NCAA DIII Presidents Council uses emergency legislative action to amend transfer rules
The NCAA Division III Presidents Council took emergency legislative action recently to immediately change the requirement that transferring student-athletes would have to serve an academic year of residence before being eligible to compete.
Division III has been closely reviewing its transfer rules since January by engaging with the division's governance committees, faculty athletics representatives, commissioners and membership. Many of these groups supported eliminating the year in residence.
The proposal clarifies that a student-athlete who transfers while academically ineligible would not be immediately eligible for competition but could regain eligibility after the first term at the new Division III school based on the school's academic standards for all student-athletes.
The council acknowledged the significance of this change and noted that this action would typically be considered by the membership through a vote at the annual NCAA Convention. However, the council ultimately decided that immediate action via emergency legislation is warranted due to the recent and potential future legal challenges faced by the NCAA.
The council noted that emergency legislation may be considered when the Presidents Council deems it appropriate to limit or avoid NCAA liability as a result of litigation, alternate dispute resolution or governmental proceedings. Finally, the council noted that the membership will have an opportunity to discuss the change at the 2025 Convention when it will be asked to ratify the action.
Fiscal years 2025 and 2026
The council approved the Strategic Planning and Finance Committee's recommendation that Management Council also approved for Division III's two-year budget for fiscal years 2025 and 2026.
The budget includes increases of:
• $438,500 for enrichment fund initiatives, such as conference grant funding, officiating support, athletic trainer and sports information professional development, and an update to the OneTeam Program.
• $3.5 million for championships, which includes expenses related to bracket expansion, an increase in per diem and officiating fees, and a joint championship for men's basketball.
• $3.5 million in supplemental expenses, which involve providing championship hosts with a stipend to offset livestreaming costs, creating a national platform to house livestreams of preliminary rounds of team championships, a health and safety grant for schools, and funding to provide flexibility in establishing brackets to protect highly ranked teams.
"Today the council approved the division's two-year budget that provides championship enhancements, additional professional development for athletics trainers, mental health support and branding enhancements," said Jim Troha, chair of the Presidents Council and president at Juniata. "We believe these enhancements will assist institutions and conferences as they continue to address budget constraints."
Sports betting
The council discussed possible deregulation to permit betting on professional sports and its impact on Division III student-athletes and athletics departments. It will continue to engage the membership and reexamine the issue during its October meeting.
Council leadership
The council extended Troha's term for another year and selected Marc Camille, president at Albertus Magnus, as vice chair. These appointments become effective with the close of the 2025 NCAA Convention in January.
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