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NCAA News Archive - 2007
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Presidents Council backs amendment to text messaging
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By Gary T. Brown
The NCAA News
The NCAA News
The Division II Presidents Council is backing an amendment to a text-messaging proposal that would allow text and instant messaging only for prospective student-athletes who have signed a National Letter of Intent or have signed a written offer of financial aid or admission from the institution.
The action during the Council’s August 9 meeting amends a proposal the presidents previously supported that would have precluded communication other than phone, e-mail or fax to all prospects, regardless of their signing status.
The amendment emerged at the Division II Management Council’s July meeting, during which members saw the amendment as a satisfactory compromise between student-athletes who don’t believe text messaging is an appropriate recruiting method and coaches who want to communicate with prospects who have made a commitment to their squads.
The Presidents Council action came during a review of all legislative proposals slated for the 2008 Convention. The presidents approved most in their legislative form. The only other significant amendment was to the effective date on a proposal that facilitates membership from Canadian institutions. The Council supported an immediate effective date (rather than August 1, 2008) to allow interested institutions to submit application for membership by the June 1 deadline.
Based on recommendations from the Management Council, the presidents withdrew sponsorship of four proposals, including one involving skill instruction. The presidents backed a restructured proposal on skill instruction in sports other than football that provides for more than one group of student-athletes to participate at one time in the same facility as long as the groups don’t work together. The proposal allows a maximum of four student-athletes per group for teams with a starting squad size of six or fewer, and a maximum of six for sports with starting lineups of more than six.
The skill-instruction package originally included a proposal that would have allowed the number of participants to equal that required to field a starting lineup. The Management Council at its July meeting, however, preferred the option based on the squad size and thus recommended that the Presidents Council not sponsor that part of the original package.
The Council also withdrew its sponsorship of:
The action during the Council’s August 9 meeting amends a proposal the presidents previously supported that would have precluded communication other than phone, e-mail or fax to all prospects, regardless of their signing status.
The amendment emerged at the Division II Management Council’s July meeting, during which members saw the amendment as a satisfactory compromise between student-athletes who don’t believe text messaging is an appropriate recruiting method and coaches who want to communicate with prospects who have made a commitment to their squads.
The Presidents Council action came during a review of all legislative proposals slated for the 2008 Convention. The presidents approved most in their legislative form. The only other significant amendment was to the effective date on a proposal that facilitates membership from Canadian institutions. The Council supported an immediate effective date (rather than August 1, 2008) to allow interested institutions to submit application for membership by the June 1 deadline.
Based on recommendations from the Management Council, the presidents withdrew sponsorship of four proposals, including one involving skill instruction. The presidents backed a restructured proposal on skill instruction in sports other than football that provides for more than one group of student-athletes to participate at one time in the same facility as long as the groups don’t work together. The proposal allows a maximum of four student-athletes per group for teams with a starting squad size of six or fewer, and a maximum of six for sports with starting lineups of more than six.
The skill-instruction package originally included a proposal that would have allowed the number of participants to equal that required to field a starting lineup. The Management Council at its July meeting, however, preferred the option based on the squad size and thus recommended that the Presidents Council not sponsor that part of the original package.
The Council also withdrew its sponsorship of:
- PC 1, which specifies that an individual who after full-time collegiate enrollment participates in outside competition during the academic year while representing only himself or herself and not engaging as a member of or receiving expenses from a team is charged with a season of competition. The Presidents Council, after reviewing input from the Management Council and Legislation Committee, believes the proposal as written has a disparate impact on various sports.
- PC 6, which is an eligibility waiver for student-athletes who are pregnant. The presidents withdrew the proposal in light of an Association-wide review of pregnancy issues being conducted by the Committee on Women’s Athletics.
- PC 15, which requires coaches present at strength and conditioning sessions be certified in CPR and first aid. A similar proposal was defeated (because of a tie vote) at last year’s Convention. The Presidents Council (based on a recommendation from the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports) decided to wait for a common-provision proposal to be crafted for the 2009 legislative cycle.
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