The NCAA Division III staff has created this bi-weekly communication for the Division III membership to provide up-to-date communications on recent Division III governance meeting discussions and outcomes. Please share this communication with your campus and conference colleagues.
Recent Governance Meetings - Key Discussions and Outcomes.
Nominating Committee, March 12 Committee selections. The committee reviewed and selected individuals for the September 2025 and immediate committee vacancies. It also began the process to populate the new NCAA committee with oversight of diversity, equity and inclusion.
Championships Committee, March 18 Coaches Connect Program. The committee acted to recommend the Coaches Connect Program proposal to Management Council for approval during its April meeting. The goal of the Coaches Connect program is to foster better communication with head coaches to enable more informed and collaborative decision making. If supported, the Coaches Connect Program would begin in the 2025-26 academic year with approximately one sport per season.
Championships per diem. Due to rising costs and inflation, the committee asked staff to explore the financial impact of possibly increasing championships per diem for FY26 and FY27. Last year, the councils approved championships per diem to be $140 in FY26, $145 in FY27 and $150 in FY28. The committee will discuss at a future meeting and if appropriate, will recommend an out of budget cycle increase to Strategic Planning and Finance to consider during its June meeting.
Bench size. The committee revisited the issue of bench size, noting that in September 2022 it made adjustments based on sport committee recommendations. At that time, the committee determined that it would review bench size limits every other budget cycle and committed to its next review for 2026-27, with any changes being implemented in the fall of 2026. However, with several recent sport committee requests, the committee agreed to discuss bench sizes in detail during its June meeting.
Fall sport committee reports. The committee reviewed fall sport committee reports specifically noting feedback from the NPI and the bracketing pilot used for the first time in Fall 2024 championships.
Convention Planning Subcommittee,March 19 2025 Convention. The subcommittee reviewed the 2025 convention attendee survey feedback.
2026 Convention. The subcommittee began to discuss Division III programming (e.g., education sessions and the Issues Forum) for the 2026 convention.
Membership education session proposal. The subcommittee finalized a pilot program to solicit proposals from the Division III membership to conduct one of the Division III education sessions during the 2026 Convention.
Interpretations and Legislation Committee,March 20 Bylaw 16 review. The committee recommended several legislative proposals to modernize Bylaw 16 and reduce burdens on campus. The committee is recommending Management Council consider six changes via non-controversial legislation as follows:
Align current bylaws and clarify that a student-athlete may receive expenses to attend and receive an award from a local civic organization.
Consolidate the areas of permissible programming expenses.
Allow for meals for all student-athletes during a vacation period or missed practice (as opposed to just those on a meal plan).
Occasional meals would only be subject to institutional policy.
Issuance of non-athletics apparel would only be subject to institutional policy.
Retention of athletics apparel and equipment would only be subject to institutional policy.
The committee also recommended one proposal for consideration at the 2026 convention.
Practice expenses would be permitted at any location provided the student is eligible and no class is missed.
Management Council will review the recommendations during its April meeting.
Relationships with professional and non-profit sports organizations. The committee recommended non-controversial legislation to allow institutions to receive sponsorships from professional sports organizations without the currently defined limits. Management Council will consider this recommendation during its April meeting.
Membership Committee,March 20 Convention proposal referral. The committee acted to forward a recommendation to the Management Council that seeks to establish a pilot program that provides eligibility opportunities for student-athletes enrolled at a non-member institution with a formal academic agreement with a Division III certifying institution. The pilot program, beginning with the 2025-26 academic year, would be for individual student-athletes.
Waiver criteria may include the following:
Only be available to student-athletes that previously enrolled and participated at the certifying Division III institution in the previous year (e.g., waivers for the 2025-26 academic year are only available to student-athletes who previously participated and enrolled at the Division III certifying institution). This waiver is for completing eligibility at a specific institution, not for creating additional recruitment expectations.
Student-athlete does not have to be a graduate thereby allowing for greater flexibility for 3-2; 4-1 programs that do not satisfy the current legislative exceptions.
The certifying Division III institution must provide objective documentation confirming specific criteria.
The Management and Presidents Councils will review the recommendation, with an immediate effective date, during their April meetings.
Upcoming Meetings and Anticipated Discussions.
Strategic Planning and Finance Committee, March 25 Strategic priorities. The committee will review the division’s future forecast and begin to discuss priorities that might be included in the next budget cycle (2026-28).
Insurance. The committee will act to advance a recommendation to the councils regarding the division’s cancellation insurance policy for FY26.
Football championships live streaming. The committee will act on a recommendation from the Championships Committee to increase the live streaming host stipend for football championship rounds from $1,000 to $2,000 beginning with the 2025 NCAA championships. The increase is due to the requirement to have two cameras versus the current requirement of one camera.
Deloitte recommendations. The committee will review the Deloitte opportunities from last year’s review and discuss potential next steps for implementation.
Strategic Athletics Communication Working Group, March 28 CSC Survey Data. The working group will review results from a recent survey administered by College Sports Communicators to help assist with necessary changes to update the Strategic Guide to Athletics Communication document.
Resources.
NCAA Player to Ref (P2R) Program. As part of the NCAA national office effort to assist the conference membership with growing concerns regarding the officiating crisis facing amateur athletics in the United States, the NCAA has created an intake form to assist with the Player to Ref Program. More information is available at: Player to Ref Program. We encourage you to share the link with student-athletes that have expressed an interest in officiating.
For student-athletes that have never received any formal officiating training, we are utilizing the NCAA’s alliance with RefReps to provide access to training courses at no charge to the students. For student-athletes that have had officiating training, the NCAA national office will work with them directly to assist getting them started on their officiating experience.
With every communication, we also anticipate additional questions. Please send all questions to DIIIGovernance@ncaa.org. Thank you for your continued collaboration and leadership.
This email was sent to NCAA Division III Presidents Council, Management Council, commissioners, directors of athletics and the NADIIIAA executive board based on contact information in the NCAA Directory.
