grants, financial aid packages, and academic scholarships.”
Very many of the financial aid awards that these and other
recruiting education sites and publications are referencing
are often at or near full-ride levels. Plainly stated, Division III
colleges are funding the education of student athletes, while
publicly pretending that the financial aid that their students
receive is for some merit other than athletic ability. How this
funding is accomplished is the focus of this chapter.
The NCAA Regulations impacting the types and amounts
of financial aid that Division III colleges can award student
athletes, by rule, must also be available to all students. The
regulations of NCAA rule 15.4.9 states: “The composition of
the financial aid package offered to a student athlete shall be
consistent with the established policy of the institution’s finan-
cial aid office for all students...” [italics mine]
Rule 15.4.9(c) states: “The financial aid package for a par-
ticular student athlete cannot be clearly distinguishable from the
general pattern of all financial aid for all recipients (of financial
aid) at the institution...” [italics mine]
Rule 15.4.9(a) states: “A member institution shall not con-
sider athletics ability as a criterion in the formulation of the
financial aid package...” [italics mine] (Rules 15.49, 15.49(c),
and 15.49(a) are from NCAA Manual).
After receiving a profile from one of my clients, a Midwest
Division III private college basketball coach contacted her and
said she was interested in having her play basketball for the
school and asked if she would come to campus for a visit. Prior
to the visit, all the pertinent documents were sent to the admis-
sions and financial aid offices. She and her father visited the
school, which was not too far from their home. They met the
130 The Sports Scholarships Insider’s Guide