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Division II adopts skill-instruction proposal

Tue 15th, January 2008

. Division II’s book on individual skill instruction in sports other than football may not be closed, but it’s at least in the last chapter after delegates passed legislation to alleviate pressure on student-athlete time demands.

By a 237-29-1 margin, Division II approved Proposal No. 8 at the January 14 business session in Nashville, which permits more than one group of student-athletes from the same team to participate in skill instruction in different facilities at the same time. The number of student-athletes permitted to participate varies according to the starting squad size – a maximum of four for teams with six or fewer, and no more than six for larger starting squad sizes. The intent of Proposal No. 8 was twofold: to alleviate pressure on institutions with limited facilities to accommodate multiple sessions, and to get student-athletes away from sessions at odd hours. The concern with any attempt to remodel the skill-instruction house has always been at what point the sessions become full-blown practices. That caveat emerged again on the Convention floor, when Johnson C. Smith Faculty Athletics Representative Gene Hermitte acknowledged the need for change but noted a larger faculty concern that the increased number of student-athletes participating at one time moves away from the original intent of skill instruction. Allowing for a group of six, for example, facilitates an entire baseball or softball infield to conduct a practice. “That is no longer individual skill instruction,� he said. But Metropolitan State President and incoming Presidents Council Chair Steve Jordan supported the measure, citing Proposal 8 as a reasonable compromise among Division II constituents. He said the Presidents Council sees the measure as the best solution to problems related to challenges associated with the current rule. “It does that while maintaining the philosophical intent of ‘individual’ skill instruction,� he said. “This proposal may not be what all the various groups hoped for, but it is a good first step in addressing the time demands and well-being issues our student-athletes face with the current rule.� Mars Hill College Athletics Director Dave Riggins piled on, noting that student-athletes and administrators have made it clear that the current rule is not working. He said student-athletes are bothered by having to participate in individual skill instruction at all hours of the day and night because the current rule limits the group to only four student-athletes from the same team to participate in this type of activity with a coach at one time. “Are we helping to promote a balance between academics and athletics when we schedule required individual skill instruction in this manner? I think not,� Riggins said. Delegates ended up approving Proposal No. 8 by a 237-29-1 margin. They also approved a related measure in Proposal No. 18, which prohibits all countable athletically related activities outside the playing season one week before the start of finals through the end of the institution’s exam period. The Management Council also took some related actions on skill instruction at its January 11 meeting. The Council approved two official interpretations, one confirming that when more than one group of student-athletes and their coaches participate in individual skill instruction at the same time and in the same or different facilities, it is not permissible to switch or move student-athletes or coaches between the groups. The other confirms that the libero position in volleyball does not count toward the starting squad size in determining the number of student-athletes allowed to participate in a skill-instruction group.

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