NCAA passes legislation against prep schools
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has quietly passed legislation to continue its fight against prep schools that require minimal academic study. In perhaps its most significant move to deter diploma mills, the NCAA will limit high school students to one core course that would count toward college eligibility after a student’s four-year high school graduation date. The decision will shut down a glaring NCAA loophole, one exploited by diploma mills: students avoided graduating high school to pad their grade point average in a fifth year. The NCAA also hopes the new policy will help eliminate schools that exist solely to qualify players for college scholarships. “If you’ve been a prep school focused on simply getting kids eligible that are not high school graduates, this is going to be problematic for you,” says NCAA vice president Kevin Lennon.
Some college and prep school coaches, however, say the decision is an overreaction, especially in light of the fact that the number of core courses required by the NCAA will increase to 16 from 14 in 2008. They say the legislation is detrimental to legitimate prep schools and will limit opportunities for student-athletes from poor backgrounds. The policy follows new rules that will allow the NCAA to review individual transcripts with academic anomalies and visit questionable schools to determine their legitimacy. Coaches at accredited prep schools with strong academic traditions are concerned. Raphael Chillious, the basketball coach at the South Kent School in Connecticut, predicts that there will be a flood of lawsuits on behalf of students he contends will be “caught in the blender.” Mr. Chillious points out that it is common for New England prep schools to “reclassify” students, meaning that they repeat a year of high school to better prepare themselves for college. By doing so, those students do not graduate until a fifth year. Mr. Lennon responds that there is a waiver process to handle situations in which students are trying to improve themselves at legitimate schools; the rule is designed to limit schools and athletes from abusing the system. Learning disabled students are not affected. “We’re not shutting out opportunity, we’re encouraging better behavior,” he says.
New York Times
By Pete Thamel
[Full story]
[Editor’s Note: The NCAA’s press release below details the changes and includes a link to a recording of a teleconference in which this and other recent NCAA governance actions are discussed. Background on the issue is at the second link.]
[NCAA press release]
[NSBA School Law pages on NCAA against diploma mills]