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.
<NCAA Convention, Jan. 12-16
Check out the Division III convention homepage for the final voting grid and roll call vote report. Click here for a recap of the Business Session and here to read about this year’s LGBTQ of the Year award winners.
Event planning. SAAC successfully oversaw several sessions including the annual Division III Special Olympics Unified Activity, a student social mixer and luncheon for over 240 student-athletes.
Management Council, Jan. 13 Membership dues assessment. The council approved a recommendation from the Strategic Planning and Finance to pause the Division III membership dues assessment for FY27.
Committee on Infractions. The council approved, in concept, non-controversial legislation to allow parties to an NCAA infractions case to confirm, correct, or deny information made public and allow the NCAA national office to share information if there is an immediate need to prevent harm or to address a potential ongoing violation.
Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement. The council received an update on the committee’s ongoing discussion of how to address reinstatement requests involving student-athletes who wager on intercollegiate athletics. The committee noted the importance of supporting student-athletes through harm reduction strategies and education. The committee and council will continue to review and discuss this topic.
Pre-enrollment competition. The council approved, in concept, noncontroversial legislation to eliminate the academic year in residence as a condition for a student-athlete who participates in organized competition after delaying their initial full-time collegiate enrollment.
Graduation rates. The council received a presentation of the most recent Division III graduation rates. Using the federal graduation rate, the council noted higher rates for student-athletes within each demographic subgroup other than Black men. This finding is consistent across six years of mandatory data collection for Division III. The council will continue to discuss these findings at future meetings.
Livestreaming of fall championships. The council reviewed the results from the livestreaming of the 2025 fall Division III championships. The council noted that this is the second year that every fall championship was streamed (211 events). There was an 8% increase in total minutes watched compared to Fall 2024.
2027 legislation. The council provided its final approval for two noncontroversial proposals. One reduces the number of Division II representatives on the Division II and III Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey Rules Committee. The other clarifies that appointed positions on Division III committees do not count toward area or multi-sort conference representation. This change amends the composition of the Division III Strategic Planning and Finance Committee to now require that there must be at least one representative from each Division III geographic area.
Presidents Council, Jan. 14 New council members. The council approved a recommendation from the Nominating Committee to add President Crosby, Saint Elizabeth University, as an immediate replacement, to the council. It also approved a recommendation from national SAAC to appoint two new student-athletes, Connor Dong, University of Chicago, University Athletic Association and Holly Hall, Alma College, Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association to the council effective with the close of the NCAA Convention.
Division III analysis. The council discussed the identified initial steps to launch an analysis of the division. There were several sessions held during the NCAA Convention to identify the objectives of the analysis (Presidents and Chancellors Forum); discuss what makes the Division III student-athlete experience unique (joint PC/MC/SAAC breakfast) and identification of potential tension points (Issues Forum). The Presidents Council will initiate next steps during a late Jan. meeting.
Division III membership dues assessment. The council approved the recommendation from the Strategic Planning and Finance Committee to pause the Division III specific membership dues assessment for 2026-27. Consequently, Division III institutions will pay $900 and conference offices will pay $450 in membership dues.
Commissioner’s Orientation, Feb. 2 New Commissioner engagement. Division III staff will host an in‑person orientation on Monday, February 2, welcoming the four commissioners who began their roles in 2025.
Onboarding focus. The day‑long orientation at the NCAA National Office will introduce commissioners to key staff, provide role-specific guidance, offer space for questions and dialogue, and support a smooth transition into their new positions.
With every communication, we also anticipate additional questions. Please send all questions to DIIIGovernance@ncaa.org.
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.
