The Administrative Review Subcommittees continued their efforts to establish consistency in case precedent while also addressing the increasing case load.

At a recent meeting, the subcommittees adopted several guidelines drawn from precedent for the staff to use to deny specific waiver requests.

For the increasing number of waivers, the subcommittee recognized that an increase is not automatically a negative indication. However, many requests are not substantiated with appropriate documentation. For that reason, the subcommittee adopted information standards for specific types of requests.

The Division I Administrative Review Subcommittee has directed the staff to begin denying cases involving foreign military service in which an individual requests a waiver of the 21st birthday rule or the Division I tennis rule.

The subcommittee will not be bound by precedent on this matter beginning December 1.

Although the issue currently pertains to Division I, it has ramifications for Divisions II and III since both may be adopting seasons-of-competition rules related to amateurism reform.

The Division I subcommittee noted that Division I recently addressed the question of whether foreign military service should be excepted from the 21st birthday rule and defeated the question as part of the legislative process (Proposal No. 99-19). For that reason, the Administrative Review Subcommittee noted that it should not grant requests that are contrary to the membership's philosophy.

The action occurred at a meeting of the Divisions I, II and III Administrative Review Subcommittees October 26.

The Division I subcommittee also voted that it no longer will look at waivers involving Bylaw 14.2.1, the start of the five-year clock. The action was taken because an increasing number of institutions have gone to the Student-Athlete Reinstatement Subcommittee requesting an extension and then to the Administrative Review Subcommittee to waive the start of the five-year clock if the extension request was unsuccessful.

The staff provided the Divisions II and III subcommittees with an overview of the extension waiver issue, but those groups chose to make no changes, pending reviews by the Divisions II and III Student-Athlete Reinstatement Committees.

In another action, the Division I subcommittee voted to amend its policies to permit a review of hardship waivers that are submitted by conference offices. It also directed the staff to deny all hardship requests unless truly extraordinary circumstances are present since most waivers deal primarily with student-athletes who simply exceed the 20 percent criterion by a contest.

The subcommittees, meeting together, adopted the following standards in cases in which a learning disability necessitates the need for a waiver:

1. The institution must submit a copy of the student-athlete's professional diagnosis.

2. A statement from the student-athlete must be provided regarding his or her disability and the requested relief.

3. In transfer situations, the institution must demonstrate that the student-athlete's needed accommodations are not available at the previous institution but are available at the applicant institution.

With regard to transfers, the subcommittee adopted the following information standards for cases in which a student-athlete transfers for academic reasons:

The institution to which the student-athlete is transferring will be required to acquire a letter from the original institution noting that it offers the desired program and that the student-athlete has completed the necessary prerequisite courses necessary for admission into the program.

The institution should provide a statement noting that the student-athlete has the necessary credit hours to meet satisfactory-progress requirements at the institution.

A copy of the student-athlete's transcript must be provided.

If the student-athlete is transferring because of academic discontinuation, the dean or appropriate academic authority at the original institution most provide a letter documenting that the program has been discontinued.

Based on a trend in case precedent, the subcommittee also directed the staff to deny cases involving academic transfers under the following conditions:

A student-athlete transfers because the degree program does not meet his or her academic expectations.

The student-athlete has transferred for academic reasons on more than one occasion.

The student-athlete transferred to change majors.

The institution or the student-athlete is unable to provide documentation supporting the transfer for academic reasons.

Based on case precedent where the student-athlete transfers for athletics reasons, the subcommittee directed the staff to deny cases under the following conditions:

The student-athlete has been cut from the team, experienced conflict with the coaching staff or was receiving limited playing time.

The student-athlete transferred seeking the opportunity to participate in athletics.

The student-athlete transferred as a result of his or her athletics grant-in-aid not being renewed or an institution not fulfilling a promise of an athletics grant-in-aid.

The student-athlete transferred as a result of a coaching change at his or her previous institution.

The subcommittee noted that any time a waiver is denied at the staff level, the institution still have the opportunity to appeal to the subcommittee.

The subcommittees also recommended that legislation be sponsored to expand the season-of-competition waiver [Bylaw 14.2.5 (Division I) and Bylaw 14.2.6 (Divisions II and III)] to include eligible student-athletes who are involved in circumstances of extraordinary or extreme hardship beyond the control of the student-athlete and the institution. Such cases would involve a student-athlete who participated in a limited competition and had to leave school as a result of a family member's illness or extreme financial hardship. Further, the legislation would require student-athletes who are granted a season-of-competition waiver to be withheld from the same number of contests in which they competed during the season of limited competition. The administration of the seasons-of-competition waiver would fall under the jurisdiction of the Student-Athlete Reinstatement Committees.