Short's Travel Management of Waterloo, Iowa, began handling all NCAA travel and meeting planning services September 1.

In the four months since its selection as the NCAA travel and meeting planner, Short's has worked with the NCAA staff and membership to develop new Web-based initiatives to enhance the travel process and provide better service to the membership.

Several focus groups were conducted with member institutions in all three divisions to discuss championship and committee travel. Based on the information received from those focus groups, the NCAA has developed the first of those initiatives for committee meeting planning and travel.

The new process offers NCAA staff liaisons and the NCAA travel staff the ability to plan and track meeting expenses and arrangements more efficiently. It also gives committee members the ability to store and update their personal preferences for flying and to request travel arrangements online.

To assist committee members with the new process, Short's has created a Web tutorial, which committee members may view at www.shortstravel.com/ncaaDemo. The presentation takes about 15 minutes.

In the next 60 days, a new initiative for championships travel will be rolled out (a Web tutorial for that process also will be made available to the membership). The membership should look for information on this and other developments in The NCAA News, NCAA Online (www.ncaa.org) and through mailings and broadcast e-mails.

Short's was one of eight travel- and meeting-management companies that responded to a request for proposal in January 2003.

The NCAA considered the top 50 travel-management firms in the country based upon levels of service and technology. Experience with corporate, group and convention planning and collegiate travel also were considered.

Short's, a women-owned corporation, was founded in 1946 and has offices in Overland Park, Kansas, and Waterloo, Iowa. Short's has had extensive experience in collegiate and sports travel and is committed to providing superior service through the innovative use of technology. Short's recently achieved the top supplier award from John Deere & Company, the world's leading supplier of agricultural, construction and consumer equipment. The NCAA chose Short's because of its superior service and creativity and because of the teamwork, energy and innovation its team demonstrated during the selection process.

NCAA committee members may reach Short's by phone at 866/655-9215. Those with questions about new technology or processes should contact the NCAA travel staff at 317/917-6757 or by e-mail at travel@ncaa.org. Individuals experiencing technical problems with the site should telephone Short's Travel Management (866/655-9215) or correspond by e-mail at ncaa-support@shortstravel.com.