National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

January 19, 1998

NCAA CONVENTION -- Time is of the essence in core-course change

Board moves quickly to implement new plan

BY DAVID PICKLE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, THE NCAA NEWS

ATLANTA -- Division I's swift action on modifying the approach to certifying core courses required for initial eligibility is an important sign that the new governance structure can accomplish positive change in a short period of time.

At its meeting January 13, the Division I Board of Directors agreed to major changes developed by the Division I Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet in consultation with several secondary educational associations.

"This is an outstanding example of the system's ability to respond quickly," said Kenneth A. Shaw, chancellor of Syracuse University and chair of the Division I Board. "This entire process started in August and was completed in January."

In fact, the Board was sufficiently impressed with the cabinet's work that chair David Knight of the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, was recognized with a round of applause after the report had been accepted.

The changes, which become effective February 1, will permit high-school principals to determine which of their courses meet the NCAA's definition of a core course. Additional support for a new submission would be required under three circumstances:

  • If a high school wants to approve a course retroactively for a student who has already graduated.

  • When the course title suggests offerings that typically do not meet the 75 percent instructional/content criteria.

  • When the submission is for a course that has been denied previously.

    The modifications do not reflect a change in Division I initial-eligibility standards. Division I presidents have been resolute in adhering to those standards, but certain individuals and constituencies outside the NCAA likely will continue to express dissatisfaction with the fact that they exist at all.

    During the Convention, the Association received a letter from Minnesota Attorney General Hubert H. Humphrey III in which he strongly requested the Association to make freshmen ineligible and to base collegiate eligibility on satisfactory academic progress.

    "Some feel the NCAA should not be involved in initial-eligibility standards at all," said NCAA Executive Director Cedric W. Dempsey. "But we've experienced periods when we had very low standards, and the result was chaos."

    The Association's study involved representatives from the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the American Association of School Administrators, the American School Counselors Association, the National Association of Collegiate Admissions Counselors, the National Association of State Boards of Education, and the National Federation of State Boards of Education. Each asked its constituency for reaction to the proposed changes, and most of the comments were supportive.

    In addition, the cabinet involved national teachers councils and secondary curriculum experts in developing core-course definitions for the various disciplines.

    The Association has retained Fleishman-Hillard, a national public relations firm, to assist with implementing the changes. A package of information entitled the "New Playbook" will be distributed to the nation's high schools in February.

    In a related matter, the Board approved creation of a standing Core-Course Review Committee.

    Other action

    In other business, the Division I-A members of the Board approved a waiver request from the University of Idaho for an exemption from the membership criteria for Division I-A football. As a result of the waiver, Idaho will be considered a Division I-A football program without meeting the subdivision's attendance criteria for the 1998 and 1999 seasons. The university cannot meet the standards in its on-campus facility (a domed stadium) and has signed a contract with nearby Washington State University for the use of its larger stadium. Division I-A membership criteria require a team to average 17,000 in home attendance once in four years in a stadium of at least 30,000 seats or to average 17,000 annually for the immediate past four years. If it fails to meet the criteria at the end of two years, the Idaho football program would be reclassified to Division I-AA.

    The Board denied a waiver request from Drury College for its men's and women's soccer teams to be considered Division I immediately. The Board saw no compelling reason to grant the waiver.

    The Board also approved six legislative proposals sent forward by the Division I Management Council (see story, page 9).

    In addition, the Board noted a Management Council interpretation regarding the Division I legislative process. The Council issued an interpretation clarifying that the language in Constitution 5.3.2.3.1 relating to the suspension of legislation applies only to legislation adopted by the Board. Legislation that has been defeated by the Board is still subject to an override, but the suspension provision does not apply.