Jul 26, 2010 8:42:42 AM

Sometimes products billed as "new and improved" may be the former but not the latter. Well, the NCAA Manuals that will be arriving at member institutions in the coming weeks are both.

This year's NCAA Manuals in all three divisions represent the first of a phased-in approach to help users find information more easily and to consolidate or eliminate sections for greater efficiency. It's the first significant overhaul of the Manuals since the Association federated its governance structure in 1997.

New (and improved) this year is the elimination of Bylaw 30, which includes (for Divisions I and II) moving the recruiting calendars that had been housed there into Bylaw 13 where other recruiting policies reside.

The changes are the result of a staff review of the three divisional Manuals to gain greater consistency in terminology, use figures and charts more appropriately and consolidate areas where appropriate without compromising the integrity of the bylaws.

More changes are being considered in future years, including possible collapsing of provisions in Bylaws 18 and 31; development of de minimus/restitution charts in lieu of legislative text within legislation; and converting Bylaw 21 on committees into a chart rather than actual legislation. Staff members continue to evaluate other policies that might be removed or restructured, as well.

The much anticipated changes are already being well received.

"The changes that the NCAA staff is working on with regard to the Manual will be very beneficial to the membership," said Jennifer Condaras, assistant commissioner for compliance at the Big East Conference. "Integrating information such as recruiting calendars so you can look for things in one bylaw instead of several is never a bad thing."

Governance input helped

Lynn Holzman, NCAA director of academic and membership affairs at the national office, the group in the national office responsible for organizing and publishing the Manuals, said the driving philosophy behind the staff's current work to make each of the three Manuals easier to use is to help the membership find information easily, while continuing to consistently present the rules in each book.

"We know we have to have our rules in a place and in a format so they can be easy to understand and presentable to the membership, and we know we have a variety of people who work with the legislation, or have exposure to it," Holzman said. "So we want that information to be presented in a way that both the novice and the expert know where to go to get the answers they need."

Condaras agreed that incorporating more charts and figures into the Manuals will help the membership. 

"Seeing information in that type of format can be much easier to read, especially when dealing with a laundry list of items," she said. "I also think using more consistency with the terminology will be helpful. That is one of those things that you might not notice until someone brings it to your attention."

While the NCAA staff led the way during the review, members also sought input from divisional governance groups.

New England College Athletics Director Lori Runksmeier chairs one of those groups, the Division III Interpretations and Legislation Committee. She said her committee felt that adding tables and charts, grouping relevant legislation together and making simple editorial changes that make the rules easier to understand are major gains for member institutions' staff members.

"Consolidating material that was duplicated will lessen confusion, as will cleaning up the terminology so that terms are consistent throughout the Manual," she said. "Most importantly, I think after an adjustment period, people are really going to find the new Manual easier to use. I know this has been a huge undertaking for many NCAA staff members, but I am convinced we are all going to benefit from the process."

Holzman said she and her fellow AMA staff members are aware of how daunting change can be, particularly to a book that so many people rely on so frequently. That's why the staff chose a phased-in approach.

Condaras said, though, that the membership might embrace these changes more than people might think. She said compliance people at Big East institutions certainly support the modifications.

"I agree that some folks do not accept change well, but I don't think this will be one of those times," Condaras said. "As long as it is clear as to which sections of the Manual are being reviewed and when – which it has been – the membership should see this as a positive."

Division II compliance people are excited about the changes, too. Christina Whetsel at Angelo State said the changes actually reflect what the membership has asked for over the years.

"When the information required for compliance personnel to perform their job is spread out in various sections of the Manual, it can create confusion and frustration," she said. "Housing information in one central location will provide our campuses with a more efficient tool to support institutions in their commitment to compliance."

More to come

The biggest potential change remains on the horizon, as the staff seeks support in each division's governance structure of efforts to remove information from the Manual that included legislation, but really is a policy or procedure. The inclusion of such information, especially during the past 15 to 20 years, has been a major contributor to growth in the size and complexity of the publications.

Holzman cited the Division I Manual treatment of the Committee on Academic Performance as an example.

"Policies connected with the Academic Performance Program, such as the detailed criteria for filing waivers, are included in the Manual in a way that permits flexibility in changing procedures. The legislation simply states that the committee may establish or amend the policies and procedures and that they are subject to review and approval by the Board of Directors. We're asking, in other cases in which details related to how a process works is included as legislative text, does this really need to be legislation? Or can it be handled as a policy or procedure?"

Holzman said that the staff has been working and will continue to consult with appropriate divisional committees to investigate removing such material from the Manuals.

The staff's initiative also might someday lead to creation of more-focused rules publications, such as a printed "operating manual" that would include only core NCAA bylaws that compliance personnel use every day.

That publication could be supplemented by providing a more complete Manual online only and by tools such as LSDBi, Holzman suggested – cutting printing and shipping costs while ensuring that an array of legislative aids remain readily available.