AustinAustin CollegeCollege StudentStudent––AthleteAthlete HandbookHandbook “ There is no substitute for athletics.” - Robert F. Kennedy Division III Philosophy Statement Colleges and universities in Division III place the highest pri- ority on the overall quality of the educational experience and on the successful completion of all students’ academic pro- grams. They seek to establish and maintain an environment in which a student-athlete’s athletics activities are conducted as an integral part of the student-athlete’s educational experi- ence, and in which coaches play a significant role as the edu- cators. They also seek to establish and maintain an environ- ment that values cultural diversity and gender equity among their student-athletes and athletics staff. Austin College Mission Statement The mission of Austin College is to educate students in the liberal arts and sciences in order to prepare them for reward- ing careers and for full, engaged, and meaningful lives. Austin College Athletic Department Mission Statement To provide an opportunity to participate in a competitive NCAA Division III intercollegiate athletics program that both complements and extends the student-athletic educational ex- perience 2 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) is gov- erned by the chief executive officers of the member institu- tions. The Athletics Directors Council is comprised of the senior male and female athletics administrators at each mem- ber institution. This Council meets twice a year and makes recommendations on legislation to the Board of Directors and accepts reports from the Sports Councils. The SCAC is currently comprised of Austin College of Sherman, Texas; Birmingham-Southern College of Birming- ham, Alabama; Centre College of Danville, Kentucky; Colo- rado College of Colorado Springs, Colorado; DePauw Univer- sity of Greencastle, Indiana; Hendrix College of Conway, Ar- kansas; Millsaps College of Jackson, Mississippi; Oglethorpe University of Atlanta, Georgia; Rhodes College of Memphis, Tennessee; The University of the South of Sewanee, Tennes- see; Southwestern University of Georgetown, Texas; and Trinity University of San Antonio, Texas. Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Statement The Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) was formed to provide an association through which the member institutions may encourage organized competition in intercol- legiate sports among teams representative of their respective student bodies. Members of this conference share a commit- ment to priority of the overall quality of academic standards and quality educational experiences. 3 SCAC Sportsmanship Statement The NCAA, Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference and Austin College promote good sportsmanship by student- athletes, coaches and spectators. We request your cooperation by supporting the participants and officials in a positive man- ner. Profanity, racial or sexist comments or other intimidating actions directed at officials, student-athletes, coaches or team representatives – as well as public intoxication, the consump- tion or possession of alcoholic beverage and tobacco products are grounds for removal from the site of competition and other disciplinary actions. Athletic Training Pre-Participation Physical Examination Policy State- ment As per NCAA recommendations, student-athletes are required to have a pre-participation physical examination by a medical doctor prior to the first day of their respective athletic season. This is to be done annually, and must take place within 6 months prior to participation in any practice, competition or any out-of-season conditioning activities. The Austin College physical form must be completed by the examining physician, and will be the ONLY form that will be accepted as proof of the required physical examination. The athletic training office must have a copy of the completed physical form on file be- fore an athlete will be allowed to participate in ANY training activity directly related to his/her association with an Austin College athletic team. This applies to any activity designed, implemented, and/or supervised by anyone employed in the Austin College athletics department. (www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa) 4 Health Insurance Every student-athlete is required to have health insurance in order to compete. Austin College does not carry primary health insurance coverage, but is the secondary coverage for any injuries incurred during participation in practice and/or competition. Each student-athlete must make sure their insur- ance covers intercollegiate athletics. Coverage does not in- clude intramurals, club or any off-season workout injury. Physician’s Release Any student-athlete choosing to visit a licensed medical pro- vider, other then the team physician, for an illness or injury, must obtain a signed evaluation by the certified physician spe- cialized in treating the athlete’s specific condition. This re- port must contain the following information: • Nature of illness or injury • Treatment of illness or injury including medication, pro- tective gear, etc. • Specific instructions regarding any restrictions for partici- pation (e.g. may participate in non-contact environment, may not participate at all, etc.) • Date of release the student-athlete may participate with no restrictions. 5 Eligibility 1) To be eligible to represent Austin College in inter- collegiate athletics competition a student-athlete must be enrolled in 12 semester hours of 3 full course credits and maintain a GPA of 2.0. If at any time the student-athlete drops below the minimums, they become ineligible 2) To be eligible to practice/compete, a student-athlete must be in good academic standing. A full-time stu- dent on academic warning is eligible to compete but if the student-athlete is on academic probation due to their cumulative grade point average dropping below a 2.00 him/her will not be eligible to compete. 3) The NCAA requires that all student-athletes com- plete and sign all NCAA certification paperwork. 4) Satisfactory progress is 12 semester hours or 3 course credits Transfer Regulations Any student-athlete whom transfers to a Division III in- stitution will be eligible immediately provided they would have been academically and athletically eligible had they remained at the prior institution. If not, they must meet the one year residence requirement of one full academic year before being eligible to participate. The NCAA allows a student-athlete who attends a Divi- sion III institution who wishes to seek information on transferring to another Division III institution to pursue contact with the coaching staff for a 30-day period. The self-release form is on the NCAA website. 6 Playing and Practice Seasons As stated in NCAA Handbook Bylaw, Article 17: A member institution shall limit is organized practice activi- ties, the length of its playing season and the number of its regular-season contest and/or dates of competition in all sports, as well as, the extent of its participation in non- collegiate sponsored athletics activities, to minimize inter- ference with the academic program of its student-athletes Considered Athletically Related Activities (17.02.1.1, NCAA Handbook) (a) Practice, which is defined as any meeting, activity or instruction involving sports-related information and having an athletics purpose, held for one or more student-athletes at the direction of, or super- vised by, any member or members of an institu- tion’s coaching staff. Practice is considered to have occurred if one or more coaches and one or more student-athletes engage in any of the follow- ing activities: (1) Field, floor or on-court activity; (2) Setting up offensive or defensive align- ment; (3) Lecture on or discussion of strategy re- lated to the sport; (4) Activities using equipment related to the sport; (5) Discussions or review of game films, motion pictures or videotapes related to the sport; or (6) Captains practices 7 Voluntary Athletically Related Activities (17.02.13, NCAA Handbook) In order for any athletically related activity to be consid- ered “voluntary,” all of the following conditions must be met: (a) The student-athlete (or department staff member/ team manager) must not be required to report back to a coach or other athletics department staff mem- bers any information related to the activity. (b) The activity must be solely initiated by the student- athlete. It should not be a required activity. (c) The students-athlete’s attendance and participation in the activity may not be recorded for the pur- poses of reporting such information to coaching staff members or other student-athletes. (d) The student-athlete may not be subjected to pen- alty if he or she elects not to participate in the ac- tivity. In addition, no incentives (e.g. awards) should be given to the student-athlete based on his or her attendance or performance in the activity . Student– Athlete Agent Policy As state in NCAA Handbook Bylaw, Article 12.3.1 (General Rule): An individual shall be ineligible for par- ticipation in an intercollegiate sport if he or she ever has agreed (orally or in writing) to be represented by an agent for the purposes of marketing his or her athletics ability or reputation in that sport. Further, an agency contract not specifically limited in writing to a sport or particular sports shall be deemed applicable to all sports and the in- dividual shall be ineligible to participate in any spot. 8 Sports Wagering (i.e. gambling) The Austin College