Executive Committee Working Group –
Membership Growth
Talking Points
· With increased membership growth in Division III and in
response to a proposal to cap the membership in that division, the Executive
Committee Working Group, made up of presidents and chancellors of Divisions I,
II and III, was created in late 2005 by the NCAA Executive Committee to examine
issues facing the membership with regards to growth.
· The working group is exploring
the Association-wide impact of divisional membership and reclassification
policies and studying ways of controlling Division III’s
growth and addressing related membership issues within the Association without
harming other divisions.
· One
possible option is the creation of a Division IV. The working group is
developing two models of a potential Division IV.
· The
group also supported encouraging institutions re-evaluating current membership
classification to study Division II as a viable option.
· They
also expressed the belief that any future efforts should include an
Association-wide commitment to greater research, publicity and support
regarding the membership issues facing Divisions II and III.
· The working group was formed
largely in response to a proposal for the 2006 NCAA Convention in Division III
by the North Coast Athletic Conference to impose a cap on the size of Division
III.
· The NCAC proposal generated
concern that its adoption would leave Division II as the only viable option for
institutions seeking NCAA membership, and prompted a request from the Division
II Presidents Council that the Executive Committee study the Association-wide
impact of a cap and other membership issues, mainly the recent or pending
reclassification of a number of Division II members to Division I.
· The working group at its
Chicago meeting acknowledged that Division III – which is approaching a
membership of more than 450 institutions counting active, provisional and
reclassifying schools – has reached a practical limit in terms of its
ability to provide membership services and championships access.
·
Division III has added approximately 100 active
members since 1989.
· The
group also agreed that actions by other divisions – whether to control
growth or govern continuing membership as well as reclassification –
should “do no harm” to Division II.
· Since
1985, 49 Division II members have reclassified to Division I-AA or I-AAA. Since
1997, 21 schools have done so.
· The
working group also agreed to approach the appropriate Division I leaders to
discuss how current membership and reclassification criteria may be encouraging
movement away from Division II and to explore ways of slowing reclassification.
· The
working group supported extending the current moratorium on accepting new
members in Division III beyond its current scheduled expiration in early 2007,
if necessary, pending continuing efforts by the group.
· Composition of active
membership as of
Creation of a Division IV
· One
model will be based on “quantitative” membership criteria, such as
sports-sponsorship limits, that could provide another option for current
members of existing divisions.
· The other model will be based on “philosophical”
criteria that might bind members together based on institutional objectives for
athletics.
· Information
will be gathered by NCAA research staff.
· Challenges
in forming a Division IV would include, among other things, funding and
staffing.
· The working group will examine the information at its next
meeting this fall.
Members of the Executive Committee Working Group
· Chair Michael Adams,
president, University of Georgia (DI)
· Eddie
Moore, president,
· Kathryn
Martin, chancellor, University of
· James
Netherton, president, Carson-Newman College (DII)
· John
Fry, president,
· Dale
Knobel, president, Denison University (DIII)
· Richard
Wells, chancellor, University of