Calendar

DIVISION III

Membership feedback, research keys in Proposal 66 effort

The Division III Presidents and Management Councils -- and their joint Oversight Group to Implement Proposal No. 66 -- will oversee extensive efforts to gather feedback and data from the Division III membership as part of efforts to prioritize issues raised by that 2004 Convention resolution.

The resolution directs the governance structure to study membership growth and diversity, but Proposal No. 66 also lists enhancement of institutional and conference autonomy, sport and program equity, and access to championships and other programs and services among areas for review.

The Management Council is creating what it is calling "virtual focus groups" -- e-mail discussion groups headed by a Council member and including selected individuals from each conference, as well as independent institutions. Each focus group includes an institutional CEO, athletics director, faculty athletics representative, senior woman administrator, conference commissioner and student-
athlete.

Council members currently are asking the virtual focus groups to suggest which issues listed in Proposal No. 66 are most important to Division III institutions, and also are seeking opinions on how to define and prioritize those issues.

Research also is expected to be a key component of the effort. The effort is driven by a desire to use more data and rely less on anecdotal information in making decisions.

STAFF CONTACT: Dan Dutcher (ddutcher@ncaa.org)

ATHLETICS REFORM

Commission backs NCAA effort, discusses football, recruiting

NCAA academic-reform efforts received a strong endorsement from the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, but the group used its May 24 meeting in Washington, D.C., to also discuss financial concerns, along with changes in the recruiting culture and the postseason football bowl structure.

The Knight Commission specifically noted the Division I Board of Directors' adoption of the disincentives structure designed to hold institutions accountable for improved student-athlete academic performance. However, members also noted the work that remains, including establishing demanding thresholds to trigger penalties and urging faculty to fulfill their obligations as stewards of institutional academic integrity.

Addressing Division I-A postseason football, Commission members agreed the current governance structure needs to be substantially altered to advance the "collegiate model of athletics" put forth in the NCAA strategic plan.

The Commission also reviewed the recent report of the NCAA Task Force on Recruiting, and stated that only wholesale reform of recruiting rules and practices can lead to a recruitment process grounded in the academic missions of colleges and universities.