The Division II governance bodies will consider an array of significant legislative proposals during their summer meetings.

The Division II Management Council will meet July 24-25 in Boston, and the Division II Presidents Council will meet August 10 in Indianapolis.

Legislative proposals under consideration will come both from the membership and from the Division II committee structure.

It will be the first opportunity for the Management and Presidents Councils to review membership-sponsored legislation, which was due July 15.

The committee-driven proposals include the financial aid deregulation package, currently 13 proposals recommended by the Division II Legislation Committee, and the amateurism deregulation package, recommended by the Division II Amateurism Project Team.

The amateurism proposals have undergone extensive examination since they were introduced in concept at the 2000 Convention in San Diego. Since then, the Management Council and Presidents Councils have reviewed the proposed legislative package, with the Presidents Council seeming to have a greater comfort level. The Management Council has endorsed drafting the proposals into legislative form but has expressed concern about proposals that would permit prospects to receive athletically related compensation before enrolling in college. Ultimately, the Presidents Council will determine which legislative proposals move forward.

As for the Bylaw 15 deregulation package, which is part of the division's five-year legislative deregulation effort, the Presidents Council assessed recommendations from the Legislation Committee at its April meeting. It didn't make any decisions at that time about whether to support individual proposals, but the presidents were concerned about whether some proposals, especially a proposed modification to Bylaw 15.5.7, would remove important safeguards that serve to assure equitable competition.

The amateurism and the Bylaw 15 deregulation proposals will be major topics at the Division II Student-Athlete Summit, which will precede the Management Council meeting. Student-athlete observations on both legislative packages will be forwarded to the Management and Presidents Councils for consideration.

The Legislation Committee also will report on the July deregulation summit, which will be conducted July 20-21. This year, the Legislation Committee is considering Bylaw 17 (playing and practice seasons); any legislative proposals would be considered at the 2002 Convention.

Other issues

Most other business will relate to reports from Division II committees and project teams.

Most notably, the Management and Presidents Council will receive a major report from the Division II Budget and Finance Committee. At a June 7 meeting, that group supported a five-year plan to fund initiatives identified in the Division II strategic plan. If approved, the plan would designate broad areas to receive additional funding through 2004-05 while at the same time reducing the Division II unallocated surplus.

The Division II Compliance Review Project Team also will provide its final report, which will be a blueprint for membership rules compliance. The project team will recommend a program that will provide institutions with the opportunity to request compliance reviews that would feature Division II-specific tools. If approved, the voluntary program would become effective in the fall of 2001.

In other business:

Elections will be conducted for a Presidents Council chair (to replace Gladys Styles Johnston of the University of Nebraska at Kearney, whose term ends in January) and a Management Council vice-chair [to replace Barbara J. Schroeder of Regis University (Colorado), whose term expires in September].

The Membership Committee will report on the status of Division II provisional members.

The Convention Planning Project Team will outline a proposed program for the 2001 Convention. The project team will recommend that the Sunday afternoon forum time for chief executive officers and the membership be devoted to discussing long-range budgeting and membership-growth issues.

The Management Council will elect representatives from the Heartland Collegiate Athletic and Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conferences. A representative for independent institutions also will be elected.