Schools and Students facing Penalties due to Reform Package
Approved Two Years Ago
Students failing to meet NCAA standards for eligibility and
progress toward graduation could lose scholarships for one year
under the academic reform package approved by the NCAA two years
ago.
About 55 percent of the member colleges and universities have
completed the reporting. The remaining 45 percent is still
requesting adjustments or waivers.
The NCAA last month released its findings on graduation rates,
and it reported 76 percent of Division I athletes who entered
college in 1995-96 had graduated. The separate academic progress
report, expected by late February, will be based on the number
of athletes on each team who achieve eligibility and return to
campus full time each term.
Colleges will be given yearly assessments. They will have the
opportunity to explain unusual circumstances for a low progress
rate and to appeal any penalties. He said individual schools
that face penalties already have been notified, but they would
not be identified until the complete progress rate list is
finished.
The penalties will begin this year and will result in the loss
of a scholarship for teams that fail to meet the standard.
Harsher penalties, beginning in 2007-08, will be assessed for
repeated academic failure. Those may include scholarship
reductions, recruiting limitations and ineligibility for
preseason or postseason competition. The most extreme cases
could result in restricted NCAA membership.
The proposal, one of about 140 heard during the NCAA convention,
will be sent to member schools and conferences for comment
before it is considered again in April, when the council will
make its recommendation to the board of directors, said David
Berst, NCAA Division I vice president.
Under the plan, the two-in-four rule would be eliminated and
schools would be allowed to participate in an event each year,
but in the same event only once in four years. It also would
designate the second Friday in November as the common start date
for events and the regular season. The total number of
regular-season games would remain at 28, but participation in an
exempt tournament -- such as the Preseason NIT -- would count as
only one game.