CRCA Conference Call Minutes
Present: Andrew Teitelbaum, President (Central) Head Coach of Ohio State University. Joe Wilhelm (East) Head Coach of Northeastern University Mark Rothstein (Central) Head Coach of the University of Michigan Sandra Chu (DII/DIII At-Large) Head Coach of William Smith College Eleanor McElvaine (West) Head Coach of University of Washington Jason Steele, Secretary (East) Head Coach of Worcester Polytechnic Institute Steve Kish, Treasurer/Vice President (Mid-Atlantic) Head Coach of Bucknell University Kevin Harris (South) Head Coach of the University of Tulsa Aimee Baker (West) Head Coach of Stanford University Becky Robinson (DII/DIII At-Large) Head Coach of Ithaca College Kevin Sauer (South) Head Coach of the University of Virginia
Missing: Mike Hughes (Mid-Atlantic) Head Coach to the Naval Academy
Awards 2005-2006: Andy Teitelbaum began the call seeking an update on the 2005-2006 awards from Aimee Baker and Becky Robinson. It was agreed that Becky would have all awards framed and mailed by mid-September. There was additional discussion about providing a biographical sheet and a head-shot of award recipients for publication on the CRCA website. The Pocock awards had already been sent and otherwise the 2005-2006 awards were in order. At this time Andy offered thanks to Aimee Baker for her service to the CRCA, who will step down as a Director on the Board of the CRCA. Thanks and farewells’ were then exchanged and Aimee left the conference call.
Website Update: Jason Steele was asked to provide an update on the status of the new CRCA website. He indicated that while some progress had been made, there was nothing major to report. He will continue to work actively with Ed Hewitt of Row2k to implement a new website by the end of the fall.
Treasurer’s Report: Andy Teitelbaum continued the call with a request for a treasurer’s report. A line by line review of the 2006-2007 budget presented no issues of concern. Most figures were maintained from 2005. The following changes were made: Administrative position – This position is proposed to assist in administrative tasks, including processing membership applications and organizing the membership directory. The stipend was set at $2500.00 for the upcoming year. Awards – Was set at 1900.00. Coaching Education – With the proposed workshops set for June of 2006, $1000.00 was set into the budget to cover potential costs associated with this event. Board of Director Travel – With the USRowing Conference to be held on the West Coast, this line-item was set at $1000.00. Mailing – Kevin Harris recommended adding $100.00 to the Mail account. Andy solicited questions regarding the budget. There were none, and Mark Rothstein motioned to approve the budget. The board voted unanimously to approve the budget.
Committee Updates:
Championship Committee: Kevin Sauer provided an update from the Championship Committee. He re-capped his recent attendance at the NCAA CEO Meeting during the summer. From this experience he highlighted the importance of expanding the size of our association. This discussion led to some ideas such as offering memberships to high school coaches and non-varsity college coaches. Kevin learned that many other College Sport Associations had grown is size and influence with the NCAA by expanding the number of members under its umbrella. This was left for future discussions. As for the future of the Championship, Kevin indicated that the NCAA had approved expansion of the Rowing Championship to include 16 Full teams and 2 At-Large bids. This structure will likely be in place by the 2009 Championship. Final conversation regarding the Championship centered on the necessity of improving video coverage of the event. The NCAA is aware of this issue and is working to address it.
Membership Committee: Kevin Harris provided an update on the Membership of the CRCA. He indicated that membership grew to 256 members during 2005-2006. There was some discussion that non-NCAA Women’s Teams be allowed to join the CRCA (lightweights). This met with Board approval with the understanding that these coaches could not serve as Directors on the Board of the CRCA.
Legislative Committee: Andy Teitelbaum then provided an update from the Legislative Review committee. He indicated that Fall Head Regattas were aware of the conflict when High School and College students compete in “open” events. The Head of the Charles had changed their event to address this issue, and most other regattas would likely follow suit. He also updated the Board on the rule that out of season DI coaches could provide 2 hours of skill instruction per week but could not have contact with athletes within 1 week of Final Exams. Andy then brought forth the suggestion that Bill Zack be allowed to fill the Director vacancy left by the departure of Aimee Baker. The Board was in unanimous support of this idea.
Coaching Education Committee: Andy then moved to make the Coaching Education Committee a standing committee. This was unanimously approved. Sandra Chu then provided an update on the Coaching Education Committee. Bebe Bryans at Wisconsin had agreed to host the coaching conference during the summer of 2007. She was to determine what costs would be associated with using the Wisconsin facilities and report back to the committee. It was agreed that the Conference would begin on the Tuesday following the I.R.A Regatta. Sandra indicated that she would put together a short-list of guest speakers and we could discuss topics at the USRowing Conference.
Sponsorship Committee: Andy indicated there were no updates in the area of Sponsorship. Pocock is currently pleased with its sponsorship. Once the website is complete, sponsor logos may be added to the site.
Lightweight Committee: Lastly, Cecile Tucker updated the Board on issues involving Lightweight programs. The major point of discussion was whether the CRCA would provide awards to Lightweight Athletes and Lightweight Coaches. She agreed to determine how many colleges sponsored “varsity” lightweight programs and would provide that information back to the board.
Andy concluded the meeting at approximately 1:00 P.M. EST