This update is a tool to enhance communication between the NCAA national office and the Division III membership, with distribution to athletics directors, senior woman administrators, faculty athletics representatives, presidents, national SAAC, conference commissioners and the NADIIIAA listserv. We encourage athletics directors to share this communication with their athletics department members. Please contact Louise McCleary to include an item or share comments, and remember to check out the Division III governance
homepage for the latest news and information.
The Sport Sponsorship and Demographic Form is now available. Completing the form is a membership requirement, and the form must be submitted no later than July 26. Access to the site is through the NCAA single source sign-on; the instructions and frequently asked questions documents found within the site will guide the user through each area of the form. If you have additional questions please contact Maria DeJulio,
Lynn Dickey or Erin Irick.
New Resource: Guide to Strategic Athletics Communication on Campus
In 2012, the Division III College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) executive board conducted a survey of Division III sports information and athletics communication directors. The survey results were the foundation of the NCAA Division III Guide to Strategic Athletics Communication on Campus resource. NCAA staff created a 2018-19 working group to oversee a new survey and update the resource. Based on feedback and data collection, the Division III governance staff and the Strategic Communications Working Group compiled key data, analytics, and best practices that will positively impact athletics communication and sports information directors while simultaneously
having a positive impact on athletics departments. After 12 months of hard work, this new resource is now available and will be distributed to those attending Division III Day on June 11 at the 2019 CoSIDA Convention in Orlando Florida. To view the guide, click here.
NCAA Championships Site Selection and Bid Process
The NCAA recently announced the start of its 2022-26 championship site selection campaign. The Association is seeking hosts and sites for 86 of the 90 NCAA championships each year over four academic years, spanning academic years 2022-23 through 2025-26. The timeline for the bid process is as follows:
Aug. 26: Bid specifications will be published on ncaa.org/bids.
Bid portal opens.
Feb. 3: Bid responses due.
Mar.-Sept.: Committee deliberations, recommendations and approvals.
Oct. 23: Hosts/sites announced
NCAA Division III Webinars.
The next Division III webinar will be from 1:30 to 2 p.m. Eastern time, Tuesday, June 4. The topic will be an overview of the NCAA’s Injury Surveillance Program.
Future webinars will be conducted from 1:30 to 2 p.m. Eastern time on the following dates:
August 6 – NCAA Transfer Portal
September 3 – Championships: How to Submit a Championships Bid
October 1 – NCAA.org Navigation
Each webinar will be limited to the first 250 participants. All past webinar PowerPoints are on the Division III website.
Division III Governance Intern
In mid-June, the Division III Governance team will welcome Kiana Verdugo as its 2019-20 NCAA post-graduate intern. Verdugo graduated from Hamline University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in secondary education and English. At Hamline, she was a member and captain of the track and field team. Verdugo was recognized as an Academic All-American and Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar in 2018. She also served as a member of the Division III Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and the NCAA Board of Governors Student-Athlete Engagement Committee.
Identity Initiative Purchasing Website
Have you checked out the new items recently added to the Division III purchasing website? Do you still have purchasing website credit remaining? Log in through My Apps and select the Division III Purchasing icon or click here
. Do not forget that a $500 credit is available for each institution and conference through August 2019 for purchases from the site. Access the site by entering the email address of your institution's director of athletics (or for conferences, the commissioner's email address) as the username. Then enter the password you created. For assistance, contact Amy Byrnes at Source One Digital.
The fifth annual Athletics Direct Report (ADR) Institute will take place Jan. 22-23, at the NCAA Convention in Anaheim, California. The purpose of the program is to engage Division III ADRs in best practices to oversee and manage athletics departments and to improve the relationships between ADRs and their presidents, athletics directors and conference commissioners. The two-day program includes both networking opportunities and interactive discussions with ADR peers and other expert presenters. Event details are available here
. ADR Institute participants will receive a registration fee waiver to the NCAA Convention to continue their professional development. The institute also provides travel, meals and lodging for all participants.
Each institution and conference office may nominate an athletics direct report via the NCAA Program Hub. Nominations will open June 15 and close at 5 p.m. (Eastern time) on Aug. 30. Eligible nominators include commissioners, presidents/chancellors and directors of athletics. ADRs also may self-nominate for the institute. Each multi-sport conference is guaranteed one participant per year. Please contact Leah Kareti with any questions.
