Letter to D1 Board of Directors
To: NCAA Division I Board of Directors
From: Intercollegiate Coach Association Coalition
Re: Relief Waiver Request
As representatives of the Intercollegiate Coach Association Coalition (ICAC) we write to express our continued opposition to the request to reduce the sports sponsorship requirement minimum for Division I membership. Relating to the Division I Council’s decision last week, we were pleased to hear council chair, M. Grace Calhoun, state that “…a blanket waiver of sport sponsorship requirements is not in keeping with our values and will not be considered.”
We agree with Dr. Calhoun’s statement and respectfully request that the Board of Directors also refuse to waive the sports sponsorship requirements.
In these trying times, we must commit to present and future students, many of whom are drawn to our institutions as student-athletes. They need us, and the far-reaching benefit of collegiate sports, now more than ever. We stand ready through our sports to work with the NCAA to pursue every avenue to find solutions to current financial challenges, and firmly believe that sports can recover from cuts, but not from extinction.
We have amassed a broad coalition of supporters to our cause, and our list continues to grow. As of this writing, in less than one week, we’ve had over 63,000 people sign a petition to #SaveOurSports. These sentiments have been echoed by a growing chorus of student athletes, and friends, who have shared the importance of the college sports experience. We hope you will hear their online messages and take their first-person testimony to heart.
Moving forward, we need creativity over cuts and shared sacrifice in response to the present crisis. And time and collaboration are essential in the development of resourceful strategies to ease budget shortfalls while continuing to support opportunities for student-athletes in NCAA DI schools. Our coaches are having these conversations every day and are fully aware of the devastation of this pandemic, and as their representatives, it is our desire to be partners in this very important effort to sustain and strengthen the Division I intercollegiate athletic model. (Please see attachment-Chuck Staben article)
Thank you for your consideration.
Kathy DeBoer, Executive Director, American Volleyball Coaches Association
Robert Kehoe, Director of Collegiate Programs, United Soccer Coaches
Mike Moyer, Executive Director, National Wrestling Coaches Association
Greg Earhart, Executive Director, College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America