For additional information contact: Jim Hoffman, Director of Compliance, (718) 489-5489

NCAA Boosters

Rules Compliance Tips

"What You Need to Know to Support St. Francis College Athletics!”

• www.ncaa.org

As supporters of St. Francis College Terrier Athletics, we want to see the Terriers consistently place a winning team on the field, court, track, and pool.  However, even more important than this is that we all need to play by the rules. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has regulations that apply to coaches, staff, players and you! Below are some helpful rules of the game.

A representative of athletics interests (also known as an athletics representative or booster) is an individual who has done any of the following:

• Has made financial contributions to: St. Francis’ athletic department, St. Francis’ men's and/or women's athletic programs or to an athletics booster organization of St. Francis College;
• Has been requested by the athletics department staff to assist in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes or is assisting in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes;
• Has assisted or is assisting in providing benefits to enrolled student-athletes (i.e., provided or helped arrange summer employment for enrolled student-athletes);
• Has participated in or is a member of an agency or organization that promotes St. Francis College’s intercollegiate athletics program; or
• Participated in or has been a member of any group that promotes St. Francis College's intercollegiate athletic program.
• A "prospective student-athlete" or "prospect" is any student who has started classes for the ninth grade.

Once an individual is identified as a representative of athletics interest, the person retains that identity indefinitely.

An “extra benefit” is any special gift or arrangement provided to an enrolled student-athlete or to a student-athlete's relative or friend which is not available to the general student body of that institution (i.e., transportation, meals, clothing, housing, service, entertainment, etc.) .

A “recruiting contact” is any face-to-face encounter between a prospect or a prospect's parent or legal guardian and a St. Francis College staff member during which any dialogue occurs in excess of an exchange of a greeting.

Representatives of athletics interests are prohibited from making in-person, on or off-campus recruiting contacts, written or telephone communications with a prospect or the prospect's relatives or legal guardians.

If a prospect initiates telephone contact with a representative of athletics interest, the representative may speak to him/her as long as the call is not for recruiting purposes. The representative should refer all questions relating to athletics to the athletics department staff. No calls may be made by the representative to the prospect or prospect's relatives or legal guardians.

Things you can do:

A student-athlete or the entire team in a sport may receive an occasional family home meal from a representative of athletics interests under the following conditions:

• The meal must be provided in an individual's home (as opposed to a restaurant) and may be catered;
• Meals must be restricted to infrequent and special occasions; and
• Representatives may provide reasonable local transportation to student-athletes to attend the meal function only if the meal function is at the home of that representative.

Identify outstanding student-athletes in your area by sending newspaper clippings to the coach or by calling the coach. Let the coach pursue the individual from there. Please keep in mind that you may not contact the prospect or their relatives or legal guardians directly nor may you contact high school guidance counselors to get additional information, but you may attend a prospects' contest.

Offer assistance to the coaching staff by providing lodging, meals and transportation to coaches when they come to your community to contact and evaluate prospects. You may also provide meals which are reasonable to student-athletes when they are traveling on the road with the team.

Provide summer jobs and internships in your business or community. If you feel that a job would be suitable for a student-athlete, contact the athletic director for the names of those who may qualify (pay must be at the going rate for that position).

For more information regarding "What You Need to Know to Support St. Francis College Athletics", please contact Jim Hoffman, Director of Compliance, (718) 489-5489

Student-Athlete Eligibility

All individuals who represent St. Francis College in athletic competition are student-athletes, NOT athlete-students!  The College sees the athletics program as an integral part of the overall educational experience, not the other way around.  As such, the College is committed to academic integrity and all student-athletes are held to the same standards by the College as students who are not athletes.

In addition, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has additional academic requirements which in some cases are more stringent than the requirements imposed by St. Francis College.  To be a student-athlete, and possibly have your education financed through athletic financial aid, you must meet the requirements of both St. Francis College and the NCAA.

If you intend to be an incoming freshman student-athlete at St.   Francis   College, you must:

Be admitted to St. Francis College through the regular admissions procedure for all students.  Please contact the Office of Admissions to obtain application materials, or apply online through the St. Francis College website.

Be certified as an NCAA qualifier through the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse.  To do so, you must take the following steps:

1. Apply to the Clearinghouse online through their website at www.ncaaclearinghouse.net; you will need to complete the online application and use a major credit card to pay the Clearinghouse’s one-time application fee, which is presently $30.
2. Bring the printed copy of the online registration page to your high school guidance office.  This will authorize your high school to submit your transcript to the Clearinghouse.  If you attended more than one high school, you will be required to have each school submit a transcript to the Clearinghouse.  The transcript must be in a sealed envelope from the high school, it cannot be mailed by the student-athlete.
3. Arrange to have your SAT or ACT scores sent to the Clearinghouse.  If you will take either test in the future, you may list the Clearinghouse code (9999) on your score submission request form and your scores will be sent to the Clearinghouse at the same time as they are released to you and to the colleges of your choice.  If you have already taken either test and do not intend to take them again, you will need to call the SAT or ACT office and request that your scores be sent to the Clearinghouse.  A fee may be charged by the SAT or ACT for special delivery.
4. Contact the St. Francis College athletic department or the coach of your sport to notify us that you have registered for the Clearinghouse, and give your social security number.  You will then be added to the St. Francis College request list so that we may track your status with the Clearinghouse.

Remember, if you are not certified as a qualifier by the Clearinghouse, you will not be permitted to compete, practice, or receive an athletic scholarship during your freshman year at St. Francis College (or any NCAA Division I or Division II institution).

If you intend to transfer to St.   Francis   College and become a student-athlete:

If you are intending to transfer from a two-year college (junior college or community college), you will need to meet certain requirements.  If you were certified by the NCAA Clearinghouse when you graduated high school, you will need to have passed at least 12 credits per term of enrollment at the two-year college.  If you were not certified as a qualifier, you may not transfer to St. Francis College and be immediately eligible unless you have received an Associate’s degree.

If you are intending to transfer from a four-year college or university, please be aware that members of the St. Francis College coaching staff are forbidden from speaking with you about transferring until the St. Francis College athletic department has received written permission from the athletic director (or his/her designee) at your current institution.  You should visit your present institution’s athletic department and request that the director of athletics provide you with a letter granting permission for St. Francis College coaches to speak with you regarding the possibility of a transfer.

If you are a current St.   Francis   College student and wish to participate in athletics:

The NCAA and St. Francis College have numerous eligibility regulations which govern whether a student is permitted to participate as part of the athletic program.

If you are interested in joining a team, please visit Jim Hoffman, Director of Compliance, and complete a student history form.  Once this form is completed, the process of verifying your eligibility will begin, and an answer will be provided to you as soon as possible.

The rules are extensive, but following are some rules which you must know:

You must have a complete physical examination before being permitted to try out, practice, or compete with any St. Francis College athletic team.  Contact Don Hovey, ATC, Director of Sports Medicine for information regarding physical examinations.

1. You must be in good academic standing, according to the academic regulations of St. Francis College.
2. You must be enrolled as a full-time student at St. Francis College (minimum of 12 credit hours).
3. You must have begun your collegiate enrollment (at any collegiate institution) within the past five years. 
4. You must meet the applicable NCAA satisfactory progress and progress toward degree requirements.   These requirements vary according to when you first enrolled and the number of semesters in which you have been enrolled.   Contact Jim Hoffman, Director of Compliance, for further details regarding these regulations.