SUPPLEMENT NO. 3
DIII Mgmt. Council 1/05
REPORT OF THE
SPORTSMANSHIP AND ETHICAL CONDUCT COMMITTEE
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.
Association-wide
a. Revised
The mission of the Committee on Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct is to develop and promote strategies that foster a collegial atmosphere and a greater acceptance of the values of respect, caring, fairness, civility, honesty, integrity and responsibility among student-athletes, coaches, officials, fans and related groups.
b. Sports-Wagering Issues. The committee received reports on the following items related to sports wagering:
(1) Educational items. The staff created two new “Don’t Bet on It” posters, with one geared towards male and the other female student-athletes, which were distributed in late August to the memberships. Each Division I institution received 10 posters; Division II and III institutions each received approximately five posters.
The staff created a video for Division I men’s and women’s basketball officials who officiate in the championships. The video was presented to supervisors of officials at the October clinics. This video will be distributed to the officials in March 2005.
Videos were also created for men’s and women’s basketball student-athletes, which will be distributed to the basketball coaches.
The staff also produced plastic bags for use by corporate partners in distributing permissible goods to participants in championship events. The bags have the NCAA logo and the “Don’t Bet on It” slogan. YES clinics personnel will receive a bag, as well.
(2) Public Service Announcement (PSA) Update. The gambling staff in conjunction with the marketing and branding staff met with the external advertising group who handles the current PSA campaign. The new PSA will be aired during televised NCAA championships and distributed to the NCAA member institutions for their local use. The targeted demographic includes both enrolled student-athletes and the individuals watching the competitions.
(3) NCAA Convention. The staff will have a booth set up near the registration area with gambling education documents, including information regarding the gambling task force study and its results. The staff and task force members are still determining the best time for the press conference to announce task force initiatives in response to the study. An announcement is not anticipated at the Convention.
(4) American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Convention. The committee received a report related to the emphasis given to sports-wagering issues at the AFCA Convention. The NCAA has partnered with the AFCA by agreeing to share in the travel costs for a speaker at that convention.
(5) Sports Wagering Study – Associated Health Risks. The committee reviewed an executive summary of the NCAA Study of Sports Wagering and Associated Behaviors specific to Health-Risk Behaviors. The committee noted that based on the results of the study, the primary focus is on reacting to the data specific to sports-wagering; however, the study will also prove helpful in dealing with other high-risk behaviors. The committee discussed how the study was administered, noting some student-athletes had concerns regarding the intrusive nature of the questions. If the study is administered in future years, the committee noted an explanation of the depth and type of question would prove helpful so student-athletes understand why certain questions (e.g., questions related to sexual behavior) are being asked.
(6) Wristband
Day – October 30. The
committee received a report related to the press release and distribution of
the “Don’t Bet on It” wristbands aims at head football
coaches and their support staffs.
The press release encouraged coaches to wear the wristbands on
(7) Sports Wagering Study – Task Force Subcommittee Report. The committee received the task force’s draft report. The report consisted of proposed strategies categorized into three focus areas: Education/Awareness/Treatment Strategies; Compliance/Policy Strategies; Law Enforcement/Governmental Relations Strategies. The committee made the following observations and recommendations to the task force for consideration:
(a) Compliance/Policy
Strategies.
i. Due to the belief that it is difficult to collectively communicate with rules officials in Divisions II and III, the committee suggested that coordinators of officials should be informed about education and provided materials.
ii. The committee supported re-establishing lines of communication with Las Vegas Gaming Commission.[b1]
iii. The committee noted that there needs to be an avenue for officials to report suspicions or allegations of other officials wagering on sports to the enforcement staff through the general enforcement intake process or through a process dedicated to sports-wagering issues.
iv. If the staff receives information that triggers concerns [b2]regarding possible violations involving sport wagering, the committee noted that institutions are seeking guidance/advice on how to approach the issue in working with the national office staff.
v. Group did not think that compliance form would be an effective tool to educate student-athletes about the perils of gambling rather they believe that DVDs would be a better tool to raise awareness.
vi. The committee suggested including additional information in the NCAA compliance review materials to use as a guide for external reviewers, which encourages them to check on the institution’s sports-wagering education and monitoring initiatives.
vii. Stand-alone education involving leaders in athletics departments is needed. The goal is to expand the responsibility to educate beyond the compliance office.
· Suggested Prioritization of Compliance/Policy Strategies:
◊ Add national office staff to address new initiatives.
[b3]◊ Have national office staff open a dialogue with Las Vegas Gaming Commission.
◊ The NCAA shall assist institutions with investigations of potential gambling violations and should help put institutions on notice of suspicious increases in point spreads.
◊ Provide information such as educational videos to the officials.[b4]
◊ Create the “Best Practices” document, which includes injury information.
◊ Institutions/Conferences should interview officials and conduct background checks prior to hiring.
◊ Interview selected former and current student-athletes regarding their knowledge of gambling activities.
◊ Institutions should provide educational information to booster clubs.
