Athletics, Council on - Minutes 2013-2014

Athletics, Council on - Minutes – 2013-2014

September 27, 2013

Members Present: Sam Pardue, Jim Mickle, Joel Pawlak, Paul Williams, John Griggs, Jason Bocarro, Karen Bullock, Kathy Ziga, Tom Roberts, Susan Moore, Seth Williams, Cody Munson, Astra Barnes, Peaches Blank, Daniel Gunter

Members Absent: Roby Sawyers, Sandy Stallings, Derek Aday, Dave Ellis

Ex-Officio Members Present: Debbie Yow, Director of Athletics; Carrie Leger, Director of Academic Support Program for Student Athletes (ASPSA); Mike Poterala, Deputy General Counsel; Lisa Zapata, Acting Executive Director of ASPSA

Ex-Officio Members Absent: Joanne Woodard, Vice Provost for Institutional Equity & Diversity;

Coaches Present: Page Marsh, Women’s Golf

Student Athletes Present:

Guests Present: Michael Lipitz, Senior Associate Athletics Director- Administration; Chris Boyer, Senior Associate Athletic Director for External Operations; Michelle Lee, Associate Athletics Director & SWA; Sherard Clinkscales, Senior Associate Athletic Director for Sports Administration & Student Services; Carrie Doyle, Senior Associate AD/Compliance, Bob Kennel

Meeting The Chair, Sam Pardue, called the meeting to order at 2:01 p.m.

Minutes Approval The August 23, 2013 minutes were approved.

Introduction of Coaches Coach Page Marsh brought a report from the women’s golf program. She provided a handout that highlighted the team’s roster. Currently, eight women are on the squad. It is a very diverse group with three Canadians, one Mexican, and one German player. The rest of the women are from North and South Carolina. Coach Marsh indicated that she was very proud of team’s work ethic and moving the program forward. Huge impacts have resulted from the opening of the Lonnie Poole Golf course on campus in 2009 and the projected December 1 completion of the Club House.

The team is ranked 14th in USA. Last year, the squad finished 21st nationally and 2nd behind only Duke in the ACC. At the NCAA Regionals, the Pack women shot an 885 for 9th; tragically missing the NCAA Championship by a single stroke. There are two scheduled fall 2 events, with the bulk of the matches in the Spring. Two team members, Augusta James and Brittany Marchand, were named All-ACC. With a cumulative team GPA of 3.2, six women’s golfers were honored at a recent football half time recognition ceremony. In addition, the team boasted a 3-time Academic All-American (Amanda Baker) and four All-ACC Academic team members (Amanda Baker, Brittany Marchand, Ana Menendez, and Vivian Tsui); the most of any ACC school.

Finally Coach Marsh provided an account of the “day in the life of a women’s golfer” at NC State. It is a demanding season with a 144 day season during the Spring Championship Season and 24 competitions. In closing, Coach emphasized that all players want to be in the last group on the last day. Playing with UCLA and Arizona State on last day is building respect and a measure of where we are headed.

Athletic Department Update Dr. Yow commented on the state of the Athletic Department’s budget. The FY 2013-14 budget is projected to be $63.6 million. Last fiscal year, the department had a $800,000 surplus; of which $700,000 was transferred to facility repair and enhancement. Approximately 40 percent of the budget is generated from tickets sales. Additional income streams include revenue sharing from the ACC TV contract, NCAA men’s basketball tournament distribution, student athletic fees, and merchandise sales. Scholarships for student athletes represent 14 percent or $9 million of the budget. A potential 12.3% increase in out-of-state tuition did not occur; saving the Wolfpack Club roughly $600,000. Approximately 50% of the budget is allocated directly to support the 23 teams we sponsor. At a meeting in the future, comparative expenditures will be discussed. On a related issue, the proposed “Ticket or Entertainment” tax would impose an additional $750,000 burden on the department unless we are granted a waiver from the Legislature.

A search is underway for the Executive Director of ASPSA. Dr. Mike Mullen, Vice Chancellor and Dean of DASA, has direct oversight for ASPSA. Coach Page Marsh, and Senior Associate AD/Compliance, Carrie Doyle will serve on the committee as representatives from the Athletics Department. Coaches will be encouraged to provide input for this crucial position.

