The NCAA News Digest

September 22, 1997

• SPORTS PARTICIPATION
• HONORS PROGRAM -- Nomination process underway for fall Today's Top VII candidates
• EXEMPTED CONTESTS -- Group urges members to check whether events are certified
• STAFF -- Changes should improve service with waivers, interpretations
• FOOTBALL -- Trend continues toward fewer catastrophic injuries

SPORTS PARTICIPATION

The percentage of male and female athletics participants has changed similarly for high schools and colleges over the last 15 years. In both cases, the percentage of female participants has risen more rapidly throughout the 1990s. In the 1995-96 academic year, there was only 0.7 percent difference in participation by gender in high schools and colleges according to data compiled by the NCAA and The National Federation of State High School Associations. For more information on high-school participation, see page 6.

HONORS PROGRAM

Nominations for fall sports candidates for the 1998 Honors Program must be received at the NCAA national office by November 1.

Nomination folders will be mailed September 29 to athletics directors, faculty athletics representatives and sports information directors at all member institutions.

The folders contain nomination forms for the 1998 Today's Top VIII and the Award of Valor. The awards will be presented at the honors dinner January 11, 1998, during the NCAA Convention in Atlanta.

Staff contact: James A. Marchiony.

EXEMPTED CONTESTS

Group urgest members to check whether events are certified

The Exempted Contests Subcommittee of the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet is warning institutions to avoid situations in which they sign contracts to participate in an event that has been incorrectly portrayed as being exempt from contest limits.

The subcommittee has recommended to the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet that if the sponsor of an exempted contest does not attach a letter of certification approval with any contract, the cabinet should encourage the Administrative Review Panel to deny requests from institutions seeking relief to participate in that event until the event is certified. Certification is done on an annual basis.

Staff contact: Louis J. Spry.

STAFF

The previous distinction between the NCAA compliance services and legislative services staffs has been eliminated, and in its place, five teams have been established that are expected to benefit the membership, especially with regard to waiver requests and interpretations.

The improvements are being made more through a change of approach than through the addition of personnel, although staff members are being added to aid with timely legislative interpretations. The new approach seeks to even out the work flow for staff by placing more responsibility in the hands of more people.

The changes became effective in August.

Staff contact: John H. Leavens.

FOOTBALL

The 14th annual report from the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research shows that four direct catastrophic injuries occurred in college football in 1995, the most recent year surveyed, while 22 occurred in high-school football.

There were no direct fatalities at the college level and four at the high-school level.

The report, written by Frederick O. Mueller and Robert C. Cantu, noted that the numbers are low when compared to those of the 1960s and 1970s.

The number of catastrophic injuries in football has been relatively low throughout the 1990s. In 1990, there were no fatalities directly related to the sport, the first time that had occurred since the football study was initiated in 1931.

The study contains catastrophic-injury information on most sports offered by the NCAA.

Staff contact: Randall W. Dick.