Transfer to NCAA brings ACS Athletics software
IT Systems is currently in the process of enhancing its program repertoire with the latest ACS Athletics software.
The addition is the result of Lee’s transfer from the NAIA to Division II of the NCAA.
The university’s transfer means more than the possibility of getting a football team; it also means that our current athletes and administrators must adjust to a new set of standards.
Learning how to follow and keep up with different rules can be challenging at the get-go, but if the university does not comply with them, there are costly consequences administered by the NCAA enforcement program.
“[ACS Athletics] will help us keep up with compliance so the university doesn’t have to pay fines,” business analyst LeAnn McElrath said.
According to its website, ACS Athletics is a web and mobile technology company designed to help its customers organize and manage “athletics operations, recruiting, compliance, communications and student-athlete information.”
Some of the NCAA requirements that are new to Lee involve different stipulations for academic eligibility, health eligibility, appropriate scheduling of practices, and student financial aid.
McElrath said that the financial aid element is particularly important. If some error causes a student to be awarded too much aid one year, the NCAA may not award any aid at all for the year following.
For reasons like these, IT Systems is in the process of initializing online forms provided by the ACS Athletics software for coaches and athletes to fill out. The forms will help keep track of all of the different elements, and they will even provide a way to log phone calls with recruits.
When the software detects that something is amiss in the online paper work, an alert will be sent to a compliance officer at the university. The officer can then ensure that steps are taken to remedy the problem before the NCAA comes in.
“It’s just about keeping people honest,” McElrath said.
After the system is set up, students who are or who will be athletes at Lee will have a log-in portal where they can enter pertinent information, and similarly for coaches.
The software should be available later this semester.