The NCAA News - News and Features

March 16, 1998

Administrative Committee minutes

Division I

February 19, 1998

Acting for the Division I Management Council, the Administrative Committee:

1. Denied a request from Colorado State University to temporarily replace a countable coach in women's basketball who will play in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) during the summer of 1998. The committee determined that there were no extenuating circumstances that warranted a waiver under Bylaw 11.7.1.1.1.2 and that it was the individual's choice to participate in the WNBA or continue with her duties as assistant women's basketball coach.

2. Approved an incidental-expense waiver request from the University of Michigan under Bylaw 16.13.1 to provide housing expenses to two student-athletes who had previously roomed with another student-athlete who died on December 19, 1997. The landlord continued to request full rent each month and the two student-athletes were unable to pay the third student-athlete's share. The committee specified that the university could pay the past-due rental costs that would have been paid by the deceased student-athlete and that it could continue making his share of the payments through the end of March 1998. After that date, the student-athletes would have to find another roommate or incur the additional expense themselves.

3. Requested additional information in response to an incidental-expense waiver request from North Carolina State University under Bylaw 16.13.1 to provide travel expenses for several student-athletes to attend two developmental programs. The committee asked the university to clarify when and where the programs would be conducted and how other costs, such as transportation and food, would be paid and to provide additional rationale to support the university's position that the seminars should be funded by the university.

4. Denied an incidental-expense waiver request from the University of Pittsburgh under Bylaw 16.13.1 to provide transportation expenses for a student-athlete to return home because he was experiencing psychological stress related to several personal matters.

5. Approved an incidental-expense waiver request from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, under Bylaw 16.13.1 to provide complimentary admissions to a home basketball game, following a special awards brunch for most-valuable-player scholar athletes, for the families (parents and siblings) of the honored student-athletes.

The committee referred this issue to the Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet for further consideration of allowing complimentary admissions to contests conducted during the time frame of such awards ceremonies.

6. Approved an incidental-expense waiver request from the University of Texas at Austin under Bylaw 16.13.1 to provide transportation expenses to a student-athlete who is being honored at three awards ceremonies.

The committee directed the Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet to examine this issue for all student-athletes and to determine whether there should be any change in the treatment of awards expenses per Bylaw 16.1.7.2, including the question of whether institutions should be permitted to provide these expenses.