Interested in using 360 Proof on your campus, but not for a comprehensive plan? While 360 Proof is a comprehensive program to address high-risk alcohol use on your campus, there are program components that can be used alone to help you reduce the consequences of alcohol use on your campus. Check out our new guide that features implementation ideas you can quickly adopt to make a positive impact on your prevention efforts. When you are ready for full implementation of a comprehensive prevention plan, let us help you! The 360 Proof team offers consultations, either over the phone, or in person at select NASPA and NCAA events.
To schedule this consultation, send an email request to ExpertHelp@360proof.org and include the following:
1. Your name and institution.
2. Your phone number.
3. The topic you would like to discuss.
On receipt of this email, you will be contacted directly by a 360 Proof expert to schedule a specific time for the call. Please contact Leah Kareti with any questions about 360 Proof. Don't miss us on Twitter for 360 Proof highlights, tips and tutorials: @Real360Proof.
At its most recent meeting, the NCAA Board of Governors unanimously endorsed, as accepted Association-wide policy, comprehensive recommendations on preventing catastrophic injury and death in collegiate athletes. These recommendations, effective Aug. 1, are set forth in a document titled Interassociation Recommendations: Prevention of Catastrophic Injury and Death in Collegiate Athletics
. SSI encourages member institutions to convene meetings of key health and safety, compliance, and administrative personnel to review the content of the document and begin to identify and implement steps consistent with these recommendations.
A ground-breaking consensus paper on mental health, coordinated and written by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Medical and Scientific Commission and co-chaired by Dr. Brian Hainline, NCAA Chief Medical Officer, was published this month. It addresses the multifaceted aspects of mental health symptoms and disorders in elite athletes, many of which are of interest to athletics staff supporting collegiate student-athletes. More detailed information and other helpful related resources may be downloaded from the NCAA Sport Science Institute website by visiting
ncaa.org/mentalhealth.
The SSI team, in collaboration with the NCAA executive staff, participated in a recent Sexual Violence Prevention Summit in South Korea. Although this was an international event, we were able to highlight U.S. state and federal laws with a specific focus on Title IX. Sexual violence is clearly a societal issue and therefore we need to continue to focus on advocacy, research and education. In addition to the topic of sexual violence, our key message was on the importance of combining academics and sport and finding a well-rounded experience in both.
NYC Scholar-Athlete Summit: Science and Health Professions
Do you have any student-athletes interested in pursuing a career in science and health? If so, encourage them to attend the NYC Scholar-Athlete Summit: Science and Health on Saturday, June 22, at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Click here to register for the free event.
Congratulations Timothy Farrell, University Athletic Association Sports Information Director, on receiving the 2019 Spring Division III and D3SIDA Recognition Award! The selection committee of D3SIDA members chose Farrell's story: "University of Rochester Men's Tennis: Diversity on an International Level." The story was exceptionally well done, and Division III and D3SIDA applaud the work and efforts. Award winners receive a $1,500 credit to attend Division III Day held in conjunction with the annual 2019 CoSIDA Convention.
The Division III and D3SIDA Recognition Award is a partnership between the Division III governance staff and the Division III College Sports Information Directors of America (D3SIDA) to recognize the best work by athletics communication directors portraying the Division III identity and student-athlete experience. The recognition program is part of the Division III Identity Initiative. It seeks to honor the best work - including news releases, feature articles, videos, blogs and other materials - produced by Division III campus and conference athletics communication offices. For more details on the recognition award, click
here.
Smith College is the recipient of the May Division III Diversity Spotlight Initiative. The Smith College athletics department partnered with the college’s Sports Committee for Inclusion and Diversity (SCID) to host the EmPOWER: Understanding Our Identities Conference. The conference focused on inclusion and diversity within athletics. Tamika Catchings, an Olympic gold medalist and Indiana Fever director and vice-president of basketball operations, delivered the opening keynote address. Click
here for more information.
