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Council votes to change override process

The Division I Legislative Council at its Wednesday meeting adopted a proposal that eliminates the need for Division I delegates to attend the NCAA Convention to vote on an override.

Proposal No. 2010-12, sponsored by the Administration Cabinet, was the result of the Board of Directors asking the substructure to examine ways for the division to operate in a more cost-effective manner. If the proposal is adopted, the cabinet will meet next month to discuss an alternate voting procedure, which could include online voting during a specific time.

No vote at the Council meeting is considered final until the close of the Board meeting on Saturday.

The proposal received support because of the expense it would save institutions in a time when colleges and universities are slicing budgets for both athletics and academics. Council members also cited advancements in technology as a reason to eliminate a practice that requires costly travel.

The Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee opposed the proposal, since it considers the override vote as a prime opportunity to voice opinions on the Convention floor before a national audience. The student-athletes also value the override voting process as a professional-development opportunity.

SAAC vice chair Scott Krapf, a track and field student-athlete at Illinois State, said that if the vote is eventually upheld by the Board, the SAAC will work with the governance structure to find other ways to include the student-athlete voice in deliberations.

In other business, the Council will seek further membership input on a series of proposals that would limit the number of noncoaching personnel in basketball and football. The proposals come from the Board’s concern about the number of noncoaching personnel on staff in high-profile sports.

The Council sent for comment those proposals that were most specific about what positions would be counted under the new restrictions (director of operations, director of player development) and what would be exempt (sports information, equipment manager).

Other proposals of note that were adopted on Wednesday:

• No. 2010-117, which eliminates the corresponding membership category and modifies the requirements for affiliated membership in Division I.
• No. 2010-9, which requires institutions to include language in all licensing, marketing, sponsorship, advertising, broadcast and other commercial contracts mentioning the commercial entity’s obligation to comply with NCAA legislation.

All proposals could be reconsidered at any time before the close of the Council’s meeting, which continues today. No adoptions or defeats are considered final until the end of the Board meeting on Saturday.

Proposals sent for comment will receive another vote at the Council meeting in April.