October DIII Monthly Update

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👋 Welcome to the October 2025 Division III newsletter. We've revamped the DIII monthly update into a more concise format that's both informative and engaging. Here's what you can expect:

🚨 This Month’s Musts: Key deadlines and dates ahead.

🏆 On the Horizon: Hot topics, new resources and updates.

➡️ Convention Corner: Essential Convention information.

📰 Member Manual: Rule highlights and membership essentials.

⚽ Official Business: Updates on officiating and rules.

💙 Building Belonging: Diversity and Special Olympics notes.

⏰ Know Before You Go: Upcoming webinars and important dates.

Let's dive into the newsletter!

🚨 This Month’s Musts

Check out this Division III and NCAA programming to share with your administration and student-athletes:

2025 Impact Forum

What: This professional development experience offers educational and engaging sessions for administrators and coaches, centered around creating cultures of belonging and well-being.
When: Join us from Nov. 10-12 in Indianapolis as we embrace humanity and build community.

Applications Open ➡️ Leadership Development Programs

Secure your spot in these transformative Leadership Development programs!

NCAA/NFL Coaches Academy
Emerging Leaders Seminar
Foundations of Fundraising
Career in Sports Forum (Facilitators)

➡️ Next steps: Apply by 5 p.m. Eastern time Oct. 10.

NCAA and D3SIDA Recognition Award

The NCAA Division III and D3SIDA Recognition Award 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.

Each top honoree will receive a $1,500 credit to attend Division III Day at the annual College Sports Communicators convention.
Next steps: Entries should be submitted to d3identity@ncaa.org by Oct. 15.

🏆 On the Horizon

📊 Facts and Figures

Division III recently released its 2025-26 Facts & Figures, which includes the annual Division III fact sheets, including the 2025-26 budget.

🧾 Annual Report

Division III recently released its 2024-25 Annual Report. The report highlights the major events, award recipients, team champions, committee highlights and other notable achievements from the past academic year.

📈 2025-26 NCAA Membership Breakdown

By the numbers: NCAA research has released the 2025-26 NCAA Membership Breakdown. For 2025-26, the NCAA has 1,233 members (conferences and schools), while Division III has 422 active member schools, plus four in the provisional process, and 42 multisport conferences.

New Module ➡️ De-escalation Techniques: Promoting Peaceful Resolution

What: Coaches, administrators and game day staff can learn practical techniques to manage conflict and promote respect at athletics events with the new e-learning course De-escalation Techniques: Promoting Peaceful Resolution on the NCAA Learning Portal.
How to Access: available on the NCAA Learning Portal in the Membership Essentials channel.

Harm-Reduction Considerations for Gambling and Sports Betting in Collegiate Sports

The NCAA Sport Science Institute recently published a new resource that discusses harm-reduction strategies in the context of gambling and sports betting in collegiate sports and provides relevant resources.

➡️ Convention Corner

2026 NCAA Convention

The annual NCAA Convention will be Jan. 13-16 at the National Harbor Gaylord in the Washington, D.C., area.
Register by Oct. 10, to get the lowest registration rate ($325).

Voting requirement: Each active member school must be represented by a delegate who votes at the business session. If you have questions regarding the Convention attendance requirement, contact Eric Hartung.

Convention Homepage

🗓 Legislation Timeline

Oct. 1: The 2026 Convention Division III Publication of Proposed Legislation will be available on the NCAA website, featuring membership- and governance-sponsored proposals.
Nov. 1: Deadline for amendments to amendments and all resolutions. All amendments to amendments (which do not increase the modification of the original amendment/proposal) and all resolutions must be received in the national office not later than 5 p.m. Eastern time Nov. 1.
Nov. 15: The Official Notice will be available. Official Notice includes all membership-sponsored legislation, all Presidents Council-sponsored legislation, all properly submitted amendments to amendments and resolutions, and all position statements.

📰 Member Manual

✏️ Rule of the Month — Waivers!

Waivers provide relief when your institution or conference can demonstrate that mitigating circumstances exist to warrant flexibility on legislation.
NCAA staff are frequently asked about the types of waivers that are available for the Division III membership, including some common issues and types detailed below.

