The NCAA News - News and Features

May 26, 1997

Sixteen more schools certified; one certified with conditions

The NCAA Committee on Athletics Certification has announced decisions about the certification status of 17 NCAA Division I member institutions.

A total of 16 schools were certified and one was certified with conditions, according to a May 15 announcement.

Institutions receiving a designation of certified were Alabama State University; Coastal Carolina University; Dartmouth College; University of Dayton; University of Delaware; Indiana University, Bloomington; Kent State University; University of Kentucky; University of Louisville; University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Michigan State University; University of Notre Dame; Saint Louis University; University of San Francisco; St. Bonaventure University; and Yale University.

One institution -- the University of North Carolina, Asheville -- received a designation of certified with conditions. The condition placed on North Carolina-Asheville's certification included submitting a report that addresses the implementation of the institution's and peer-review team's recommendations related to fiscal integrity.

The 17 colleges and universities completed a yearlong certification process that all 307 Division I members will undergo within five years. A total of 129 institutions now have received certification-status decisions. The program's purpose is to ensure integrity in the institution's athletics operations and to assist athletics departments in improving their programs.

Legislation mandating athletics certification was adopted by a vote of all Division I members at the 1993 NCAA Convention as a key part of the Association's reform agenda.

A designation of certified means that an institution has shown that it operates its athletics program in substantial conformity with operating principles adopted by the Division I membership.

A designation of certified with conditions means that a college or university generally operates its athletics program in substantial conformity with the Division I operating principles but that problems were identified that were serious enough that full certification is withheld until those problems have been resolved.

A designation of not certified means that the institution is not operating in substantial conformity with the Division I operating principles. Problems were identified that the committee considered very serious or pervasive.

If an institution is given the certification status of certified with conditions or not certified, action must be taken by the institution in a specified period of time before its certification status can be changed. If it fails to make an effective effort to correct problems within the time frame set by the committee, the institution may be placed in a restricted membership category for a year. If problems remain unresolved at the end of that year, the committee may reclassify the institution as a corresponding member.

An institution can request, within 15 days after the release of the certification decision, a hearing before the Committee on Athletics Certification. If it is still not satisfied, the institution may appeal to the Division I Management Council.

The members of the Committee on Athletics Certification are R. Daniel Beebe, Ohio Valley Conference; McKinley Boston Jr., University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; Robert A. Chernak, George Washington University; Hallie E. Gregory, University of Maryland, Eastern Shore; Lee A. McElroy, American University; Michael B. McGee, University of South Carolina, Columbia; Patricia H. Meiser-McKnett, University of Hartford; Annette O'Connor, La Salle University; James P. O'Hanlon, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Frederick W. Obear, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga; Marcia L. Saneholtz, Washington State University; Andrea Seger, Ball State University; R. Gerald Turner, chair, Southern Methodist University; Charlotte West, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale; and Charles Whitcomb, San Jose State University.