The 2002 NCAA Convention will be filled with legislative proposals on topics that have generated significant discussion among the Division III membership in the past -- including amateurism and championships -- but the discussion this year will be absent any vote on a Division III financial aid audit.

The audit proposal's sponsor, the Division III Presidents Council, has decided to withdraw Proposal No. 46, so there will be no vote at this Convention. The feedback received from the membership -- and as a result of a pilot audit -- revealed common concerns in the areas of costs, frequency, enforcement and the accuracy of results. So instead of a vote at this time, the Presidents Council established the Division III Financial Aid Audit Task Force to pursue the development of a financial aid audit process and legislative proposal for consideration at the 2003 NCAA Convention.

Absent the audit issue, the topic of amateurism is expected to generate the most discussion this year as the Division III membership contemplates several proposals.

These proposals, Nos. 40, 41, 42, 43 and 44, would represent a fundamental shift in the Division III amateurism rules. All of the proposals apply only to pre-enrolled student-athletes.

If the proposals pass, prospective student-athletes would: (1) be charged with a season of competition for every year they engaged in organized competition after high school; (2) be permitted to accept prize money based on place finish; (3) be permitted to participate on a professional team, so long as they accepted no compensation and refrained from using an agent; and (4) be permitted to enter a professional draft and be drafted, again so long as they did not employ the services of an agent.

The Division III proposals are somewhat different from those passed in Division II and those currently contemplated in Division I in that the Division III Amateurism Task Force declined to forward a proposal that would have permitted prospective student-athletes to earn a salary.

A proposal to change the Division III provisional membership process also is expected to generate significant discussion. Proposal No. 45, sponsored by the Division III Presidents Council, contains a series of legislative and policy changes that would:

Establish an exploratory period that institutions would have to complete before application for provisional membership;

Establish a $12,000 educational fee to cover the cost of the provisional membership education program;

Establish a limit of six provisional members in each class and also establish a random selection to determine which six schools will make up each class;

Require provisional members, at the time of application, to sponsor at least five sports -- three of which must be team sports -- for each gender and also sponsor at least one sport each season.

Provisional members, before their fourth year of membership and for every year thereafter, also would be required to participate in whatever type of financial aid audit is ultimately approved by the Division III membership.

Championships

A number of Division III championships issues will be up for vote at the Convention as well, with the topic of automatic qualification resurfacing in two proposals (Nos. 47 and 48) from the membership.

Men's volleyball also will be a topic of discussion as two proposals from the membership to establish a Division III championship with a reduced number of teams (Nos. 49 and 50) should generate a lively discussion. Also on the floor will be Proposal No. 63, which would permit institutions to exempt participation in the Molten Championship (a Division III men's volleyball championship, not administered by the NCAA, that permits the host institution a berth in the championship tourney).

Other legislative proposals of note include No. 54 and 54-1, sponsored by the membership, which would permit formal strength and conditioning training sessions in the nontraditional segment for football.

The issue of playing and practice seasons will surface with Proposal No. 51, sponsored by the Division III Presidents Council, which would establish one exempt scrimmage opportunity in all sports.

And, Proposal No. 56 will clarify that Division III institutions with a female athletics director may appoint a different female, who reports to the director of athletics, as the senior woman administrator.

For additional information about Division III legislative proposals, see the legislative summary on page A5.

Division III discussion sessions

Last year's new format, which consolidated discussion sessions and legislative voting into one day, will be retained because of its popularity with the membership. There will be discussion sessions in the morning of the Division III business session, with the voting in the afternoon. The session will adjourn when voting is completed.

This year's Division III discussion in the business session will include an update on the Division III initiatives as well as discussions on amateurism, the financial aid audit and championships issues.

Speakers scheduled for the amateurism discussion include: M.Lee Pelton, president of Willamette University and a member of the Division III Presidents Council; John C. Harper, director of athletics at Bridgewater State College and member of the Division III Management Council; Amy Huchthausen, former student-athlete at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse; and Tom Wiengartner, director of athletics at the University of Chicago and chair of the Division III Amateurism Task Force.

Speakers scheduled for the financial aid audit discussion include: Ellen Shilkret, associate director of financial aid at Vassar College; Terry Rupert, director of athletics at Wilmington College (Ohio); Linda Case, director of athletics at State University College at Brockport and chair of the Division III Financial Aid and Awards Committee; John A. Roush, president of Centre College and member of the Division III Presidents Council; and R. Kevin LaGree, president of Simpson College, member of the Division III Presidents Council and chair of the newly formed Financial Aid Audit Task Force.

Speakers scheduled for the championships discussion include: Brad Bankston, commissioner of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference and chair of the Championships Committee; Mary Jo Gunning, director of athletics at Marywood University; and Suzanne R. Coffey, director of athletics at Bates College and a member of the Division III Management Council.

The Division III forum, which will be Sunday, January 13, from 1:30 to 4 p.m., will feature two topics. There will be a session on "The Culture of Division III Athletics," which will feature James Shulman, co-author of the book, "The Game of Life."

The other session will feature the NCAA CHAMPS/Life Skills Program. Speakers scheduled for that session include: Jean Conway, academic/life skills coordinator at State University College at Oswego; Sandra Moore, athletics director at Oswego State; Mike Lindberg, assistant athletics director/life skills coordinator at Ithaca College; and Stacie Wentz, student-athlete at Salisbury University.

Division III administrators may note with interest that Association-wide discussion sessions, which proved popular last year, are again on the agenda. The Association-wide sessions are Saturday, January 12.

The first Association-wide session is from 12:30 p.m. to 1:45 p.m., and the topics offered are: Sexual Orientation/Homophobia; Title IX; Risky Business: Cruising and Using (van transportation and dietary supplements); and Recommitting to the Complete Student-Athlete.

The second session is from 2 to 3:15 p.m., and the topics offered are: NCAA Catastrophic Insurance Program; NCAA Information Technology Initiatives; Days of Thunder -- Hazing and Raging: Students and Fans Out of Control; and Race/Gender Issues.

The last session of Association-wide discussion forums is from 5 to 6 p.m., and the topics offered are: Strengthening Your Management Team -- Involving the Senior Woman Administrator; Emergency Preparedness for Athletics; and The NCAA's CBS and ESPN Agreements: New Opportunities and Challenges.

Also of note are:

The National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators (NAD3AA) will present a divisional menu session program on community-service projects for student-athletes from 3:30 to 4:45 p.m., Saturday, January 12.

A Division II and III joint CEO discussion of the book, "The Game of Life," will take place on Sunday, January 13, from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Co-author Shulman will present the book's findings and also take questions from the audience.

The NCAA education services department will host a booth outside the Division III business session all day, Monday, January 14. NCAA professional development program coordinator Kimberly Ford will be available to answer questions and review grant applications for the NCAA Women and Minority Internship Grant Program and the Division III Strategic Alliance Matching Grant Program, both of which have application deadlines of February 2.

The NAD3AA will host a reception Monday, January 14, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the Marriott.