All of you who have experienced frustration with the cumbersome nature and confusing application of NCAA regulations, please stand up.

Despite our best efforts, it is doubtful that all institutions are properly applying all the NCAA regulations. Often our best attempt to sufficiently monitor all the compliance challenges is confusing because of the myriad of regulations. Thus, we find ourselves in the midst of initiatives to deregulate the Division I Manual.

The Committee on Financial Aid has accepted the challenge of deregulation with the mentality of "thinking outside the box." While the committee is composed of representatives from every size and category of Division I institutions, we need your help. This is the opportunity for those of us in conference and institutional administrative positions to have our suggestions and answers to improving the system implemented. As your peer and the chair of the Committee on Financial Aid, I am requesting your assistance and input now and throughout the process.

The goals of the committee throughout the deregulation process include:

To simplify the process for implementation and monitoring of athletics aid.

To be consistent with the core values established for this process and the Division I philosophy.

To consider all institutional, federal and state relations when establishing new policies.

The committee has adopted three core principles to apply to each topic area as we address Bylaw 15. The core principles are the guidelines that keep the committee focused on the deregulation goals. The core principles are defined as follows:

Every student-athlete shall have the opportunity to receive funding to cover the student-athlete's cost of attendance through a combination of permissible sources of financial aid.

Every student-athlete shall have the opportunity to receive the same maximum benefits afforded by an athletics grant-in-aid regardless of the sport in which he or she participates.

Every student-athlete shall have the opportunity to receive nonathletically related financial aid in addition to aid based on athletics ability without adversely affecting the student-athlete's team financial aid limitations.

Every full grant-in-aid shall have an equivalent value across institutions so a student-athlete is able to select an institution based on academic and athletics choices.

Every institutional intercollegiate athletics program shall be administered in keeping with prudent management and fiscal practices to assure the financial stability necessary for providing student-athletes with adequate opportunities for athletics competition as an integral part of the quality of educational experience.

There are 14 areas from Bylaw 15 that have been identified as the key issues surrounding financial aid. The Committee on Financial Aid hopes that applying the core principles to each of the topic areas will enable the group to meet the goals of the deregulation process. The topic areas selected by the committee and any determinations that have been discussed to this date are as follows:

Student-athlete's individual limit = grant-in-aid (athletics aid) + "other" (nonathletics aid) = cost of attendance.

The student-athlete's individual limit is equal to an athletics grant-in-aid (tuition, fees, room, board and books) and any nonathletics aid [any funding that is not institutional financial aid based on athletics ability, outside financial aid in which athletics is a major criterion and employment (on or off campus) in which athletics interests interceded] up to the cost of attendance.

This would allow a student-athlete to receive academic- and need-based awards that have no basis in athletics ability. The benefit to the student-athlete is obvious.

2. Maximum limit on individual financial aid.

The student-athlete's maximum financial aid limit is the standardized cost of attendance applicable to all students at the institution.

3. Countable aid vs. noncountable aid.

Countable aid for both individual and team limits would be institutional financial aid based on athletics ability, outside financial aid for which athletics is a major criterion and employment (on or off campus) in which athletics interests intercedes.

The committee reviewed all the countable sources of financial aid from Figure 15-1 and felt that this is perhaps one of the most confusing and restrictive regulations under Bylaw 15. The deregulation of this seemed evident when using the core value of student-welfare as a guiding principle.

4. Counter vs. noncounter.

The committee has only briefly begun to review the concept of counter vs. noncounter. One influencing factor is the proposed change in what would be countable aid. Another issue to consider is the effect of recruited vs. nonrecruited.

Other topics to be considered are included in the accompanying chart.

I hope you forward to the committee any suggestions about the topics under review. The committee is taking the initiative to visit with and contact various constituent groups for feedback throughout the process. We hope that the responses from the membership will assist the committee with "thinking outside the box" in the deregulation process.

Please send your correspondence to Rob Philippi, NCAA membership services representative, at the national office or contact the membership services staff at 317/917-6222. You also may e-mail the Division I Committee on Financial Aid at df1fad@listserv.ncaa.org.

Sandee Hill is the senior associate director of athletics at the University of San Francisco and chair of the Division I Committee on Financial Aid.