One benefit of membership restructuring for Division II was supposed to be that the opportunity for NCAA committee service would be better than it was under the old system.

Because many committee functions would become division-specific in a restructured NCAA, the theory went, there would be more opportunities than ever before for individuals in Division II -- and Division III, for that matter -- to become involved. For example, instead of one Association-wide financial aid committee, as was previously the case, financial aid issues would be administered separately in Divisions I, II and III.

The theory is still a good one, but it has become apparent in Division II that too few people are rushing to take advantage of the new committee service opportunity. Nomination periods for some committee vacancies have been extended when no qualified nominees were received. During those extensions, committee positions have gone unfilled.

Important Division II committees have run low on membership for long periods, among them the Division II Championships Committee, which was between one and three members short for a year between January 1999 and January 2000.

"We still had a quorum and could get our work done," said staff liaison Thomas A. Jacobs, "but the problem is that you don't know what opinions or viewpoints you're missing when you don't have the full 11 members."

Mike L. Racy, Division II chief of staff, said the shortfall with the Championships Committee is the most troubling example of Division II committee positions going unfilled.

"That should be a pinnacle assignment," Racy said, "but that group went a year without a representative from the West Coast simply because we were not getting any nominations."

A similar problem arose with the Division II representative for the Women's Basketball Rules Committee. The vacancy was such that the replacement had to be from the Southeast. The vacancy finally was filled after nine months, but only after another vacancy provided provided enough flexibility to set aside the geographic requirement.

Ultimately, two conclusions may be drawn: Either people don't want to serve on Division II committees or they don't understand the important role they play in filling vacancies. Doug Echols, who recently completed a four-year term as Division II Nominating Committee chair, said the latter is the case.

"In the end, it's worked," said Echols, commissioner of the South Atlantic Conference. "There is still an interest in serving on NCAA committees. We have strong committees made up of good people who have a genuine interest in serving."

James E. Fallis, who has chaired the Nominating Committee since September, said he believes that interest in serving is widespread, at least for the marquee committees.

"With football and basketball, we'll get plenty of nominees," said Fallis, director of athletics at the University of Northern Colorado. "But with some others, there might not be as many as we would like to see."

Using structure, technology

Although some committees might not be as attractive to the full membership as others, the bigger problem appears to rest less with interest and more with how nominations are solicited.

At the moment, the linchpin of the nomination process is the "committee listings" feature that appears on page 3 of every issue of The NCAA News. The governance staff compiles vacancies for all three divisions and provides them to the News, which prints them in every issue from the first

announcement until the nomination window has closed.

The membership response to this solicitation method is uneven, which comes as no surprise to Gary T. Brown, NCAA News manager.

"In my mind, the News works much more effectively as a complement for this sort of process, rather than as the process itself," he said. "There is a value in our readership knowing that they can consult the News to identify any current committee vacancies, but it should just be one tool among many."

Division II does, in fact, appear to be heading toward the use of a more multidimensional approach. The strategy involves better use of the structure and taking advantage of new technology.

With regard to the structure, there is an emerging awareness that the Division II Nominating Committee needs to change its role and become more engaged in educating the membership about committee service.

"Part of that committee's job now is talking to key groups like NACDA, the commissioners, FARA and NACWAA," Racy said. "It involves educating people so that they can pick up the phone and call somebody and say, 'We have a vacancy on this committee, and you'd be perfect for it. Get your name in there.' "

That differs somewhat from the recruiting function that previously was filled by the old Men's and Women's Committees on Committees. Those groups worked closely with existing committee memberships to identify replacements, and that led to what some termed a "good-old-boys" network. Although vacancies didn't last long, the same people tended to be recycled as committee members. That process was especially hard on experienced minority administrators, many of whom suffered burnout after they were plugged into multiple assignments to meet ethnicity requirements.

It was that shortcoming -- plus a general longing to acquire fresh perspectives -- that led to Division II's desire to spread out committee participation among more people. The problem now is that although there is plenty of "new blood" out there, it is proving hard to get it transfused into the system.

In that vein, Division II already uses an electronic-mail list server to communicate committee information with the Division II athletics directors association. The governance staff also uses a list server with the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators, although that list is not division-specific. Not only does the e-mail method notify the membership about vacancies, it also provides the information at no cost and in a way that invites easy and rapid communication among the relevant parties.

