Page 288 - (FINAL!) UPDATED 13.0) 2020-2021 HANDBOOK - SEPTEMBER 2020 EDITION_Neat

• For misconduct (unrelated to athletic ability) found by the person or body in charge of general discipline at the institution,
after following the same procedures as in other disciplinary matters, to be serious enough to warrant permanent suspension
or dismissal from the athletic program;
• If the student-athlete voluntarily withdraws from a sport prior to the institutions first competition in that sport;
• Graduation.
• An athletic scholarship may be canceled based on the four reasons listed above and can be replaced at the next term, or at any term
thereafter. A Release Agreement for the vacating student-athlete must be signed and submitted online with the NJCAA National Office at
the time of replacement, and the new student-athlete’s Letter of Intent must be electronically submitted via the NJCAA Online Letter of
Intent system prior to any benefit being provided.
• Cancellation/replacement must be at term, not mid-term.

Case 2
Clarification on NJCAA Letters of Intent

The following case is regarding NJCAA Letters of Intent: who is to be submitted online, who is to sign a Letter of Intent and who
is considered to be a counter towards the total number of Letters of Intent/athletic scholarships.

All NJCAA Letters of Intent are to be submitted online starting with the 2007-2008 academic year. In the past there were two ways to report
scholarships to the NJCAA: the Letter of Intent and/or the Scholarship Certification Form. The Scholarship Certification Form is no longer
being used beginning with the 2007-2008 academic year. All athletes receiving athletic aid must sign a Letter of Intent and that Letter of Intent
must be submitted online.

A common misconception is that every athlete on the roster must sign a letter of intent. That is not currently, nor has it ever been, an accurate
statement. ONLY those athletes receiving athletic aid must sign a letter of intent and that letter of intent must be submitted online.

Please keep in mind - All athletes who will be participating during the season (regardless of whether or not they are signed to a letter of intent)
must have their eligibility submitted online through the Online Eligibility Program.

An example: A men’s basketball team has 20 players, only 15 may sign an NJCAA Letter of Intent as per the NJCAA Sport Procedures. If a
college was required to sign every player on their roster to an NJCAA Letter of intent, then the roster of certified players would be limited to 15
players. This is not an accurate interpretation of the rules. Only if your college is giving athletic aid to a student-athlete must an NJCAA Letter
of Intent be signed by the athlete and that NJCAA Letter of Intent submitted online.

Walk-ons:
Must “walk-ons” sign an NJCAA Letter of Intent? That answer is “yes” only if that walk-on is receiving athletic aid. That NJCAA Letter of
Intent must be submitted online and the walk-on is now considered a counter towards the overall number of individuals permitted on
scholarship in that sport. If that walk-on is not receiving athletic aid, he/she may sign a letter of intent for no athletic aid but it is not
mandatory.

No Athletic Aid:
Additional confusion centers around those athletes who are signing NJCAA Letters of Intent but are not receiving athletic aid: “no athletic aid”.
A college may choose to sign a student-athlete to an NJCAA Letter of Intent without offering any athletic aid. That NJCAA Letter of Intent
would bind the student-athlete to that college and would also count towards the maximum number of allowable NJCAA Letters of Intent as
per the numbers in the NJCAA Sports Procedures.

Maximum Number of Signees:
In reviewing the NJCAA Sports Procedures, the third column from the right is titled: “# of Letter of Intent Signees/ Scholarships”. This is a
head-count of individuals who have signed Letters of Intent which includes those athletes receiving athletic aid and those who have signed an
NJCAA Letter of Intent whether or not he/she is receiving athletic aid.

The Rule of Thumb here is: Any individual who signs an NJCAA Letter of Intent is a counter regardless of the amount of athletic scholarship
he/she is receiving.

Example: Baseball is allowed 24 individuals signed to an NJCAA Letters of Intent. Twenty (20) athletes have been recruited, are receiving
athletic aid and have signed NJCAA Letters of Intent. At that point the college has four (4) Letters of Intent left for athletes to sign. Those final
four Letters of Intent can be walk-ons, recruits or individuals receiving no athletic aid. If a college signs student-athletes to the remaining four
Letters of Intent, regardless of the amount of athletic aid and regardless of what type of athlete (recruited, a walk-on. etc.), the college has
signed 24 Letters of Intent and has reached the maximum number of Letters of Intent allowed to sign in the sport of baseball.

Case 3
Online Letter of Intent Q&A

The following questions and answers are regarding the Online Letter of Intent program. All student-athletes receiving athletic aid will need to
sign NJCAA Letters of Intent for the 2020-2021 academic year.
1. Question: When must a college complete and file a NJCAA Letter of Intent?
Answer: Any time a college is providing athletic aid to a student-athlete or are using the NJCAA Letter of Intent to commit a
student-athlete to their college, an online form must be completed and submitted.