The NCAA News Digest

August 3, 1998

• BASKETBALL PARTICIPATION
• FEDERAL RELATIONS -- Wellstone amendment withdrawn before Senate vote
• EADA -- Justice department letters relate to salary, hiring issues

BASKETBALL PARTICIPATION

The latest basketball-participation survey by the American Basketball Council shows that a growing proportion of those playing the game are parents and children playing together at home. The national study, which has tracked basketball participation since 1987, shows that the greatest growth over the past decade came among players in the age groups 6 to 11 and 35 to 44.

"While basketball was gaining tremendous popularity on television, adjustable-height basket systems and smaller basketballs were created, opening the game to very young players, and the result is that basketball has become an important family activity," said Gregg Hartley, executive director of the basketball council.

Between 1987 and 1997, the number of basketball-playing boys and girls rose 49 percent, from 7.4 million to 11 million.

FEDERAL RELATIONS

Wellstone amendment withdrawn before Senate vote

An amendment to the Higher Education Act Amendments of 1998 drafted by Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minnesota, was withdrawn without explanation before the Senate approved the higher education act July 9.

The Wellstone amendment would have required colleges and universities to establish an internal appeals process by which student-athletes could challenge a campus decision to discontinue a sports team. Another provision that was eliminated from the bill without debate would have required colleges and universities to report annually to the federal government any reductions that are likely to occur to any athletics teams over the ensuing four years and the reasons for such reductions.

The Senate did, however, adopt language to require the General Accounting Office to conduct a study entitled "Study of Opportunities for Participation in Athletics Programs." The study will examine the growth and decline of sports teams as well as participation rates of men and women over the past 20 years at the high-school and collegiate levels.

Staff contact: Doris Dixon.

EADA

Justice department letters relate to salary, hiring issues

About 650 public colleges and universities (not all of which are NCAA members or have athletics programs) have received letters from the United States Department of Justice requesting a copy of each institution's 1997 Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act report.

The justice department has indicated that the purpose of the data collection is to assess the current compliance of colleges and universities with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and various other federal laws including the Equal Pay Act and Title IX, pertaining to coaches salaries and hiring practices.

The justice department has stressed that the request is a preliminary fact-gathering exercise and is not part of a formal investigation.

After reviewing the data, the justice department will determine if an investigation of any particular institution is warranted. If a formal investigation is deemed appropriate and an institution is found to be in non-compliance with federal anti-discrimination law, the justice department said it would likely attempt to enter into an agreement with the institution to correct the violation.

Staff contact: Doris Dixon.