Future of Division III Oversight Group Recommendations

The Oversight group reviewed feedback from the 2005 NCAA Convention Sunday Forum, Membership Survey results, and specific recommendations forwarded from the Championships Committee, Membership Committee, Virtual Focus Groups and Management Council.

The recommendations were presented and endorsed for further discussion by the Division III Presidents Council during its April 28 meeting. The recommendations are presented in three groups. The first set of recommendations anticipates the consideration of proposed legislation by the Division III membership. The second set of recommendations proposes the identification of best practices by the Division III governance structure. The third set identifies topics for further review by governance entities. Each recommendation is followed by a bracket that identifies the relevant section of the Future of Division III survey related to the concept.

Possible Proposed Legislation.

The governance structure will continue to discuss the merits of sponsoring the following legislative concepts:

· Legislative revision to cap each team sport bracket at 64, once the sports sponsorship access ratio exceeds 1:6.5, except football, which will remain at 32. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Legislation to create a Conference Self-Study Guide to emphasize the importance of a conference-based philosophy and address issues such as institutional mission; academic profile; geographic proximity; athletics profile; diversity; and CEO involvement. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Once conference self-study is completed, encourage division-wide dialogue, and establish subsequent limited time period for institutional realignment without loss of championships automatic qualification. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Legislation to amend the Division III philosophy statement to indicate that admissions policies for student-athletes should be consistent with those applicable to the general student body. [Academic Success of Student-Athletes]

· Legislation to amend the Division III philosophy statement to indicate that academic performance of student-athletes should be, at a minimum, consistent with that of the general student body. [Academic Success of Student-Athletes]

· Legislation to amend the Division III philosophy statement to indicate that the administration of an institution’s athletics program (e.g., hiring and compensation; professional development and certification of coaches) should be integrated into the campus culture and educational mission. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

Best Practices.

The Oversight Group intends to develop the following series of “best practices” and policies for review during the governance structure’s October meetings:

· Oversight of Intercollegiate athletics – Incorporation of individual to whom the athletics director reports. [Sports Sponsorship and Broad-Based Programs]

- Add a sixth person (non CEO) responsible for “athletics oversight” to NCAA institutional demographic report and mailing list.

- Establish a grant fund ($25,000) to encourage attendance at NCAA Convention of applicable chief student-affairs/academic affairs officers.

· Establish NCAA programming to enhance opportunities for the recruitment of minority student-athletes. Seek input from Strategic-Planning Subcommittee. [Sport & Program Equity]

· Identify best practices to support:

- Utilization of academic standards such as graduation rate and college grade-point average to assess the college academic performance of student-athletes. [Academic Success of Student-Athletes]

- Opportunities for the recruitment of minority coaches and staff while maintaining NCAA programming. [Sport & Program Equity]

- CEO active involvement in the oversight of intercollegiate athletics. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

- Institutional governing Boards’ or Boards of Trustees’ awareness of campus intercollegiate athletics. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

- Hiring of coaches consistent with other institutional units. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

- Evaluation and annual compensation policies for coaches that go beyond wins and losses and are consistent with other institutional educational priorities. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

- Educational efforts and desirable campus programs to assist the integration of student-athletes into the campus culture. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

· Maintain and enhance NCAA sportsmanship programming to include the following constituents: student-athletes; coaches; officials; athletics staff; and spectators. Seek input from the Strategic-Planning Subcommittee. [Cultural & Campus Integration]

Further Review

The governance structure will continue to discuss the merits of the following legislative concepts:

· Legislative revision to increase minimum sports sponsorship requirements, maintaining seasonal requirements. The Presidents Council expressed its preference to retain current sponsorship minimums, absent clear rationale to link any proposed increase to the division’s philosophical principles and growth management. The Council also noted the special concerns of institutions with smaller enrollment and the need for any legislation to have a delayed effective date. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Request that the Division II governance structure consider accommodations in its reclassification process for Division III institutions that might wish to reclassify to Division II. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Increase minimum contest requirements for sponsorship in selected sports.  Direct the Membership Committee to continue to explore the issue. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Increase the minimum number of required student-athlete participants in selected individual sports, if the sport is used to meet the minimum sport sponsorship requirements. [Management Council approved noncontroversial legislation to increase participants in tennis from 5 to 6 at its April meeting]. Direct the Membership Committee to continue to explore the issue. [Management of Growth & Championships]

· Continue to explore the concept of sport equity. [Sport & Program Equity]

The Oversight Group asks the following questions related to these recommendations:

Are there specific issues related to the proposed legislation, best practices and items for further discussion that you wish to address?

Is there ONE issue related to the Future of Division III that does not appear in either grouping that the governance structure should address? If so, please identify that issue.