The Diversity Spotlight Initiative recognizes and promotes outstanding diversity related projects, programming and initiatives occurring on Division III campuses and in conference offices. All selected recipients receive $500 toward their next diversity initiative. To submit an initiative for consideration for May, email Louise McCleary, with a brief statement (no more than 500 words) as to why your institution or conference office deserves to be the spotlight recipient. Attach a video or photo if applicable. The nomination deadline is June 21.
Diversity Tip of the Month
As one of its core values, the NCAA believes in and is committed to an inclusive culture that fosters equitable participation for student-athletes and career opportunities for coaches and administrators from diverse backgrounds. In further recognizing and acting upon this value, the NCAA is increasing efforts to provide opportunities to student-athletes with education-impacting and physical disabilities. For academic eligibility purposes, the NCAA defines a disability as a current impairment that has a substantial educational impact on a student’s academic performance and requires accommodation.
Learn more.
The NCAA Division III Special Olympics Spotlight Poll is a story-telling initiative located on ncaa.org/D3SpecialOlympics
. It features new stories each month that highlight a Division III and Special Olympics joint activity or event. The story with the highest number of votes on the 25th day of each month is the winner. That institution or conference receives $500 to use for its next Special Olympics event. Written and digital submissions both are accepted. Featured stories are selected based on inclusion of the student-athlete perspective and Division III messaging. To submit a story for consideration, email d3specialolympics@ncaa.org.
May Winner
Congratulations to our 50 for 50th Challenge winner! After 2,058 total votes, DeSales University Hosts Eastern Fall Sectional won the May Special Olympics Spotlight Poll by gathering 53 percent of the total votes! The Bulldogs will receive $500 to use for its next Special Olympics event as well as a gymnasium banner for completing the 50 for 50th Special Olympics Challenge as our grand-prize winner.
Amateurism. Per NCAA Division III Bylaw 12.01.1, only amateur student-athletes are eligible for intercollegiate athletics participation in a particular sport. Further, Bylaw 12.1.2 indicates that amateurism legislation in Bylaw 12.1 is sport specific. This means a student-athlete may be a professional in one sport and represent a member institution in another sport.
Pursuant to Bylaw 12.1.3.1, before initial full-time enrollment, an individual may accept any expense, award and benefit listed below:
Prize money based on place finish.
Actual and necessary expenses from a professional team.
Contract for professional athletics.
Competition on a professional team.
Living expenses from established relationships.
Actual and necessary expenses from outside amateur team or organization.
Expenses from nonprofessional sponsor or event.
Actual and necessary expenses for parents and legal guardians.
Prize for institutional promotion.
NCAA Eligibility Center fee.
Expenses for age 15 and younger camp or academy sponsored by professional sports organization.
Equipment and apparel items.
Life skills mentoring program.
Benefits for elite-level participation.
Permissible insurance against disabling injury or illness.
Camp employment.
Fee-for-lessons.
Pre-enrollment educational expenses.
Item “r” from the list above, pre-enrollment educational expenses
, permits a prospective student-athlete to receive pre-enrollment educational expenses, awarded based on athletics participation, so long as those expenses do not come from agents, representatives of an institution’s athletics interest or professional sports team/organization and the expenses are disbursed directly through the secondary educational institution (high/prep/private school). This is a result of Proposal 2019-5, which was passed in January at the NCAA Convention. Examples of pre-enrollment expenses include tuition, fees, housing and books.
Division III Amendment Procedures for the 2020 NCAA Convention
Official Interpretation. Indoor/Outdoor Track and Field Playing Season Parameters (III). The Division III Interpretations and Legislation Committee determined that an institution that sponsors both indoor and outdoor track and field may not divide the playing season into segments (i.e., traditional and nontraditional). The weeks of the playing season shall be conducted consecutively unless the institution does not practice or compete during any full week that includes a published vacation, holiday or exam period, which shall not be counted as part of the playing season. [References: NCAA Division III Bylaw 17.1.2 (general regulations for computing playing seasons); Bylaw 17.23.1
(length of playing season)].
Staff Interpretation. Cover Letter Accompanying a Celebratory Signing Form. The academic and membership affairs staff confirmed that a cover letter accompanying a nonbinding athletics celebratory signing form is a permissible recruiting material, provided it is produced by the institution and does not require or request the prospective student-athlete to indicate any form of commitment to attend the institution. As such, the cover letter may be personalized and offer a prospective student-athlete a roster spot (or other similar language), but the prospective student-athlete may not be asked or required to sign the letter. [References: Bylaws 13.4.1 (recruiting materials –
general regulations); 13.9.1 (letter-of-intent prohibition); and 13.9.1.1 (exception – nonbinding athletics celebratory form)].
