The Faculty Athletics Representatives Association's (FARA) annual Fall Forum attracted more than 200 members who gathered in San Diego to discuss issues ranging from reform initiatives to student-athlete time demands and the distribution of power in Division I.

The November 15-17 forum featured professional development sessions for both new and experienced FARs, panel discussions, breakout sessions on division-specific topics, a review of legislative proposals and a FARA business meeting. The forum also included a question-and-answer session with NCAA President Cedric W. Dempsey and a panel discussion about whether too much power is vested at the conference level.

Questions for Dempsey ranged from the impact of September 11 to concerns about the commercialization of both intercollegiate athletics and higher education in general. Dempsey, who referred to intercollegiate athletics as a "laboratory of learning" where students-athletes "learn about diversity, teamwork, self-worth and self-discipline while engaging in the pursuit of excellence," reviewed his vision for the NCAA given the new long-term television contracts with CBS and ESPN. He also considered ways in which FARA and the NCAA can work together to both achieve a better balance of power in the restructured NCAA.

The session regarding the amount of power at the conference level featured panel members Rick Bay, athletics director at San Diego State University; Big 12 Conference Commissioner Kevin Weiberg; and David Goldfield, faculty athletics representative at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte.

The speakers considered the impact of restructuring within the NCAA; the perceived roles of individuals involved in intercollegiate athletics, including FARs, CEOs and conference commissioners; and whether there is an unequal distribution of power among different conferences in Division I.

FARA President Diane Husic from East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania said some of the concerns from FARs included the entertainment value attributed to college sports.

"One representative noted that we tune in to watch people we don't know do things that are the same as we could watch live at the local level with people we know," she said.

Husic said another FAR provided an analysis of group versus individual decision-making and compared this with the Division I legislative process before and after restructuring.

"He pointed out that the phenomenon known as 'risky shift' predicts that in the group process, there is a greater willingness to set aside philosophical idealism (for example, the focus on academic integrity on a campus) to switch toward other goals such as the pursuit of money and visibility, which are commonly described conference goals," she said.

Dempsey suggested that perhaps the concern should not be with the commissioners and the power that they are perceived to have, but rather with the charge that has been given to them (that is, to generate money and visibility and increase the number of teams in bowl and championship games). He challenged the academic community to provide a new charge to conferences and their commissioners that readjusts the balance and mission of athletics within the context of higher education.

Time demands

During a panel discussion on student-athlete time demands, student-athletes Dylan Malagrino (swimming and track) of Syracuse University and Patrick Newland (football) of Whittier College described the conditioning and performance pressures they were under and the continual concern of losing their "spot" on a team. Despite this pressure, they indicated that they did not want further limitations on their ability to receive skill instruction and conditioning and that they felt students should decide for themselves how to balance athletics with academics.

Peter Mattera, the women's tennis coach from San Diego State University, agreed with the student-athletes that academic performance for athletes is better in-season due to the structured schedules and time-management skills that are promoted. He felt that conditioning for athletes should be maintained year-round to minimize chances of injury, and that the biggest distraction for athletes in-season is travel.

Jerry Kingston, faculty athletics representative at Arizona State University, said that even though Bylaw 17 is under consideration for deregulation, there also should be a push for greater restrictions on time demands, including limitations on travel distances and on season length and competition during nontraditional segments.

Division-specific topics

Division I members heard a report from the NCAA Academic Consultants and engaged in a discussion on how the calculation of graduation rates could impact various reform initiatives. The group also discussed ways to keep faculty athletics representatives "in the loop" in the Division I governance structure. One suggestion was to re-establish the Division I Legislative Review Committee, which might enhance interactions between FARA and the Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet, the Management Council and other key Division I committees.

Division II FARs received a presentation from the Division II Legislative Review Committee on both the Bylaw 17 deregulation proposals that will be considered at the Convention in January and the preliminary concepts for deregulation of Bylaw 14. Other topics included the identity of Division II, which was prompted by a recent NCAA Division II survey, and the recent Knight Commission Report that lumped all three divisions into concerns that were in fact aimed at big-time football and basketball programs.

East Stroudsburg's Husic said the consensus of the group was that Division II seems to define itself by what it is not rather than by what it is.

"Interestingly, this identity problem is not limited to athletics," she said. "Most Division II institutions are neither large research institutions nor small liberal arts colleges."

Division II FARs discussed a number of ways in which Division II can develop better public relations that illustrate the academic and athletics strengths of member institutions and student-athletes. The group also agreed that Division II needs to honestly examine whether its institutions are going down the road of an "arms race," even if it is to a lesser extent than in Division I.

Thanks to travel funds provided by the NCAA Division III Initiatives Grant Program, a record number of Division III FARs attended the forum. Their division-specific sessions focused on examining the roles that FARs play in Division III, a report from the Division III Amateurism Task Force and legislative proposals to be considered at the 2002 Convention.