MEMORANDUM

October 2, 2003

TO: NCAA Division III Financial Aid Administrators.

FROM: Kevin LaGree, chair

NCAA Division III Financial Aid Review Task Force.

SUBJECT: Update ? Proposed Division III Financial Aid Reporting Process.

The NCAA Division III Presidents Council has determined that it will sponsor a proposal at the 2004 NCAA Convention to require institutions to compare financial aid packaging for freshmen and transfer student-athletes with the financial aid packages awarded to other freshmen and transfer students. Institutions will organize data from their records in order to review their financial aid awarding practices and to report that information on an annual basis to the Association via an electronic-reporting process. The legislation would be implemented during fall 2004 on a trial basis and would become fully effective during fall 2005. The Presidents Council considers this proposal to be a significant part of its 2004 legislative reform agenda regarding the future of Division III.

This proposal appears to have broad-based support among the Division III membership. In a survey regarding the future of Division III sent to chief executive officers (CEOs) during spring 2003, 64 percent of respondents indicated ?strong support? or ?support? for this concept, with another 15 percent indicating they ?somewhat? support it. The survey also identified financial aid as the top area of concern among the Division III membership.

Recognizing that this review process may necessitate your assistance, we are sending you information regarding the proposal?s background, framework and implementation, as well as related issues.

Background

The President and Management Councils established a Financial Aid Review Task Force in 2001 to determine a method to permit institutions to verify compliance with the division?s financial aid standards. These standards preclude the consideration of athletics in the awarding of financial aid and specify that aid

awarded to student-athletes should be comparable to aid awarded to all students. The task force includes a cross section of institutional representatives including CEOs, athletics administrators and faculty athletics representatives. The task force specifically includes financial aid administrators, two of whom have helped implement a similar reporting process at the conference level. The task force roster is enclosed for your reference.

The focus of the task force has been, and remains, on the development of a reporting process that produces accurate and useful information while minimizing the related administrative and financial burdens placed on member institutions, especially their financial aid administrators. In that regard, the task force has considered and rejected several concepts including the use of an external auditor, which was proposed (and later withdrawn) at a previous NCAA Convention. The task force also has focused on the development of an electronic Web-based reporting process to permit administrators to access pre-existing data to compile and submit it more easily and accurately.

It is important to note what the proposal will not do. There will be no analysis or comparison across or between institutions. Rather, the proposal will provide data regarding the administration of each institution?s financial aid program.

Proposed Framework

The review will ask for a listing of aid received from all sources and demographic information, which will allow a comparison of financial aid packages awarded to entering first-time, full-time student-athletes (freshmen and transfer) versus financial aid received by first-time, full-time entering students (freshmen and transfer) who are not athletes. The aid packages of student-athletes that are identified beyond a predefined variance will be subject to further explanation and review. In addition, each year the Division III Financial Aid and Awards Committee will randomly select institutions for review. Institutions will be expected to explain any variance in the data beyond established parameters. Variances that ultimately appear to be in noncompliance will be referred to the NCAA?s enforcement process.

The task force, in conjunction with NCAA staff, is developing an electronic-reporting process that schools will use to compile data and submit the report. It is our intention that the data will be forwarded via the Internet to the NCAA. This process will minimize the administrative burden. It is likely that the process will require some minimal assistance from each institution?s information technology department to establish a link between the NCAA?s electronic-reporting software and the institutional financial aid database. The NCAA is developing a template program to minimize the burden associated with this process. The Division III governance structure also has discussed the possibility of making funds available to assist schools in this endeavor, if necessary.

Pre-Pilot

A pre-pilot, consisting of approximately 20 institutions, will be conducted during fall 2003 to assess the electronic reporting process and to determine the availability and relevance of the requested data elements. Since each institution has its own complex financial aid award process, the task force has decided to focus on the following data in the pre-pilot:

1. Student demographics and academic characteristics;

2. Financial aid award calculation;

3. Grants and scholarships;

4. Loan programs; and

5. Work-study programs.

Each institution participating in the pre-pilot will produce an electronic, confidential report providing all data elements in detail. The task force, together with the Division III Committee on Financial Aid and Awards, will review the pre-pilot findings. The task force subsequently will provide a report to the membership including a presentation at the 2004 NCAA Convention.

Conclusion

The Presidents Council considers the financial aid reporting process a very significant proposal in regard to the future of Division III. We recognize that your assistance will be crucial in the successful implementation of this legislation. Additional information regarding the proposal is available on the NCAA Web site at: www1.ncaa.org/membership/governance/division_III/docs/

financial_aid_review_taskforce/financial_aid_task_force.

I encourage you to provide any feedback to me or any other member of the task force. You also should feel free to contact the NCAA staff liaisons to the task force, who are listed on the roster. Thank you.

Financial Aid Review Task Force

Susan Bassett R. Kevin LaGree, chair

Director of Women?s Athletics President

Hobart and William Smith Colleges Simpson College

Paul Boyer Leon Lunder

Director of Financial Aid Director of Athletics

Williams College Carleton College

Linda Case Michael McPherson

Director of Athletics President

State University College at Brockport Spencer Foundation

Marian Conrad Dan Preston

Director of Financial Aid Dean of Enrollment Management/

Kalamazoo College Director of Financial Aid

Linfield College

Daniel A. DiBiasio John A. Roush

President President

Wilmington College Centre College

William Eng Ellen Shilkret

Director of Athletics Associate Director of Financial Aid

Bernard M. Baruch College Vassar College

Muriel A. Howard Christopher Walker

President Professor of Communicative Disorders

State University College at Buffalo University of Redlands

Karen L. Johnson Rich McGlynn

Director of Institutional Research NCAA Staff Liaison (primary)

Alfred University

Marcia S. Kierscht Stephanie L. Quigg

President (retired) NCAA Staff Liaison (secondary)

Stephens College

Bette Landman

President

Arcadia University

FINANCIAL AID REVIEW TIMELINE

September 1, 2003	Development of electronic-reporting process.
October 15 ? November 15, 2003	Pre-pilot use of electronic-reporting process among participating institutions.
January 10-12, 2004	NCAA Convention
Fall 2004	Pilot review of 2004-05 academic year financial aid for entire membership.
Fall 2005	First official review of 2005-06 academic year financial aid.

SLQ:seg