Archives Archive September 2009

Catching a break

The NCAA Division I Legislative Council Subcommittee for Legislative Relief approved a blanket waiver of NCAA Bylaw 20.8.1 for the 2009-10 academic year to permit institutions eligible for national collegiate championships in sports that have two-thirds of the membership in one division to follow NCAA rules of the institution's division. Currently, all sports that have the national collegiate championships as the postseason opportunity include two-thirds Division I members. It has come to the attention of the NCAA staff that Divisions II and III members have not been complying with the requirement in Bylaw 20.8.1 for several years. Thus, the blanket waiver only impacts Divisions II and III institutions; however, since this is a common legislative provision that applies to all three divisions, a blanket waiver in each division is necessary. The subcommittee noted the blanket waiver is appropriate to provide some flexibility for the 2009-10 academic year while the membership discusses solutions for this issue (e.g., legislative proposal to amend the rule, communicate compliance is required). To view this blanket waiver in its entirety, please access SLR Case No. 12273 on LSDBi.

About that waiver for the junior national team

Remember those five-year clock waivers that could be granted under NCAA 14.2.1.4 for junior-level participation?

"The NCAA student-athlete reinstatement staff and committee will no longer be granting athletics activities waivers for junior-level participation....[A]lthough institutions may have been granted athletics activities waivers for student-athletes based on junior-level participation in previous years, future waivers submitted for consideration involving participation that occurs beginning in the 2009-10 academic year will be denied inasmuch as they do not meet the legislated participation requirements."

LSDBi has the details.

A couple of eligibility interps

Fourth Season of Eligibility for Nonqualifier in a Five-Year Program (I)

Date Published: September 17, 2009 
Type: Staff Interpretation 

The academic and membership affairs staff  determined that a fourth season of intercollegiate competition may be granted to a student-athlete who is a nonqualifier and whose designated degree program is identified in the institution's official catalog as a five-year program or otherwise requires the completion of a minimum of 150-semester or 225-quarter hours, provided that at the beginning of the fifth academic year following the student-athlete's initial, full-time collegiate enrollment, the student-athlete has successfully completed at least 67 percent of his or her designated degree program. [References:  NCAA Bylaws 14.3.3.1 (fourth season of competition -- not a qualifier) and 14.4.3.2.1 (five-year degree program)]


Administration of Hardship Waiver for Transfer Student-Athletes (I)

Date Published: September 17, 2009 
Type: Official Interpretation 

The committee determined that in applying the hardship waiver legislation to a student-athlete who suffers an injury or illness while attending an NCAA Division II or Division III institution and later transfers to a Division I institution, the legislation of the division in which the injury or illness occurred or the Division I legislation may be used.  The application of a particular division's legislation must include all the applicable elements of that division's legislation, as opposed to selected elements of the legislation of each division. [References:  NCAA Bylaws 14.2.4 (hardship waiver) and 14.2.4.3.6.3 (transfer student-athletes); and staff interpretation (9/17/09, item b), which has been archived]

Rest in Peace

Rest in Peace

Myles Brand passed away today.

Equestrians and amateurism

Equestrians and amateurism

We don't have the sport in the Pac-10, but for the sake of completeness, there's a new EdCol about equestrian and amateurism.

Flash News

Flash News

Planning on sending your media guide to prospects on a CD or flash drive? Better read this.

(Note: As long as the hamburger at left isn't edible, this drive is probably okay.)

Friday interps

One official, two from the staff:

Contract or Commitment to Participate on a Team and Perform other Duties (I)

Date Published: September 4, 2009 

Type: Official Interpretation 

The committee confirmed that if an individual signs a contract or commitment with an athletics organization (e.g., club) in which the individual agrees to participate on a team and perform other duties (e.g., coaching the same or another team in the club system) and the contract or commitment does not specify the amount of compensation to be received for each activity, all compensation provided as part of the contract or commitment must be included when determining whether the team on which the individual participated provided any of its players more than actual and necessary expenses. [References:  NCAA Division I Bylaws 12.02.4 (professional athletics team) and 12.2.5 (contracts and compensation)]


Criteria for a Repeated Course to be Acceptable for Initial-Eligibility Certification (I)

Date Published: September 4, 2009 

Type: Staff Interpretation 

The academic and membership affairs staff determined that to be acceptable for initial-eligibility certification, a repeated course (including credit recovery) must be substantially comparable, qualitatively and quantitatively (e.g., content, textbook, assessments, duration), to the previously attempted course. [Reference:  NCAA Division I Bylaw 14.3.1.2.8 (repeat courses)]


Criteria for Determining Seasons of Competition for Prospective Student-Athletes Presenting Secondary School Credentials from Countries with Multiple Tiers of Secondary School Education (I)

Date Published: September 4, 2009 

Type: Staff Interpretation 

The academic and membership affairs staff determined the following parameters apply for purposes of identifying the expected date of high school graduation pursuant to the seasons-of-competition legislation for prospective student-athletes from countries with multiple tiers of secondary school education, where successful completion of each of those tiers may equate to high school graduation. 

(1)  Prospective Student-Athlete Completes Secondary School in the Timeframe Prescribed by the Country's Ministry of Education.

A prospective student-athlete's expected date of graduation will advance to the date at which the prospective student-athlete's class completes each tier of the country's secondary school system, provided the prospective student-athlete completes the tier within the timeframe prescribed by the country's ministry of education.

(2)  Prospective Student-Athlete Delays Completion of Secondary School Tier.

A prospective student-athlete's expected date of graduation will advance to the date at which the prospective student-athlete's class completes a tier of the country's secondary school system, even if the prospective student-athlete delays his or her completion of the tier. 

(3)  Prospective Student-Athlete Attempts but Does Not Successfully Complete Secondary School Tier.

If a prospective student-athlete begins a tier of the country's secondary school system, but never successfully completes the tier, the prospective student-athlete's expected date of graduation will remain the date on which the prospective student-athlete's class completed the previous tier.

The countries for which this policy applies are all multitiered leaving exam countries.  This includes, but is not limited to, the United Kingdom; the University of Cambridge international exam program; New Zealand; Quebec, Canada; Scotland; the Caribbean exam countries and British patterned Africa.

[References: NCAA Division I Bylaws 14.2.3 (criteria for determining season of competition), 14.2.3.2 (tennis and swimming and diving), 14.2.3.2 (delayed enrollment -- tennis, swimming and diving, and women's volleyball), 14.3.1.2.1 (core-curriculum time limitation) and 14.3.5.5 (international academic standards)]