NCAA Sets Review of Proposal 42

A discussion of the recently adopted Proposal 42, the rules governing admission standards for athletes, has been added to the agenda of the next meeting of the executive committee of the National Collegiate Athletic Assn.’s Presidents Commission and the NCAA Administrative Committee.

The NCAA said the meeting will be held within the next 30 days.

Proposal 42 would prohibit prospective freshmen who do not meet the NCAA’s academic standards--a 2.0 grade-point average in a high school core curriculum, and either a 700 SAT or 15 ACT test score--from receiving any financial aid from schools for the first year.

It is an amendment to Proposition 48, which for the past 3 years has set minimum academic standards for incoming freshmen but has allowed them to receive aid while not participating with a team in any way.

Both rules have been criticized as being unfair to minorities and poor students because it relies on scores from standardized entrance tests.

Surprisingly, the vote from the NCAA convention showed that three historically black schools and one predominantly black conference voted for the proposal. Among those voting yes were Howard University, Florida A&M; and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The 9-team Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, which is predominantly black, also voted yes.