NAAC Introduces Compliance Standards

The National Association for Athletics Compliance (NAAC) released “Reasonable Standards” for three areas of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) legislation. NAAC established a Reasonable Standards Committee, chaired by Kate Hickey, the senior associate athletics director and senior woman administrator at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. The goal of the committee was to provide a framework for compliance that has the flexibility to be applied across all levels of NCAA Division I membership.

The first three Reasonable Standards establish clear expectations for compliance in the areas of countable athletically related activities, complimentary admissions, and recruiting contacts and evaluations. Each Reasonable Standard delineates the relevant NCAA bylaws and describes the purpose of the standard. The standards provide guidance in three areas of compliance: monitoring, education and documentation.

The standards have been reduced to a simple format that should be easy for athletics departments to adopt. First, a compliance activity is described. Next, a person responsible for conducting the activity is identified. Then, the frequency of the activity is defined, and finally, a time frame within the academic calendar year is delineated. Accountability for maintaining records and reviewing records is provided.

Questions about the Reasonable Standards should be addressed to Tony Hernandez (thernandez@miami.edu) or Kate Hickey (khickey@scarletknights.com).

The Collegiate Sports Practice Group at Ice Miller commends the NAAC Reasonable Standards Committee for establishing this model for NCAA compliance. Compliance directors who follow the Reasonable Standards approach will assure that coaches and student-athletes are educated on the rules and that there are appropriate measures for tracking, recording and reviewing activity. The Reasonable Standards provide a minimum framework for providing institutional control and a paper trail proving it, should a violation occur.

Barbara Osborne is of counsel in Ice Miller's collegiate sports practice. She provides counsel and advice to colleges and universities on a variety of athletics compliance and governance matters including gender equity issues such as Title IX audits, Title VII and coaches compensation issues, contracts, student-athlete eligibility/reinstatement, and strategic planning.

This publication is intended for general information purposes only and does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice.  The reader must consult with legal counsel to determine how laws or decisions discussed herein apply to the reader's specific circumstances.