Organizations
Athletic Organizations
Almost all college athletics is sponsored and organized by associations.
Three are most prominent in the United States: National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
(NAIA) and the National junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
The NCAA describes itself as "a voluntary association of about 1,200
colleges and universities, athletic conferences and spors organizations
devoted to the sound administraion of intercollegiate athletics. Volunteer
representative from these schools and conferences establish rules that
govern the Association and programs designed to further it's purposes
and goals." The NCAA is the best known of the three organizations
whose membership includes many of the largest and prestegious public and
private colleges and universities. Sports is organized into three divisions
and many conferences. The difference between the divisions is basically
the number of sports that the college sponsors and the amount of athletically
related financial aid a college awards to student-athletes.
For more information see the NCAA web
site.
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)
The NAIA is an oranization of colleges and universities that defines
itself as "devoted to a 'champions of character' environment in which
every NAIA student-athlete, coach, official and spectator is committed
to the true spirit of competition on through respect, integrity, responsibility,
servant leadership, and sportsmanship."
See The NAIA Option for more on the NAIA.
For more information see the NAIA web
site.
The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA)
The NJCAA was organized to promote and supervise a national program of
junior college sports and activities consistent with the educational objectives
of junior colleges. Its roots go back to 1937 at Fresno California but
it wasn't until 1938 that it was officiall organized. Track and field
was the first sport sponsored by the NJCAA and the first meet was in Sacramento
California in 1939. Today, the NJCAA sponsors many sports throughout the
United States.
For more information see the NJCAA
web site.
College Web Sites
There are a variety of of web sites on the Internet. The most up-to-date
links is through the athletic associations that the colleges hold membership
in. All three associations alphabetically list their members and have
links to the college general web site and the college athletic web site
for each sport.
- www.ncaa.org - Links to NCAA Colleges.
Click on Sports and Championships on left. Click cross country and/or
track and field. Click on Member’s Web Sites. Click on arrow for
schools.
- www.naia.org - Links to NAIA Colleges.
Scroll down until you find Information on the right column. Click on
Listing of NAIA Conferences and School Web Sites.
- http://www.njcaa.org - Community or
Junior Colleges.You can find a community college by name or by sport.
Athletics, Scholarship, Rules and Eligibility
- NCAA - www.ncaa.org - Primary site
about college athletics including rules, and regulat ions and high school
entry rules
- NCAA Clearinghouse - www.ncaaclearinghouse.net - Initial
eligibility criteria at NCAA Division I and II member colleges and universities.
You may also register online at this site.
- The Collegiate
Commissioners Association (CCA) administers the National
Letter of Intent Program. The letter of intent is a binding 1 year agreement
between the student athlete and the college.
- Campuschamps - www.campuschamps.com
- Help for student athletes to find colleges, apply for admission, get
financial aid.
Organizations In Depth
NAIA--The NAIA Option--Room for everyone at these
smaller schools
by Donna Dye
As you develop your list of potential college opportunities, don't overlook
the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics or the NAIA. There
are approximately 300 colleges in the NAIA, most of which offer both academic
and athletic scholarships. Many, but not all, are small private institutions
with religious affiliation. See the NAIA
web site for a listing of the colleges and links to college websites.
Real Benefits!
There is room for everyone at the NAIA from top to average athletes. One
of the nice benefits is that it offers opportunities for the average athlete
to participate and contribute to the team. Such athletes typically are lost
in other programs or not included. And on top of the chance to participate
athletically, it also offers the chance to earn scholarships. To add more
good news, the NAIA has easier, less restrictive eligibility criteria and
the colleges have more open entrance requirements.
From the Coach's Corner
Coach Collins at Lewis-Clark State College, in Idaho, says NAIA colleges
offer many opportunities for athletes including: paid college at generally
smaller schools; smaller classes with good teachers; national level competitions;
and an opportunity to participate regularly on typically small close knit
teams. The Lewis-Clark teams are diversified with special education and
high academic students participating together.
At the Azusa Pacific University, in Azusa CA, the student to teacher
ratio is 17 to 1. Coach Reid feels that the small class size and personal
attention generally found at NAIA schools make for quality education and
personal attention. Such an academic atmosphere carries over to the athletic
programs where you will find a good team though not always great depth.
Good Competition Too
As far as the level of competition at the NAIA, there is agreement among
at least three NAIA coaches that the level is somewhat comparable to the
Division II in the NCAA. Coach Stoots at the University of Mobile, says
"look at the numbers, the times; they tell the story." And the
competition is not limited to NAIA colleges. A typical NAIA season includes
many other invitationals including NCAA competitions. In fact, Coach Reid
at Azusa say that their season generally includes 25% within the NAIA
and 75% outside of the NAIA.
Further, Coach Reid says that you can hardly find a better competitive
area than Southern California. "We compete with the best. This year
Azusa competed at the Stanford Invitational; other years we competed at
Mt. SAC and other quality competitive invitationals," he said.
What are the coaches looking for?
From the recruiting corner, Coach Reid says that while an athlete's marks
are important, attitude is just as important. "We need athletes that
fit the program and attitude and character count. We have a Division I
attitude with high goals and expectations…our program is intense…we
coach to the Olympic level."
Coach Stoots at the University of Mobile, looks for athletes who "love
the sport and have the desire and work ethic to do whatever is necessary
to go as far as the athlete can go." In return, Coach Stoots provides
individualized workouts to respond to an athlete's needs while at the
same time pushing runners to the limits. He welcomes "walk-ons."
And while they may not go to every meet, they do participate and receive
the individual attention to develop.
Check out the DyeStat College Choices to learn who in the Class of 2002
chose NAIA colleges.
The NAIA publishes a Guide for the College-Bound Athlete to help students
understand the eligibility regulations. You can obtain the Guide and a
list of the NAIA website. See Eligibility
for information on NAIA eligibility.
Scholar-Athlete Guide by Donna Dye
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