Kansas Successfully Completes NCAA Certification Process
April 15, 2010
The NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification announced today that it has certified the University of Kansas and 14 other colleges and universities as part of the NCAA’s regularly scheduled, ongoing athletics certification process.
The “certified” designation means that KU operates its athletics program in substantial conformity with operating principles adopted by the Division I membership of the NCAA. Certification is meant to ensure integrity in the institution’s athletics program and to assist institutions in improving their athletics departments. The NCAA membership mandated athletics certification in 1993. Each of the NCAA’s 335 Division I institutions undergoes the self-study every 10 years; Kansas is among the first schools to complete the process a third time.
“NCAA certification is an exhaustive process involving not only the athletics program but also the various parts of the university that interact with athletics,” said KU Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little. “Receiving certification is a testament to the quality of our university overall. I’m very proud of our student-athletes, our athletics administrators and coaches, and the other members of the KU community who work on a daily basis to live up to the high standards we set for ourselves.”
The certification process involves a thorough self-study led by an institution’s president or chancellor. KU’s began in May 2008, when then-Chancellor Robert Hemenway appointed Frank DeSalvo, associate vice-provost, to chair KU’s Certification Committee. Jerry Bailey, a member of the faculty of the School of Education and KU’s NCAA Faculty Representative, also helped guide the self-study, along with other University administrators, faculty and students.
“I am very proud that together we have made this a very productive learning experience,” DeSalvo said. “I have deep appreciation and gratitude for the energy and countless hours so many individuals have spent turning this self-study into a tool to identify our strengths and establish areas for improvement and growth.”
The self-study included a review of several primary issues, including governance and commitment to rules compliance; academic integrity; equity; and student-athlete well-being. In May 2009 KU submitted its initial report to the NCAA Certification Committee, which reviewed it and identified areas for clarification. In October 2009 the committee sent a peer-review team to Lawrence; that team filed a report with the Certification Committee, which announced the final certification decision today.
“What made this exercise so valuable,” said KU Athletics Director Lew Perkins, “is that so many good people from across the university took so much of their time to participate in it. As a result, they now know much more about athletics than they did before, and we know much more about the university than we did. This was an extensive, meticulous process, but in the end it was very valuable for not only Kansas Athletics but also the entire University.
“I want to thank and commend Frank DeSalvo and Jerry Bailey for their excellent work,” Perkins continued. “They kept us on track during this entire process, and it would not have been as successful without their dedication.”
The members of the Committee on Athletics Certification are: Anthony Archbald, Princeton University; John Balog, Jacksonville University; Robert Bernardi, Nicholls State University; Ann Carr, Mississippi State University; Casey Comoroski, Missouri State University; Beatrice Crane Banford, Marshall University; Beth DeBauche, Ohio Valley Conference; Tom Douple, The Summit League; Amy Folan, University of Texas at Austin; Joanne Glasser, Bradley University; Nathan Hatch (chair), Wake Forest University; Brian Linnane, Loyola College (Maryland); Barbara Luebke, University of Rhode Island; M. Dianne Murphy, Columbia University-Barnard College; Sheila Patterson, Cleveland State University; Donald Pope-Davis, University of Notre Dame; Allison Rich, California State University, Fullerton; Judy Van Horn, University of Michigan; and Sarah Wilhelmi, West Coast Conference.
