I am six weeks into this new job and all I can say is wow!!! There is so much work that needs to be done to create and develop an athletic department from scratch. One of the areas that we have to be mindful as we move down this path is the requirements set out by the NCAA to establish membership at the Division II level. The following text is taken from the NCAA website for membership.
Division II has fourteen (14) membership requirements which must be met:
NCAA DIVISION II GENERAL MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS
Sports-Sponsorship - A) Must sponsor at least five sports for men and five sports for women (20.10.3) or four sports for men and six sports for women. B) Must have at least two team sports in each gender (20.10.3), C) Must meet minimum contests/participant requirements for a sport to count (20.10.3.5).
Must meet three-season requirement in each gender (i.e. must have at least one men's team and one women's team competing in the fall, winter and spring (3.2.1.4).
Must have eligibility certification procedures approved by chief executive officer (3.2.4.3).
Must utilize the Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse for certifying freshman student athletes prior to receiving financial aid, practice and competition during the first year and thereafter of the provisional and reclassifying process (14.3.1).
Must publish progress towards degree requirements (3.2.4.10).
Must establish policy concerning missed class time (3.2.4.12).
Must meet composition requirements for an Athletic Board if one exists (6.1.2.1).
Must designate a Faculty Athletic Representative (6.1.3).
Must establish a Student-Athletic Advisory Committee (6.1.4).
Must have an annual athletics budget approved by the chief executive officer or designee (6.2.2).
Must have conducted by an outside agency, a financial audit of athletics revenues and expenditures at least once every three years (6.2.3.2).
Must conduct a institutional self-study of the intercollegiate athletics program at least once every five years (6.3.1).
A member of Division II shall annually provide financial assistance to equals one the of the following: A) A minimum of 50 percent of maximum allowable equivalencies in four separate sports, at least two of which must be women's sports, B) A minimum total expenditure of $250,000 in athletically related financial aid with at least $125,000 in women's sports or C) A minimum of 20 total full equivalency grants with at least 10 total full equivalency grants in women's sports (20.10.1.2).
Must certify insurance coverage for medical expenses resulting from athletically related injuries sustained by student-athletes (3.2.4.9)
So there you have it. This is a tall order that we will get through. In a best case situation (taking into account what is going on national as it relates to the current financial situation), we are looking at five to seven years at the most to fully satisfy the above requirements.
