
a.
New member orientation.
The committee
welcomed three new members: Joshua
Espinosa, Buena Vista
University; Sarah Labowitz, Grinnell College and Martin Quinn, Colorado
College.
New members participated in an orientation session with the chair, vice-chair, management council representatives and NCAA staff.
b.
Division III Regional Leadership Conference.
The committee received a report from Dallas Pride, NCAA education outreach, on plans for Regional Leadership Conferences for Division III. The first of two regional conferences in 2002-03 is scheduled for the Northeast Region in November. The committee supported the established format and made recommendations for topics to be discussed in the forum sessions.
c.
Student-Athlete Web page.
The committee reviewed the plans for a student-athlete Web page on the NCAA Web site. Staff reported to the committee that general and divisional SAAC information would be listed along with additional links to information that has been recommended to be helpful to student-athletes. The new student-athlete Web page is scheduled to launch by mid-December.
d.
SAAC Project Teams.
The committee created an additional project team to work on updating and maintaining the Division III SAAC information on the Web page. In addition, the committee eliminated the sports wagering project team. The project teams include: Convention Planning, Community Service, Management Council Reception, Legislation, NCAA News/Division III Newsletter, Communication, Strategic Planning, Regional Leadership Conference, Conference SAAC, Automatic Qualifier, Amateurism, and Student-Athlete Web Site.
e.
Congratulatory Letters.
The committee will send a congratulatory letter to all fall NCAA championship teams by mid-January. This will be repeated for winter and spring championship teams.
f.
SAAC Management Council Representative.
The committee appointed Dewayne Barnes as the Management
Council representative to replace John Galgano at the conclusion of the 2002
NCAA Convention.
g.
SAAC
Exit Interviews.
The committee will develop and implement an exit interview process for participation by all committee members at the conclusion of their committee service.
h.
Legislative Proposals.
The committee reviewed
proposed legislation for the 2002 Convention and prepared