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2002-03 Division I Athletics Certification Handbook Summary Introduction 
Athletics certification was approved for Division I institutions at the 1993 convention as a key part of the NCAA’s reform agenda. Certification was originally introduced in 1989 and tested in a two-year pilot program. Participants generally agreed that the pilot program was valuable but could be improved by limiting the scope of the self-study. After a special committee reworked the idea over the next year, the NCAA Presidents Commission, the NCAA Council and the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics supported a revised version of the program. The athletics certification began its second cycle in 1999. The purpose of athletics certification is to ensure the NCAA's fundamental commitment to integrity in intercollegiate athletics through the following: by opening the affairs of athletics to the university community and the public, by setting standards (called operating principles) for the operation of Division I athletics programs, and by putting tough sanctions in place for institutions that fail to conduct a comprehensive self-study or to correct problems. The core of athletics certification is the institution’s self-study, in which campus-wide participation is critical. An effective self-study benefits the institution by providing self-awareness, affirmation, and opportunities to improve. Preparing for the Self-Study This certification process allows the institution at least one year to conduct its self-study. A campus visit by a member of the NCAA staff for orientation purposes signals the beginning of that self-study process. Whenever possible, the NCAA staff member who visits an institution for the orientation also will receive the institution’s self-study report, and make arrangements for the peer-review team on that visit. The institution should consider that NCAA staff member a primary source of information and should feel free to contact that individual directly with questions. If the institution has questions before a specific staff liaison is assigned, the institution should contact the national office’s membership services staff. Responsibilities of the chief executive officer are the following: appointing the chair of the self-study steering committee, selecting the members, making the charge, and giving the steering committee the proper authority to complete its work. Conducting the Self-Study During the 12-month period, the institution must gather and analyze data, and report the findings in a self–study report. Responsibilities of the steering committee during the actual period of the self-study include:
Preparing for the Evaluation Visit Participating institutions, peer-review teams, the NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification and NCAA staff members all have specific responsibilities in preparing for the evaluation visit. The NCAA Division I committee on Athletics Certification is responsible for selecting and assigning peer-review teams. In doing so, the committee is careful to control costs of the program by taking geographical considerations into account and through appropriate coordination with regional accrediting agencies. The committee takes a number of factors into consideration when making peer-review team assignments: composition of peer-review teams, institutional recommendation, notification of peer-review team assignments, and ethical considerations. The Evaluation Visit
Experiences gained by the peer-review team during the campus visit help the team to evaluate more fairly the information contained in the institution’s self-study report. By the end of the visit, the peer-review team will have reached tentative conclusions about the nature of the institution’s self-study process, the accuracy of the institution’s written report and the operation of the athletics program in relation to the certification program’s operating principles. Before leaving campus, the peer-review team is obligated to record its conclusions in a rough draft of the report that eventually will be forwarded to the institution and to the Committee on Athletics Certification. In the meantime, the institution’s chief executive officers, and perhaps other institutional representatives, are afforded an opportunity to hear the peer-review team’s general impressions in an exit meeting at the end of the visit. Review by the committee on Athletics Certification The NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification bases its certification decision on information from the following sources: the institution’s self-study report, the formal written report of the peer-review team, a written reaction from the institution to the peer-review team’s report, the peer-review team’s response to the institution’s reaction, and additional commentary deemed necessary by the committee. The Certification Decision Once the NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification receives the institution’s self-study report and the written report of the peer-review team, the committee is responsible for determining whether an institution’s athletics program should be certified – that is, judged to be in substantial conformity with the certification program’s operating principles and consistent with the institution’s mission and purpose. Certification committee members will not participate in determining the certification status for those institutions in which the slightest potential for conflict of interest exists. In considering whether a potential conflict exists, certification committee members shall apply the same guidelines approved by the committee for use by potential peer-review team members. Certification categories The certification committee is obligated to choose from three options in determining each institution’s certification status:
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Peer-review team members visit the host institution’s campus in order to gauge the level of campus-wide involvement in the institution’s self-study and to compare the information contained in the institution’s written report with knowledge learned firsthand about the athletics program.
Certified - An institution that has been "certified" is considered to be operating its athletics program in substantial conformity with all of the operating principles.