DII Presidents Council advances proposals to 2022 Convention

The Division II Presidents Council on Wednesday advanced several legislative proposals to the 2022 NCAA Convention, while also discussing more immediate issues the NCAA is facing.

The proposals were recommended by the Division II Management Council, and they included changes to the division's football preseason and out-of-season models, the four-year college transfer legislation, and the Division II legislative process and authority, among others.

All proposals advanced by the Presidents Council to the 2022 Convention in Indianapolis will be voted on via the division's one-school, one-vote legislative process. 

Constitutional review

As part of Wednesday's virtual meeting, the Division II Presidents Council met with NCAA President Mark Emmert, who addressed the Board of Governors' recent announcement to convene a special constitutional convention in November. Council members also discussed the upcoming review in smaller roundtable groups.

A special constitutional convention is intended to propose dramatic changes to the NCAA constitution to reimagine aspects of college sports so the Association can more effectively meet the needs of current and future college athletes.

The redrafting of the NCAA constitution will be led by a 22-person Constitution Committee, which will feature presidents, commissioners, athletics directors, student-athletes from Divisions I, II and III, and independent members of the NCAA Board of Governors. The committee, which will have three Division II representatives and a student-athlete, will begin its work this month.

"It's time to rethink the NCAA structure and scope," said Allison Garrett, president at Emporia State and chair of the Division II Presidents Council. "We understand the need to evolve. Division II looks forward to assisting the process through our representatives on the Constitution Committee, who will embody Division II's values."

Gender equity report

The Presidents Council met with representatives of Kaplan, Hecker & Fink LLP, which conducted the independent gender equity review on NCAA championships. The firm released its first phase of findings on Tuesday, which addressed men's and women's basketball. Part of the report included recommendations to improve equity at the Division II level.

The Presidents Council referred the report to the Division II Championships Committee for review.

Football preseason, out-of-season models

The football proposal advanced by the Presidents Council to the 2022 Convention would make several changes to the preseason practice period to enhance student-athlete safety. If adopted in January, the changes would be effective immediately.

The proposal was developed by the Division II Football Committee and the division's participants on the Football Concussion Data Task Force. Both groups also recommended the prohibition of certain football activities and drills that may increase the probability of head impact exposure and do not simulate gamelike scenarios, which the Presidents Council in June voted to immediately approve. Feedback from key stakeholders such as student-athletes, coaches and medical professionals also helped shape these recommendations. 

This latest proposal includes:

• Extending the five-day acclimatization period to seven days, with one required day off.
• Reducing the maximum number of full-contact practices during the preseason from 17 to nine and establishing limits on the amount of contact during the preseason while retaining flexibility for programs regarding how to structure that period.
• Eliminating the restriction on the number of football student-athletes per group that may engage in skill instruction. This would align football with all other Division II sports.

Four-year college transfers

The Presidents Council sponsored a proposal to amend legislation in several areas related to four-year college transfers. The proposal, if adopted by the Division II membership, has an immediate effective date for student-athletes transferring for the 2022-23 academic year. It includes the following changes:

• Requiring undergraduate student-athletes to complete an educational module related to transferring before the school may enter the student-athlete's information into the NCAA Transfer Portal.
• Eliminating the previous school's ability to object to the use of the one-time transfer exception.
• Requiring the head coach of the certifying school and the student-athlete to certify in writing that no athletics staff member or other representative of the school's athletics interest contacted the student-athlete or any individual associated with the student (e.g., family member, scholastic or nonscholastic coach, advisor), directly or indirectly, without first obtaining authorization through the notification of transfer process.
• Establishing June 15 as the date by which a student-athlete must provide written notification of transfer to the school to utilize the one-time transfer exception (not applicable to midyear transfers). 
• Permitting schools to reduce or cancel an athletics aid agreement previously signed for the next academic year if a student-athlete requests to be entered into the Transfer Portal. It would remain impermissible to reduce or cancel a student-athlete's athletics aid during the academic year in which the student-athlete provides notification.

Legislative process and authority

The Presidents Council advanced a proposal that would expand its legislative options, as well as the membership's options, if adopted in January. The goal of this proposal, which has an immediate effective date, is to broaden the division's ability to respond in the future to challenges like those seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The proposal focuses on three areas: emergency legislation, resolutions and special conventions. It would broaden the Presidents Council's ability to use emergency legislation to include instances such as immediate health and safety concerns. It would also give the Presidents Council the ability to enact a resolution at any time. Currently, resolutions can be sponsored for a full membership vote only at an annual or special convention. Additionally, it would reduce the sponsorship deadlines for special conventions from 90 days to 30 days. 

Garrett emphasized that the changes are not meant to diminish the membership's role in adopting legislation and will be used only when normal legislative processes are unavailable or do not make logistical sense.

Elections

The Presidents Council approved the appointment of Carrie Michaels, senior associate director of athletics and senior woman administrator at Shippensburg, as the new vice chair of the Management Council, effective Sept. 1. Michaels' term will end Aug. 31, 2022.

Division II Day

Feb. 22, 2022, will mark the inaugural Division II Day, which will celebrate the division's unique characteristics, Life in the Balance philosophy and Make It Yours brand. The Presidents Council supported this initiative, which was recommended by the Division II Management Council's Identity Subcommittee. The goal of the day will be to promote the division through several platforms, including social media, by collaborating with Division II schools, conferences and national committees.

Other actions

The Presidents Council also:

• Sponsored a proposal to permit schools to reimburse a prospective student-athlete (or their relatives or legal guardians) with any costs associated with a canceled official or unofficial visit. Additionally, the proposal specifies that such reimbursement would not trigger the use of a prospective student-athlete's one permissible official visit. 
• Sponsored a proposal to add STUNT as an emerging sport for women. 
• Sponsored a proposal to eliminate the overall equivalency limit in men's sports. Women's sports do not have a limit.
• Approved a recommendation allowing conference tournament games in men's and women's basketball to count toward the minimum number of contests to be eligible for championship selection, beginning with the 2021-22 season.