National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News Digest

December 7, 1998

Basketball research


Research conducted for the Division I Working Group to Study Basketball Issues shows how various issues are viewed differently by the men's and women's basketball communities.

The NCAA research staff surveyed 907 individuals in Division I, including chief executive officers, directors of athletics, senior woman administrators, faculty athletics representatives, men's and women's basketball coaches, and conference commissioners.

The greatest concerns with the men's game had to do with nonscholastic coaches, academics/graduation rates and agents, all of which were of at least some concern to more than 80 percent of the respondents. They also were the three subjects drawing the highest degree of concern.

With the women's game, the three areas of concern cited by the most respondents were competitive equity, recruiting/summer basketball and nonscholastic coaches. Those also were mentioned most often as areas of "high concern," along with academics/graduation rates.

The chart at the left shows how concerns differ between the men's and women's games.

INITIAL ELIGIBILITY

National video conference scheduled for February 23

The NCAA membership services staff will conduct a video conference from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Central time February 23 for high-school administrators and coaches.

The video conference will address issues high-school administrators face when assisting pro-spective student-athletes in the recruiting process. That includes issues related to initial eligibility and the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse process.

A discussion also will take place on the process high-school counselors may follow when assisting students with disabilities. The topic of agents on high-school campuses also will be addressed.

Satellite coordinates and other related information will be provided in The NCAA News.

Staff contact: Carolayne A. Henry.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Kentucky's Wethington to head Executive Committee

University of Kentucky President Charles Weth-ington has been selected as chair of the NCAA Executive Committee, effective at the conclusion of the 1999 NCAA Convention.

Wethington replaces Samuel H. Smith, president of Washington State University, whose term expires in January 1999.

Wethington, who also is a member of the Division I Board of Directors, was elected as Kentucky's 10th president in 1990. His term on the Executive Committee runs through January 2000.

DIVISION I

Management Coucil to act on proposed legislation

The Division I Management Council will conduct a second review of several legislative proposals during its January 9 and 11 meeting in conjunction with the NCAA Convention.

Among the major proposals to be considered for final approval are items regarding exempted contests in basketball and football.

The Council also will hear a report from the Division I Financial Aid Committee on several models addressing the feasibility of increasing a full grant-in-aid to the cost of attendance.

Among legislative proposals that have received initial approval from the Management Council and are up for second approval is Proposal No. 98-92 regarding exempted contests in basketball. That proposal would allow schools the flexibility of choosing to participate in an exempted contest or adding a 28th regular-season game to their schedules.

Another piece of legislation regarding exempted contests that the Management Council will review for a second time is Proposal No. 98-90, which would allow Division I-A football institutions to participate in a 12th regular-season game during years in which there are 14 Saturdays from the first permissible playing date through the last playing date in November (2002, 2003, 2008, 2013, 2014 and 2019 over the next 20 years).

The Division I Board of Directors also will meet in conjunction with the Convention.

Staff contacts: Carolayne Henry.