Chris Boyer, Senior Associate Athletic Director for External Operations brought a report on the O’Bannon case. EA Sports and the CLC have settled their suit regarding the use of student athlete images and likenesses. Reports suggest that the suit was settled for $40 million. Approximately 200,000 to 300,000 student athletes may ultimately join the class action suit and receive some modest compensation. Perhaps of greater concern is the potential impact on the use images of current student athletes inclusive of TV for live game broadcasts.

The major renovation project for Reynolds Coliseum is moving forward. Estimated at $35 million, the revitalization of Reynolds will include air conditioning [$8 million], the Hall of Fame and History, and the creation of a more intimate 5,200-6,000 seat venue for women’s basketball, volleyball, gymnastics, and wrestling in the south end of the Coliseum. The indoor Football practice facility is also a high priority.

Finally, the ACC’s Fall meeting will be held Raleigh, October 1-2.

Compliance Office Update Carrie Doyle, Senior Associate AD/Compliance provided a number of handouts dealing with current issues in compliance. Details of the Oklahoma State allegations, as highlighted in a series of articles in Sports Illustrated (SI), were discussed. It was noted that OSU officials have refuted a number of the claims and suggest that a vigorous review of the facts by SI was lacking. At one time, SI was reported to employ 50 “fact checkers”. Recent comments have suggested that as few as two “fact checkers” are now employed. SI denies that is the case and claims that 10 “fact checkers” are on their staff. Potential OSU issues included:

• Cash payments to SA form boosters and coaches • Payments to SA for employment not performed or excessive payments relative to the work • Per diem payment exceeding NCAA mandated limits • Tutors or university staff completing homework assignments or providing answers to exams • Widespread drug use • Hostess program engaging in sexual misconduct in recruiting

Safeguards in place at NC State were discussed. For example, the NC State Ambassador Program differs significantly from the “Orange Pride” organization at OSU. Based out of the Joyner Visitors Center, the Ambassadors have approximately 100 participants. At present, football is the only sport that utilizes the Ambassadors in recruiting.

A schedule of Compliance Education Sessions was also distributed. Each member of the Compliance staff meets with each team at least once each year. The Chancellor is also forming a Compliance group steering committee, made up of university-wide compliance personnel, to address the over 300 federal laws with which we have to comply.

Finally a USA Today info request was made that includes information on “pass lists” and SA parking tickets and license tag numbers.

Academic Support Program for Student-Athletes Lisa Zapata Acting Executive Director of ASPSA met with the Council for the first time. She indicated that she has enjoyed learning about the role of ASPSA and its contribute to the academic success of our SA. She was happy to report that during the spring 2013 Scholar Athlete Recognition that 244 SA were honored. Dr. Zapata also informed the Council of Transmittal Letter 83 for the UNC-GA. Transmittal Letter 83 deals specifically with dropping and withdrawing from courses. Beginning in Fall of 2014, students will be allowed to drop prior to census date (Day10 of the semester) without any notation on their transcript. Have the census date, should a student withdraw form a class, a “W” will be noted on the transcript. A maximum of four “w” will be allowed. Withdrawn courses will count toward hours attempted and may impact financial aid. Exceptions for medical, psychological, or unforeseen personal hardship will still be allowed and would not count toward the four withdrawal limit.

Committees: Finance, Facilities, & Personnel Paul Williams No Report

Student-life, Equity, & Sportsmanship John Griggs Dr. Griggs provided a Student Athlete Development Update. Orientation for new SA was conducted on August 18 at the McKimmon Center. A Welcome Back Pack dinner, featuring former NC State and MLB pitching great Mike Caldwell was also held at the McKimmon Center on the 18th. A mandatory alcohol education program for SA was presented by Elaine Pasqua on August 20th. Finally the first Wolfpack Leadership Academy was held a Vaughn Towers on September 8th. 59 SA were in attendance.

Compliance Joel Pawlak No Report

Faculty Academic Committee: Roby Sawyers Chair Sawyers distributed a draft of the FAC report on Improving Graduation Rates for NC State Athletes.

Unfinished Business None noted

New Business None noted

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 3:35

Respectfully Submitted, Sam L. Pardue, Chair