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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

NCAA Freshman Eligibility Standards
In Court Again--(Oct. 3, 1999)

This past Friday, the NCAA's Prop. 16 "Initial Freshman Eligibility" standards were once again before a panel of judges.  The Freshman Eligibility standards embodied in Prop. 16 is the combination of SAT/ACT scores and GPA (See table below for "Full Qualifier" Index) that a group of black students challenged successfully in US District Court Judge Ronald Buckwalter's court as being racially biased. On Friday, the NCAA returned to federal court to counter the charges that Prop. 16 discriminates against blacks.

Division I Qualifier Index
Core
GPA
ACT*
sum of
scores
SAT**
on or
after
4/1/95
2.500
& above
68 820
2.475 69 830
2.450 70 840-850
2.425 70 860
2.400 71 860
2.375 72 870
2.350 73 880
2.325 74 890
2.300 75 900
2.275 76 910
2.250 77 920
2.225 78 930
2.200 79 940
2.175 80 950
2.150 80 960
2.125 81 960
2.100 82 970
2.075 83 980
2.050 84 990
2.025 85 1000
2.000 86 1010
* Previously, ACT score was
calculated by averaging four
scores. New standards are
based on sum of scores.

** For SAT tests taken  on or after
April 1, 1995.

In March, U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Buckwalter struck down the NCAA's Proposition 16, which dictates minimum eligibility guidelines for freshman in the association's 302 Division I schools, after ruling ``it had unjustified disparate impact on African-Americans.'' The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals later stayed the decision pending a full hearing, which occurred Friday.

``Standardized tests are a prime reason for African-Americans not qualifying under Proposition 16. There is a disparate impact that the NCAA cannot escape,'' Andre Dennis, lead lawyer for the four plaintiffs, told the three-judge panel. NCAA lawyer David Bruton, however, argued that the objectives of Proposition 16 _ which include increasing graduation rates _ are legitimate, and that test score cutoffs were related to that objective. ``It seems that there is a disparate effect that correlates with economic income, and unfortunately in our society, that correlates sometimes with race,'' Judge Theodore A. McKee said.

Under Proposition 16, the NCAA requires freshmen athletes to have a high school diploma and a minimum grade-point average in 13 core academic courses. The GPA is contingent on an indexed, sliding scale with a student's score on either the Scholastic Assessment Test or American College Test. Athletes scoring less than 820 on the SAT, or 16 on the ACT, cannot participate, regardless of their other academic credentials.

During a meeting of its Division I board of directors in August, the NCAA said it would make no changes to freshman eligibility requirements while the case is pending. ``We're here because the full membership ... has concluded that they want to see more data before any more tinkering of Proposition 16 is required,'' Bruton said.

Much of the hearing revolved around whether the NCAA directly received funding from the federal government. If so, Dennis argued, then Proposition 16 must be amended to conform with Title VI, the section of the 1964 Civil Rights Act that forbids discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin. ``By controlling the fund and program that implements the federal dollars, that subjects the NCAA to Title VI regulations,'' he said. The NCAA argued that since it is a nonprofit organization, its member schools are responsible for disbursing and using the money, not the NCAA itself.

A decision is expected by next spring. In the meantime, the 3rd Circuit's injunction keeps the Freshman Eligibility Standards in place, so prospective student athletese will still need to qualify under those requirements set forth below and under the Index for Full Qualification at the left.

 

* * * * * * * * * * *

NCAA Prop. 16 Initial Freshman Academic Eligibility To Parcipate in Intercollegiate Athletics

(From the "NCAA Guide For College-Bound Student Athletes):

If you're first entering a Division I college on or after August 1, 1996, in order to be classified a "qualifier," you're required to:

  • Graduate from high school;
  • Successfully complete a core curriculum of at least 13 academic courses as follows:

    English ... 4 years

    Mathematics [one year of algebra and one year of geometry (or one year of a higher-level mathematics course for which geometry is a prerequisite)] ... 2 years

    Natural or physical science (including at least one laboratory course, if offered by the high school) ... 2 years

    Additional courses in English, mathematics, or natural or physical science ... 1 year

    Social science ... 2 years

    Additional academic courses [in any of the above areas or foreign language, computer science, philosophy or nondoctrinal religion (e.g., comparative religion) courses] ... 2 years

  • Have a core-course grade-point average (based on a maximum of 4.000) and a combined score on the SAT verbal and math sections or a sum score on the ACT based on the qualifier index scale.

 The Swish Award
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