The Division I Recruiting Cabinet will embark on a comprehensive review of the division’s recruiting model over the next year, including communication with recruits.

For several years, proposals adjusting the recruiting rules have outnumbered measures introduced to modify other regulations (in the 2009-10 cycle, there are 46). Cabinet chair Petrina Long said the cabinet wanted to take a more holistic approach to revising the recruiting model and deal with issues that have gained media attention in recent months, including early recruitment, changes in technology and the ability to monitor rules compliance.

“It’s pretty clear that the membership is struggling with a number of the macro- and micro-level issues regarding recruiting,” she said. “This kind of effort hasn’t been undertaken for quite a while. We thought it was time.”

At its September meeting, the cabinet attempted to set the tone for its future discussion by identifying a set of principles it will emphasize when reviewing the model and considering alterations. The cabinet listed the following goals for its study of the recruiting model, without prioritization:

• Simplify and deregulate communication with prospective student-athletes
• Write proposals in clear language
• Keep sport-specific legislation an option, but make rules general when possible
• Apply rules consistently
• Maintain competitive equity when possible
• Be cost-effective
• Make enforcement and monitoring attainable
• Keep institutions, coaches and student-athlete well-being at the center of discussions

The group also acknowledged potential pitfalls with changing the recruiting model, including a system that often places coaches in difficult ethical situations and creates a stack of rules to regulate the few people who make poor choices.

Particular areas the cabinet will review include telephone calls, e-mail and other types of written correspondence; recruiting materials; contacts/evaluations; official/unofficial visits; tryouts; and camps and clinics.

Cabinet members will seek feedback from conferences and colleagues at member institutions after further discussion on recruiting in February. Long said the group purposely did not prioritize its principles in September and might choose not to prioritize them at all.

“We’ll look at them again with the feedback from the conferences and really take action on some of these,” Long said. “We will set a strategic plan for getting feedback from the membership and our various constituencies, including the coaches organizations, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, administrators, all of the groups needed to be a part of the process.”

Long said she hopes the membership will engage in the ensuing discussion. With feedback from the membership, the cabinet will begin shaping some potential models in February.

“We would love to have people getting into quality discussions at this point,” she said. “We will be seeking feedback sometime in the spring on some general concepts.”