Potomac Valley AAU District Girls Basketball (GBB) Committee Meeting
Meeting Minutes for August 20, 2008:
Falls
Church
High School @ 7:30 PM – Initial Draft for Review and Approval at October 8, 2008 Meeting
Call to Order and Clubs in Attendance
The August 20, 2008, meeting of the Potomac Valley AAU (PVAAU) was held at Falls Church High School in
Falls Church, Virginia . Andy Stadnik called the meeting to order at 7:35pm.
The following clubs were represented at the meeting:
. Arlington Matrix
. BRYC
. Capital Chaos
. Fairfax Stars
. PV Classics
. Vogues
. YBAM
Sparks
The following five clubs, constituting a quorum, were certified based on the PV AAU District Registrars registered clubs listing dated June, 10, 2008, as being eligible to vote at the meeting: Arlington Matrix (Liz Reed); Capital Chaos (Dorry Barry); Classics (Andy Stadnik); Fairfax Stars (Aggie McCormick-Dix); and YBAM Sparks (Mike Witmer).
Approval of Meeting Minutes from May 21, 2008
Mr. Stadnik asked the group to review the minutes from the June 23, 2008, PVAAU meeting. Ms. McCormick-Dix of the Fairfax Stars offered a motion to approve the minutes of the June meeting. Dorry Barry of Capital Chaos seconded the motion. The motion to approve the minutes was passed by a vote of 6 to 0.
No Rules Proposals Received from PV Clubs
Next, Mr. Stadnik informed the group that no rules proposals were sent to Mr. Stadnik or Jody Patrick, PVAAU GBB chair, by the previously announced August 1 deadline. There being no rules proposals previously submitted, the group began a discussion of rules-related issues.
Grace Reef of BRYC raised the issue of how D2 bids are allocated after DQTs. It was pointed out that this rule could be revisited later in the year when deciding DQT policies for PVAAU. Ms. McCormick-Dix suggested it might be helpful for the committee to hold an information session and/or Q&A at some point prior to the DQT window to go over certain PVAAU rules.
Next, the procedure regarding rules proposals was clarified. Mr. Stadnik stated that the National GBB committee would be compiling all proposals and sending them to all Districts, so that each District can discuss the various proposals and make recommendations to their respective District representatives on how to vote on certain issues.
Discussion re: July 1 Age Determination Date (“ADD”)
The group then initiated a discussion of everyone’s experiences with the new 7/1 ADD this year and any issues that had arisen. The consensus was that while the new ADD was more in line with grades, that there were still some issues with how the 7/1 ADD was implemented, particularly in regards to the competition levels at AAU Nationals. Many teams at Nationals had players with July and August birthdays, who were typically a grade ahead of the majority of players in any given age group.
Several different ADD approaches were discussed, including those being debated on the AAU GBB message boards, such as adding a grade component to the current ADD, moving the ADD to 9/1, or making no changes. The group also discussed how the boys AAU age-groups are determined, and thought that Ms. Patrick should consider proposing the boys ADD rule as an option, as everyone expected ADD issues to again be addressed at this year’s Convention.
The group also discussed the costs of AAU Nationals as a significant issue in 2008. The group focused its discussion on the location of host sites as a major factor in why participation has decreased. The group also agreed that daily/week admissions fees for AAU Nationals (for all fans and family members) should be eliminated.
Issues for PV Chair’s Consideration
Thereafter, Mike Witmer of the YBAM Sparks moved to have these three issues sent to Ms. Patrick for her consideration as proposals for the AAU National Convention. Ms. McCormick-Dix seconded the motion. The motion was passed unanimously.
The three proposals are as follows:
1) ADD: Consider following the AAU Boys’ Age Determination rules/approach –
September 1, 2009 shall be the determining date for the age of the competitor for all districts and national championship events. Eligibility to participate is based first on the age determining date. The grade of the athlete is not a consideration if the athlete meets the age determining date. An athlete who does not meet the age determining date may qualify under the grade exception rule where the athlete’s grade as of 3/1/09 is used and then a maximum age based on a 9/1/08 age limit one year higher than the required age on 9/1/09. In the 8U/2nd Grade through the 14U/8th Grade division, each team is allowed a maximum of three grade exception athletes. There is no limit on the number of grade exception athletes in the 15U/9th Grade division through the Senior Boys’ division.
2) Nationals Location: AAU GBB should revisit all bids for Nationals host sites for the next three years in order to choose locations that would encourage more participation.
3) Admissions Fee: AAU GBB should eliminate all admissions fees for AAU Nationals, because it is a significant expense that prohibits many families and parents from watching their own children compete at AAU Nationals.
Key Calendar Dates for 2008-2009 AAU Fiscal Year
Mr. Stadnik then reviewed the key dates for the upcoming 2008-2009 program year. The committee meetings are tentatively scheduled for the 2nd Wednesday in every month as follows:
9/10 – next meeting
10/8 – discuss proposals that will be offered at National Convention
11/12 – report from the National Convention
(No December 2008 meeting)
1/14 – DQT bids due
2/11 – DQT bids/hosts finalized
3/11 – DQT window, other issues discussed
4/8 – Draw Date
(No May 2009 meeting)
6/10 – Post-DQT review
The 2009 Draw Date is tentatively scheduled for April 8, 2009. The 2009 DQT window is tentatively scheduled for April 20 – May 18.
Next, Mr. Stadnik alerted the group that a PVAAU GBB Supplemental Handbook would be updated and circulated in the upcoming month(s). Mr. Stadnik also advised the group to be on the lookout for any NCAA rule updates that may be coming up in the near future.
New Business
No new business was brought before the committee.
Meeting Adjourned and Next Meeting
The next PVAAU meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, September 10, 2008. The meeting was adjourned at 9:15pm.