The NCAA provides a wide array of professional development opportunities for the membership. Check out the recent program highlights and upcoming opportunities for involvement and engagement below. To learn more about NCAA leadership development and browse its full program offerings, click here. Engage with the NCAA leadership development department using #LearnLead on social media.
Leadership Academy Workshop
: The NCAA Leadership Academy Workshop educates and trains athletics administrators on the ins and outs of developing effective, comprehensive leadership curriculum for student-athletes and department staff. Participants in the workshop learn how to structure activities, facilitate discussions and structure effective sessions. The workshop takes place in two parts, where participants discuss structures and frame works for a leadership academy on campus, as well as explore effective implementation, evaluation, and stakeholder investment strategies. The application for the 2019 Leadership Academy Workshop will open this summer. Keep an eye out for the NCAA leadership
development newsletter for application information and program testimonials.
June Program Preview.
In the coming month, two programs will serve Division III athletes and administrators. Please see the descriptions below for a brief overview of how these participants will engage with NCAA leadership development this month.
Career in Sports Forum
: One of leadership development's marquee student-athlete centered events, the Career in Sports Forum, will be June 6-9 at the NCAA national office. The program brings together over 200 student-athletes to learn about the sports industry and explore potential career paths and opportunities. By exposing attendees to a wide assortment of speakers and professionals within athletics, these individuals will walk away from the program with a refined understanding of best practices for breaking into the sports industry, a self-awareness of their workplace behavioral style and strategies to thrive using this profile, and a renewed outlook on desired positions and organizations.
Additionally, the forum will provide extensive opportunities for student-athletes to build connections both within and outside intercollegiate athletics through networking sessions, panel and speaker engagement, and interactions among the participants.
Effective Facilitation Workshop:
Nearly 50 athletic administrators from across all three divisions will convene June 3-6 in Orlando, Florida, for the Effective Facilitation Workshop. The interactive curriculum aims to allow participants to develop the confidence and competence to lead large- and small-group discussions and implement activities for today’s college athletes. The two-day program centers around learning the skills of active and engaging facilitation, to allow attendees to bring these increased facilitation skills back to campus or the conference office to create meaningful group discussions with student-athletes and run effective meetings for department staff. Alumni of the program will be
eligible to apply to facilitate at the annual Student-Athlete Leadership Forum, as well as serve as an NCAA resource on an active list of certified DiSC assessment facilitators.
Woman of the Year Nominations
It’s time to nominate outstanding college athletes for NCAA Woman of the Year. This is your opportunity to recognize up to two graduating women for their academic achievements, athletics excellence, community service and leadership. NCAA member schools nominated 581 student-athletes for the 2018 Woman of the Year award – the most in the history of the program. Honor women on your campus and help shatter that record with at least one nomination from every school for this prestigious award. Eligible female student-athletes are nominated by their member school. Each conference office then reviews the nominations from its core member schools (and sponsored sports) and
submits its conference nominee(s) to the NCAA. Nominations are due by 5 p.m. Eastern time Tuesday, June 11. Click here for more details.
The men’s lacrosse rules committee is interested in ideas and concerns relative to playing rules. Since this is a not a rule change year, proposals will be voted on at the 2020 annual meeting. Please use this link to record your proposal and rationale. This form must be completed for the proposal to be accepted. All proposals must be received by 5 p.m. Wednesday, July 10.
Men’s Basketball Rules Survey
The 2018-19 men’s basketball rules survey results are available here.
Women’s Basketball Rules Survey
The 2018-19 women’s basketball rules survey results are available here.
This email was sent to NCAA Division III presidents and chancellors serving on Division III committees, athletics direct reports, director of athletics, faculty athletics representatives, senior woman administrators, sports information directors, senior compliance directors, commissioners, assistant/associate commissioners, provisional, reclassifying and exploratory members, based on contact information in the NCAA Directory.
National Collegiate Athletic Association 700 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, IN, 46204 US
