July 2005 Management Council Agenda

REPORT OF THE

NCAA COMMITTEE ON SPORTSMANSHIP AND ETHICAL CONDUCT

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.

Association-wide

a. Sports wagering issues. The committee received reports on the following items related to sports wagering:

(1) Educational items.

(a) The NCAA staff noted that the video discussed at the November meeting and the Don’t Bet On It wrist bands were distributed. Specifically, wristbands were distributed at the NCAA championships and to the football coaches at the American Football Coaches Association convention.

(b) The public service announcement discussed at the November meeting was aired during NCAA championships and distributed to NCAA member institutions for their local use.

(c) As a new initiative, the staff is developing an interactive Web site that will be used to educate student-athletes on issues related to sports wagering.

(2) Sports wagering study – task force subcommittee final report. The suggestions put forth by the committee at its November meeting were incorporated into the Sports Wagering Task Force initiatives. Additionally, information in the study related to associated health risks has been shared with the staff liaisons who work with the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports.

The NCAA staff met with representatives from various state high-school associations to share data from the study, with an emphasis on those activities in which student-athletes were involved prior to attending college.

b. NCAA strategic plan. The committee discussed Objective 2.3 of the NCAA strategic plan, which relates to sportsmanship in intercollegiate athletics. The committee noted progress on certain initiatives and that the tool kit designed to assist institutions in creating a collegial atmosphere was an important step in fulfilling this aspect of the strategic plan. For inclusion in the tool kit, the committee charged the staff to develop a set of best practices regarding sportsmanship, drawing on input from conference offices, national student-athlete advisory committees (SAACs) and member institutions.

c. SAACs and sportsmanship best practices. The committee sought input from national SAACs regarding best practices. The initiative compiled by the national SAACs includes:

(1) Division I.

(a) Use of team award; school award.

· Sportsmanship awards – team winner, institutional winner, individual winner.

· Assistance by students and student-athletes in choosing the winners.

(b) Marketing plan.

· Public announcements – expectations stated before every game.

· Signage.

· Game programs.

(d) Ambassador programs.

(e) Competition – all teams shake hands prior to and after each contest.

(f) Community outreach program to encourage sportsmanship – local schools are invited to participate.

(2) Division II.

(a) Revision of the sportsmanship statement emphasizing institutions should create a hospitable, not hostile, environment.

(b) In lieu of a general policy, establish specific policies for individual groups (e.g., coaches, student-athletes, cheer squads).

(d) Develop a sportsmanship oath to be signed by student-athletes at the start of the academic year.

(e) Sportsmanship announcements before each game. This is an effective method to reach the fans.

(f) Require student-athletes to read the sportsmanship pledge aloud before each competition.

(g) Sportsmanship awards are effective incentives for promoting and encouraging good behavior. Possible methods of awarding include:

· By sport, at the conference level; voted on by student-athletes within each sport.

· Involving student-athletes in the awarding process.

· Team awards.

· Individual awards.

(3) Division III.

(a) A sportsmanship award for one student-athlete during the academic year. This award should be given at the end of the year during conference meetings.

(b) A team Sportsmanship award for each sport sponsored by the conference with special recognition for the conference member with the most team awards.

d. Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) sportsmanship and ethical conduct expectations and guidelines for institutions, coaches, student-athletes and fans. The committee reviewed the sportsmanship expectations and

guidelines developed by the WIAC. The committee highlighted the four requirements listed in the WIAC materials and noted that similar requirements should be adopted Association-wide and incorporated into each division’s Manual.

Noting that the NCAA Principle of Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct (Principle 2.4) sets forth the responsibility of member institutions to establish policies for sportsmanship and provide education, the committee voted to recommend that the staff develop legislative requirements similar to those developed by the WIAC, which contain the additional responsibility of demonstrating through evidence, that sportsmanship initiatives are successful.

e. National Association of Sports Officials (NASO). The committee reviewed a letter from NASO outlining different initiatives it has taken to assist officials in addressing sportsmanship issues. The committee voted to endorse the steps taken by the NCAA officiating improvement project team as positive steps to promoting a collegial atmosphere.

f. Best practices. Based on input from SAAC and the committee’s review of other programs implemented by conferences, the committee agreed that the following constitute best practices to address and encourage sportsmanship. The committee will continue to examine which practices should be included in the sportsmanship tool kit, which will be made available to the membership in 2006.

(1) Create a code of conduct for each conference and enforce it.

(2) Regional and national awards given by some coaches associations to student-athletes at the sport’s championship.

