The Division III Management Council ratified the action taken by the Administrative Committee to increase the championship per diem to $125 (with a $55 host per diem), effective immediately.
This increase, which was originally planned to occur for the 2024-25 academic year, was implemented a year early to help schools offset more of the expenses associated with having individuals and teams participate in an NCAA championship.Â
"The increase in per diem will support a better overall experience for institutions and student-athletes at NCAA championships," said Holly Sheilley, chair of the Management Council and vice president of athletics at Transylvania. "Making a championship event is a marquee accomplishment for our student-athletes, and this increase in funding is a positive step for Division III."Â
Several other topics were discussed during the meeting Monday and Tuesday at the national office in Indianapolis:
Hardship waiver and student-athlete mental health
The council also approved a two-year blanket waiver (2023-24 and 2024-25) that will create greater flexibility with the documentation for a student-athlete to receive a hardship waiver based on a mental health condition.
The waiver will require medical documentation from a licensed practitioner qualified to provide mental health services and must demonstrate that the student-athlete's mental health issue or condition occurred during the season in question, occurred before completion of the first half of the traditional playing season and prevented the student-athlete from competing in more than one-third of the traditional playing season in that sport for the season being waived.
Convention preview
The council developed its official position on a membership-sponsored proposal for the 2024 NCAA Convention. Specifically, the council supported the proposal that would allow sponsors of proposals to offer amendments.Â
The following are the governance proposals that will be considered at the Convention:
- Establishing stunt as a sport in the Emerging Sports for Women program.
- Amending the Division III Philosophy Statement.
- Altering the sponsorship requirements for tennis from six to four participants to align sports sponsorship requirements with NCAA playing rules.
Cannabis testing at championships
During its September meeting, the Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports Committee signaled its support for removing cannabis from the Association's banned drug list and testing protocols.
The NCAA Board of Governors agreed with CSMAS that divisional governance bodies should take the necessary legislative action to eliminate the cannabinoid class from the NCAA banned drug list before addressing the NCAA championships drug-testing policy.
The Management Council discussed the anticipated action and will review and potentially act during its meeting in January.
Division III financial analysis
The Management Council supports a recommendation to the Presidents Council, from the Financial and Risk Management Working Group, to hire an outside vendor to conduct a financial analysis of the division. The scope would include strengthening overall financial performance, improving revenue growth, identifying financial priorities and threats, providing recommendations and more.
In January, the Presidents Council approved the creation of the working group because of the financial threats currently facing higher education and college athletics.
Championship budget enhancements survey
The council supported the Championships Committee's desire to survey the membership in November regarding enhancing championship budgets in the next budget cycle (2024-26). Committee members think the feedback is not only critical to the current budget planning discussion but will also lay the foundation for future enhancements.
