INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana – The NCAA looks to revise and restructure the current constitution to give more power to schools to govern themselves.
Based on the directions from President Mark Emmert, the NCAA cut its original 43-page constitution to 18 pages. This revised constitution focused more on achieving proper welfare for athletes by taking a more granular approach.
President Mark Emmert began this revision after a back-and-forth battle against the Supreme Court, potentially leaving the association vulnerable to legal challenges.
According to the West Virginia athletic director, most of the problems were at the Division I level.
Thus, this revision also gives Division I the authority and autonomy to restructure how they share revenue and implement policies.
According to NCAA chairman Jack DiGiola, publishing the new constitution by January “is the first step in the process of transforming NCAA governance.”
DiGiolo continues by stating how a new constitution would provide better flexibility for the colleges in the NCAA.
Implementing the revised constitution also entails getting approval from over 1,200 schools that are members of the NCAA. This constitution might still undergo more revisions and amendments before a full membership vote in January.
One of the most significant changes in the NCAA constitution is lessening the Board of Governors from 21 members to 9. This change also entails a change in duties and responsibilities in the future.
These responsibilities would focus more on high and pressing issues that the members could not resolve. Focusing on more pressing issues is significantly different than the attention they used all issues now.