(3) Emphasize that achieving and maintaining sportsmanship is a collective responsibility.

(4) Videotape contests/matches so that any negative incidents are recorded. This recording should cover the time the team takes the field/ice/court until the time it leaves.

(5) Items to include in the tool kit:

(a) Video clips of positive and negative sportsmanship behavior.

(b) Methods of dealing with negative behavior.

(6) Build off the NCAA ad campaigns “…There are 350,000 student-athletes majoring in something besides sport….” Include a sportsmanship piece.

(7) Create a resource page with links to consultants.

(8) Create a list of speaking points.

(9) Incorporate from each sports rule book, the applicable provisions of sportsmanship.

(10) Challenge each team viewing the videotape, to implement its own plan of attack.

(11) Incorporate language from each SAAC’s best practices list.

(12) Add a model for accountability like the Empire 8 model.

(13) Provide a penalty chart for instances of misconduct.

(14) Encourage officials to have conversation with student-athletes before competition.

(15) Create a list of guidelines and preferred activities for institutional mascots.

g. Coaches misconduct and NCAA Bylaw 10.01.1. The committee discussed two publicized instances of unsportsmanlike conduct by two coaches. One instance was highly publicized, while the other incident was more regional. The enforcement staff referred the regional issue to the committee for guidance. The committee discussed the issues in the context of Bylaw 10.01.1 (honesty and sportsmanship). The committee agreed that Bylaw 10.01.1 should not be amended in order to clarify specific violations; however, the committee determined that the Association needs a voice to speak in reaction to prominent sportsmanship events/actions.

The committee voted to enact a program where the committee would react to unsportsmanlike conduct when certain factors are present.

(1) Factors:

(a) Issue of national significance.

(b) National exposure/ extensive regional press.

The actions the committee may take when the above factors are present include, but are not limited to, the following:

(2) Actions:

(a) Letter from committee chair.

(b) Availability for interviews or development of an issue statement working in conjunction with the NCAA public relations staff.

h. NCAA Sportsmanship Award update. The staff noted that the due date for nominations is mid-June.

i. Election of new chair. Chris Reynolds, Indiana University, Bloomington, was elected as the new chair.

j. Coca-Cola all-American update. The staff noted that based on the committee’s direction from the last meeting, the staff researched whether the committee should consider partnering with NACDA for this award. Since the award is given to NCAA, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and National Junior College Athletic Association student-athletes, the committee agreed that the committee should not partner to avoid any potential bias. The staff noted that the award is permissible under NCAA legislation.

k. PACKY PLAYFAIR promotion. The committee applauded the efforts of PACKY PLAYFAIR but declined to formally endorse or recommend to member institutions the purchase and implementation of this program. The committee recognized the merits of the program but was not willing to endorse it.

l. Mission statement. The committee revised its mission statement as noted below:

“The mission of the Committee on Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct is to develop and promote strategies that support Constitutional Principle 2.4 (Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct) and foster a collegial atmosphere and a greater acceptance of the values of respect, caring, fairness, civility, honesty, integrity and responsibility among administrators, coaches, student-athletes, ~~coaches~~, officials, fans and related groups.”

Division I only.

m. Creating a collegial environment. The staff reported that a memorandum was sent to conference offices explaining that the committee is currently compiling information and developing resources for the membership to implement the proactive approach being used by the Horizon League, and the accountability and monitoring of misconduct fouls at institutional and conference levels.

The memorandum emphasized and invited participation in both the “collegial environment” initiative, which includes student-athlete participation in signing a pledge at the beginning of each season; and the misconduct foul program aimed at holding parties accountable with an educational outcome in mind.

Several committee members agreed to put this issue on their conference’s agenda.

n. Soccer issues. Members from the NCAA championships staff visited with the committee to discuss sportsmanship issues in the sport of soccer. The committee learned how Division I dealt with sportsmanship issues in championship competition and discussed what steps the committee should take (if any) to address issues occurring during regular-season play.

The committee reviewed misconduct incidents in Division I championships and the review by the misconduct appeals subcommittee of the Champion-ships/Competition Cabinet that hears appeals of decisions made by the sport committees.

The staff noted that there was a zero-tolerance proposal forwarded to the NCAA Executive Committee, which decided that every sport’s rules should be examined prior to a policy being adopted.

The staff offered that a national officiating coordinator is helpful to remove any bias against an official who makes a difficult call. Supporting of officials is needed because some officials are told that if they call a red card, they won’t be invited back to officiate.