Waiver Resources:

Case Precedent: Case precedent (from the past three years) for cases submitted through RSRO can be found by using the Search tab.
Several resources are available on the Division III Subcommittee for Legislative Relief webpage.
The Division III Previously Approved List for Student-Athlete Reinstatement outlines previously approved scenarios that institutions can self-apply on campus without filing a formal request through RSRO.

☑️ Attestation period

The NCAA’s Campus Sexual Violence Policy requires all member schools to meet the policy’s six provisions each academic year (Aug. 1-July 31).

Your administration must attest by Nov. 7 to their compliance with the policy for the previous academic year. Learn more.

📋 2026 NCAA Regional Rules Seminar

The 2026 NCAA Regional Rules Seminar will be held May 13–15 in Atlanta.

Note: At least once every three years, an active member school must be represented by at least one institutional staff member at the NCAA Regional Rules Seminar. (View 2026 DIII required schools)
If you have attendance requirement questions, contact Brittany Higgins.

‼️ Protect DIII Programs — Tell Your Representative You Support the SCORE Act

Now is the time to make sure your U.S. House representatives hear from you about why you support the SCORE Act.

Why: This bipartisan bill tackles issues most critical to sustaining the DIII model, including protecting our schools, programs and opportunities by ensuring student-athletes are not employees of their schools.

How: To build momentum for a floor vote, email your representatives and urge passage of the SCORE Act:

Find your representatives in our directory.

Email their office using this template, letting them know you support the SCORE Act and urging them to cosponsor and vote yes on the bill.

CC governmentrelations@ncaa.org on the email.

⚽ Official Business

NCAA Officiating Updates

The NCAA Officiating Reform Initiative requirement must be met for conferences and member schools to receive the benefits of the license to use the RQ+ platform.

Learn more about the reform initiative via these summary and FAQ documents.

Celebrate officials: In conjunction with the National Federation of State High School Associations, the NCAA will celebrate officials during the following weeks this academic year:

Fall — Oct. 5-11.
Winter — Jan. 11-17.
Spring — April 5-11.
Please share any officiating celebrations or intriguing officiating stories for the NCAA to highlight for these appreciation weeks with Ben Brownlee.

Playing rule updates

🥎 Softball: The 2026 and 2027 playing rules changes are available here.

⚽ Soccer: All NCAA Men’s and Women’s Soccer Rules Subcommittees are accepting rules change proposals until Oct. 8.

Submit your proposal, which must be completed for consideration.
A call for proposals memo was sent Sept. 4. For questions, contact Stanley Broaden.

🤼 Men's Wrestling: Playing rules information for the upcoming season, including the rules changes, case book and preseason memo, is available here.

💙 Building Belonging

🫂 Community and Belonging Social Media Campaign

What: This two-day campaign strives to connect student-athletes in the intercollegiate athletics community to showcase their voices on belonging, connection and community.
When: Nov. 5 and 6. Keep an eye out for more information and a new webpage coming soon.

🤍 Special Olympics:

Please email stories about the Special Olympics activities taking place on your campus or with your conference to d3specialolympics@ncaa.org and fill out the reporting form.

📲 Share Your Stories

Division III is looking to feature membership stories on social media and through NCAA.com. To share stories for consideration, please email Bryn Mangold.

⏰ Know Before You Go

💻 Webinars will be from 1:30 to 2 p.m. Eastern time on the following dates and topics:

Oct. 7 — Review of Division III Noncontroversial Legislation Recent Approvals.
Nov. 4 — Recap of Management and Presidents Council meetings.
Dec. 2 — Review of 2026 NCAA Convention Legislation.

➡️ All past webinar PowerPoints are on the Division III webinar webpage.

📓 FARA Annual Meeting

Registration is open for the 2025 Faculty Athletics Representatives Association annual meeting will be Nov. 20-22 in Indianapolis.

📆 Key Dates — October through December

Thanks for reading!

This update is a tool to enhance communication between the NCAA national office and the Division III membership.

We encourage athletics directors to share this communication with their athletics department members.

Please email DIIIGovernance@ncaa.org to include an item or share comments.

This email was sent to members of the NCAA Division III Presidents Council, Presidents Advisory Group, national Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Division III athletics direct reports, directors of athletics, faculty athletics representatives, senior woman administrators, sports information directors, directors of compliance, commissioners, assistant/associate commissioners, provisional, reclassifying and exploratory members based on contact information in the NCAA directory. This email was sent by: NCAA
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