Update on NCAA and professionalization of college athletes... Comments?

[Query]

Amateur college athletics associations, like the American College Athletics Association and the Amateur Athletic Union, have traditionally resisted professionalization of college athletes.

Some figure skaters receive compensation for coaching and endorsements, and might be considered to be professionals by some athletics organizations. This may have created problems for some skaters seeking athletics scholarships.

Some time ago I posted about here about the Northwestern University football team's attempt to unionize, and be recognized as employees, and the possibility that this might indirectly affect figure skating.

(For some reason, I can't find the post.)

The U.S. National Labor Relations board recently found that the university's foot players are "employees", and can unionize.

[Note: The University had until 4/9/2014 to appeal. I don't know whether they did. I also don't know if any of the amateur athletics associations other than USFSA have taken any action allowing amateur athletes to be compensated.]

As you can see here, and here, not everyone in the amateur athletics organizations and the academic community are thrilled with the result.

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Does anyone here with legal knowledge know if this is relevant to figure skating, and have any comments?

[rachelplotkin]

I don't have the answer to most of your questions but I can tell you that Northwestern has filed an appeal. 

[nicklaszlo]

Does anyone here with legal knowledge know if this is relevant to figure skating, and have any comments?

It is irrelevant because colleges do not care about figure skating (except Miami University).

[techskater]

I don't have the answer to most of your questions but I can tell you that Northwestern has filed an appeal.

Not only that, but a number of players have spoken out against it.

[PhysicsOnIce]

It is irrelevant because colleges do not care about figure skating (except Miami University).

Not 100% true, University of Michigan should also be included in the list of colleges that care.

[Query]

Add University of Delaware, which has a major sports performance center and department, with a strong emphasis (and rinks of their own) on skating.

[Query]

In case anyone was still curious about this, Northwestern State University has been granted an appeal, which I guess has the effect of slowing down unionization and professionalization of Northwestern's football team.

http://fortune.com/2015/03/17/march-madness-ncaa-amateur-status/

Maybe the NCAA should act proactively, and create a "Division 4" for professional teams, like Northwestern would become, but have amateur teams from the other 3 divisions play Division 4 teams. It's the only fair thing to do, if the NLRB decision is upheld.

There has been a lot of push for such a division by the top few college football teams, which have been threatening to leave the NCAA if no professional division is formed.

I think an NCAA division 4 would be a positive thing for sports like figure skating, where the most lucrative part of an athlete's professional career can be prior to college graduation.

I understand that it is complicated - there could be less money available to be shared with schools that don't give athletics as high a priority.

But it is really would just bring college athletics in line with other academic subjects, where students often earn income in their fields before they graduate - sometimes even before they matriculate. For example, I think I am correct to say that schools that emphasize the performing arts over other fields, have many students who work professionally in their fields before they graduate. Those students face the same risks as the almost-full-time-college-athletes - e.g., that a degree in the fine arts is less likely than many other fields to help them find good careers outside their major field of study, if they don't make it professionally in that field.

[techskater]

It is NOT Northwestern State University that this is revolving around, which is in LA, but Northwestern University which is in Evanston, IL. The unionization effort is specifically targeting private D1 schools which means if this passes (and the football players agree to having union representation) it will only apply to private universities at this time.  That means schools like Northwestern, Stanford, Duke,  Vanderbilt will be at a disadvantage until this is applied to all public universities.

There is discussion that football players will receive a small stipend.

[Query]

It is NOT Northwestern State University that this is revolving around, which is in LA, but Northwestern University which is in Evanston, IL.

Oops.