Internet benefits

The NCAA's World Wide Web site also will factor into the equation soon. Racy said he expects that nomination forms will be available to be submitted through NCAA Online and that committee charts -- along with term expiration dates -- will be maintained online. "That way, if somebody wants to be on the basketball committee," Racy said, "they could see when the vacancies will occur and plot their strategies for getting selected."

Lori L. Braa, NCAA committee coordinator, said other relevant committee data also will be posted eventually on NCAA Online.

"We would provide information on how often the committee meets and give an estimate of how much time the assignment might require," she said. "That will be available at your fingertips."

Those improvements are in the governance staff's strategic plan and could be available by August 2001.

Other initiatives designed to produce more nominations and to enhance the diversity of the nominees include:

* A presentation at the Faculty Athletics Representatives Association convention every fall.

* An annual NCAA Convention presentation to provisional members to make certain they understand the process.

* Development of a database to aid in the identification of female and ethnic minority candidates.

* Retention of nominations for 18 months instead of 12.

Also, Fallis said he believes that there may be too much time between when the Nominating Committee makes most of its recommendations (March) and when the nominations take effect (September). Although he acknowledges that it may not be possible, he wants to explore whether the governance bodies could consider appointments for September vacancies at their summer meetings rather than in the spring. That way, the timing might make more sense to the membership.

Echols said that although the various initiatives to broaden the nomination pool are helpful, the membership should not regard technology or any other single solution as a panacea.

"Technology may help," he said, "but people who are interested have to continuously review the vacancies that are available. Whether that information is in The NCAA News or whether it's online, they still have to be continuously tuned in."

Guiding principles for Division II committee service

Division II general committees

* Significant committee experience is preferred for service on the Division II Nominating Committee.

* Some committee experience is preferred for service on the Division II Membership Committee.

* Some sports committee (or regional advisory committee) experience is preferred for service on the Division II Championships Committee.

* There should be diverse gender and ethnic representation on all Division II committees.

* The following criteria also should be considered in the selection of Division II committee representatives: geographic representation, conference affiliation, and position held (for example, senior woman administrator) or area of specialty (for example, admissions officer).

* The Nominating Committee and Management Council will look for ways to provide opportunities for Division II committee service to individuals who have not been involved in the Association's governance or committee structure in the past.

* Individuals employed by a Division II institution that is classified as a Division II provisional member are not eligible for committee service.

* Unless otherwise specified, a committee member shall be salaried on a regular basis by a Division II institution or conference and performing a regular staff function representing at least 50 percent of the normal workload for a staff member at that institution or conference.

* Unless otherwise specified, an individual who has served two terms on a committee may not serve further on that committee.

* A member serving more than one-half of a four-year term is not eligible to seek immediate re-election.

* Unless otherwise specified, a former committee member may be appointed or elected to an additional term on that committee only after three years have elapsed.

Division II sports committees

* Recommendations from sports committees shall not receive preferential treatment in the sports committee nomination process.

* The following criteria should be considered in the selection of sports committee representatives: Conference affiliation, sport regions, gender, ethnicity, position held.

* The Nominating Committee and Management Council will look for ways to provide opportunities for Division II committee service to individuals who have not been involved in sports committee service in the past.

* Individuals employed by a Division II institution that is classified as a Division II provisional member are not eligible for committee service.

Legislative restrictions

* Unless otherwise specified, a committee member shall be salaried on a regular basis by a Division II institution or conference and performing a regular staff function representing at least 50 percent of the normal workload for a staff member at that institution or conference.

* For sports committees in both team and individual sports that administer Division II championships and for Division II representatives on Association-wide and common rules committees, at least 50 percent of the positions on each committee shall be filled by athletics administrators (that is, athletics directors, associate or assistant athletics directors, senior woman administrators, individuals who are employed full time as administrators by member conferences, or individuals who are employed both part time as administrators by member conferences and full time by member institutions). An institutional staff member who performs both coaching and administrative functions may be counted as either an athletics administrator or a coach.

* Unless otherwise specified, a former committee member may be appointed or elected to an additional term on that committee only after three years have elapsed.

* Unless otherwise specified, an individual who has served two terms on a committee may not serve further on that committee.

* A member serving more than one-half of a four-year term is not eligible to seek immediate reelection.

* Division II institutions that move to Division I are no longer eligible for committee or Council service within Division II.