◊ In criminal cases, to work with state and federal agencies in requiring community service as a consequence for those guilty of sports wagering.
(b) Education/Awareness/Treatment
Strategies
i. Educational Curriculum Suggestions.
· Provide a public service announcement on sports wagering using high profile individuals that resonate with student-athletes.
· Provide case scenarios representing both good and poor decisions made by student-athletes, coaches and administrators regarding sports-wagering.
·
Create a speakers' bureau, as well as provide
video presentations of key speakers for use by institutions with limited
budgets or access to speakers.
· Institutions should develop gambling presentations involving representatives from areas of campus outside of compliance office.[b5]
· Provide easy access to sports-wagering educational information through the Web site.
· The development of public service announcement is critical to raising the level of awareness regarding these negative behaviors.
· Develop media a kit that provides consistent information[b6] for administrators to distribute to student-athletes, administrators, etc.
· Create a pre-conditioning questionnaire for administrators and coaches to test their level of awareness and knowledge of sports-wagering issues. The questionnaire shall be completed prior to education of student-athletes.
ii. Delivery of Educational Message.
· The committee supports targeting freshman student-athletes, as it views the first collegiate year as critically important to developing a healthy understanding of the sports wagering prohibition.
· The committee noted that the first contact with prospective student-athletes is important in setting the proper tone regarding gambling activities. Therefore, attaching gambling information to the National Letter of Intent (NLI)/Financial Aid Agreement should be considered. For Division III, which does not provide athletically related aid, the committee suggested reaching out to these student-athletes through admissions offices mailings.
· Partner with National Federation of High Schools in reaching high-school graduates with information regarding sports wagering.
· [b7]Institutions shall conduct separate meetings from annual compliance meetings to help educate student-athletes about sports-wagering issues.
· Educational meetings should be conducted in large groups to avoid one-on-one sessions, which may lead to inconsistent messages.
· Interactive CDs and PowerPoint should be used to teach student-athletes, but should not be the sole medium of education.
(c) Speakers Bureau.
Create videotape/CDs of presentations from prominent speakers for use in combination with case examples previously mentioned.
(d) Conduct Longitudinal Study (i.e., survey the same student population).
Track the impact of educational programming on student-athletes from their freshman to junior years and maintain the goal to conduct random cultural study every four years.
(e) Elite Athlete Seminar.
The committee did not support this suggestion, but if implemented, noted that the regional or national leadership conferences are an avenue to identify elite Division II and III student-athletes.
· [b8]Suggested Prioritization of Education/Awareness/Treatment Strategies:
◊ Education of constituent groups – both curriculum and delivery of messages.
◊ Speakers bureau.
◊ Longitudinal study.
c. Creating a “Collegial Environment.” The committee received a written report from the Horizon League outlining the structure of its program designed to create and sustain a collegial atmosphere. There will be a session at the 2005 NCAA Convention on this program. The committee then discussed whether the national office should use this initiative as a model to develop a tool for other conferences to adopt. The committee supported the concept and noted that the Convention presentation and response would be helpful in determining how this committee should spearhead an effort with the national office staff.
d. Empire 8’s Conduct Foul Initiative. The committee received a report regarding a program developed and implemented by the Empire 8 (Division III) Conference. The conference office’s program tracks conduct fouls through a weekly self-reporting process. All Division III conferences have adopted this program and most are reporting conduct fouls at the conclusion of the sport season rather than weekly. A select few Division II and I conferences are currently considering adoption of this initiative. The committee had considerable discussion regarding both concerns and positive aspects of the program. Regarding concerns, the committee questioned whether national penalties would be imposed that may supercede the control of the conferences; however, it was noted that the intent would be a voluntary program, without any suggested penalties. Regarding potential benefits, some committee members noted that the added value of this
program includes the educational value to the coach and administrator involved in formulating the self-report; the increased awareness in terms of how an institution compares to its peers; and a certain level of accountability with the conference office (the amount of accountability is left to the discretion of the conference).
e. Sportsmanship Award Update. The committee received a report on the presentation of the male and female student-athlete sportsmanship awards.
f. Citizenship
through Sports
g. Coca-Cola Community All-Americans Program. The committee watched a video related to the first group of recipients of the national Coca-Cola Community All-Americans Award. The award program recognizes student-athletes who had a substantial impact in their community. The committee voted to direct the staff to explore partnering with Coca-Cola and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) in supporting the program, after first ensuring that the program complies with NCAA rules.
Committee Chair: Marion
(Woody) Gibson,
Staff Liaisons: Julie Roe, enforcement services;
Bill Saum, enforcement services; Ron Stratten, education services.
[b1]The word officials is used in the report to denote basketball officials, so this reference might be confusing
[b2]I had trouble understanding this paragraph.
[b3]Who – NCAA?
[b4]More detail?
[b5]Who? The compliance office should co-present?
[b6] The NCAA?
[b7]Who?
[b8]Probably should be lettered in the outline