The NCAA News - News and Features

April 21, 1997

Administrative Committee minutes

Conference No. 33
March 19, 1997

1. Acting for the Council, the Administrative Committee:

a. Committee appointments:

(1) Appointed Amy Ruley, women's basketball coach, North Dakota State University, to the Women's Basketball Rules Committee, replacing Paula Sullivan, Stonehill College, resigned.

(2) Agreed that Laurence C. Keating Jr., formerly director of athletics at Seton Hall University but no longer at a member institution, would remain chair of the Men's Basketball Rules Committee through April 1997.

(3) Appointed Jody E. Mooradian, director of athletics, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, to the Eligibility Committee, replacing Patrick Carter, no longer at a Division II member conference.

b. Approved the following statement regarding the Association's position on gambling: "The NCAA opposes all forms of legal and illegal sports wagering. Sports wagering has the potential to undermine the integrity of sports contests, and jeopardizes the welfare of student-athletes and the intercollegiate athletics community. Sports wagering demeans the competition and competitors alike by sending a message that is contrary to the purposes and meaning of 'sport.' Sports competition should be appreciated for the inherent benefits related to the participation of student-athletes, coaches and institutions in fair contests, not the amount of money wagered on the outcome of the competition. For these reasons, the NCAA membership has adopted specific rules prohibiting athletics department staff members and student-athletes from engaging in gambling activities as they relate to intercollegiate or professional sporting events."

c. Noted that the Division II Commissioners Association will sponsor the Division II Tip-Off Classic, and that this change in sponsorship would not affect the event's exempt-contest status.

d. Reconsidered the March 5 Administrative Committee action to revise the effective date of 1997 Convention Proposal No. 81 from August 1 to immediately; and changed the effective date to April 16 instead, noting that some student-athletes may have submitted their names for the NBA draft before the March 5 action.

e. Approved the following interpretation of the Legislative Review Committee: Partial Qualifiers Receiving Complimentary Admissions: An institution may provide a partial qualifier four complimentary admissions for home contests only (in the student-athlete's sport), inasmuch as a partial qualifier may engage in practice sessions on campus or at the institution's regular practice facility. [Reference: Item No. 2 of the minutes of the Interpretations Committee's October 15, 1996, telephone conference.]

f. Reaffirmed its opposition to granting an incidental-expense waiver per Bylaw 16.13.1 to permit an institution to reimburse a student-athlete for towing charges incurred when his car was towed from a campus parking lot.

g. Adopted the following noncontroversial revisions to legislation adopted by the Division III membership at the 1997 Convention:

(1) Bylaw 21.8.7.12: Increased the number of Division III representatives on the Men's Lacrosse Committee from three to four, noting that at least 50 percent of the positions must be filled by administrators.

(2) Bylaw 21.4.2: Increased the number of Division III representatives on the Divisions II and III Women's Golf Committee from two to three, noting that at least 25 percent of the positions must be filled by administrators.

(3) Bylaw 21.8.2.5: Exempted the Memorial Resolutions Committee from the requirement that at least one Division III representative on general committees functioning in an Association-wide capacity must be a member of the Division III Management Council.

h. Reviewed correspondence regarding the Council's and Administrative Committee's consideration of basketball contest exemptions, and noted that a broader discussion of these issues would take place during the April Council meeting.

2. Acting for the Executive Committee, the Administrative Committee:

a. Designated the following as host institutions for regional qualifying tournaments for the 1997 Division I Women's Tennis Championships: Central -- University of Kansas; Midwest -- University of Notre Dame; Southeast -- Vanderbilt University; West -- University of San Diego.

b. Designated Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania and U.S. Water Polo as hosts for the 1997 National Collegiate Men's Water Polo Championship, to be held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Conference No. 34
April 9, 1997

1. Acting for the Council, the Administrative Committee:

a. Granted a waiver per Bylaw 14.1.7.3 (60-day restriction on NCAA championship participation after last term of eligibility) to permit two student-athletes from the University of California, Irvine, to participate in the Division I Women's Track and Field Championships, which take place more than 60 days after completion of the student-athletes' terms.

b. Granted an incidental-expense waiver per Bylaw 16.13.1 to permit an institution to replace a student-athlete's necklace that was lost or stolen during a home basketball game, but urged that in the future institutions file police reports with such requests.

c. Granted an incidental-expense waiver per Bylaw 16.13.1 to permit an institution to replace a student-athlete's luggage and contents that were missing from the airport on a team trip.

d. Granted a waiver per Bylaw 16.13.1 to permit an institution to pay actual and necessary expenses for a student-athlete to attend the "Symposium on Girls and Women in Sport: The Gala Salute," sponsored by Springfield College.

e. Granted an incidental-expense waiver per Bylaw 16.13.1 to permit an institution to reimburse four student-athletes and two student trainers the fee they had paid but forfeited when they were unable to take a state academic skills program examination due to a conflict with a schedule track meet.

f. Approved requests by California State University, Sacramento; University of Central Florida; University of Maryland, Baltimore County; and Indiana State University to submit written appeals to the Division I Steering Committee, during its April 14-16 meeting, of decisions by the Council Subcommittee on Initial-Eligibility Waivers.

g. [Note: The following action occurred in conjunction with the March 28 Presidents Commission meeting.] Approved a request by the University of Texas, Pan American, for an in-person appeal to the Division I Steering Committee during that meeting of a decision of the Committee on Athletics Certification regarding the institution's certification status.

2. Approved the recommendation of the Football Rules Committee to allow placement of the NCAA Football USA trademark on helmets, jerseys or the playing field if an institution chooses to do so, noting this is not intended to preempt the presence of a manufacturer's logo on jerseys or helmets.