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Robert Morris University Athletics

Autographed Items Policy

ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY, OFFICE OF ATHLETIC COMPLIANCE


Autographed Items Policy

The procedures contained in this policy were developed to give direction to staff members who receive requests for items to be autographed by student-athletes. The policy is designed to protect the eligibility of our student-athletes, and avoid inadvertent violations.

Each sport is empowered to make its own decisions regarding the autographing of items, provided the request is permissible per NCAA regulations, and all applicable Robert Morris University procedures are followed. No student-athlete should autograph any item without following these procedures.

Requests for autographed items customarily come from either:

  1. GROUPS (usually for fundraisers), or
  2. INDIVIDUALS.

Requests by Groups (charities, organizations, etc.)

Any group requesting an autographed item for a fundraiser must complete the “Promotional Activities” Form. They must provide a letter of request, on the organization's letterhead, stating who the request is from and where the proceeds will go. The form is completed by a representative of the requesting group and returned to the point person. The point person then submits it to the Compliance Office for approval.

  • Remember, per Robert Morris University policy, no items (footballs, basketballs, etc.) are to be given free of charge to any group. The item(s) to be autographed must be provided by the group.
  • Broadly speaking, three types of groups are permitted to receive and utilize autographed items in fundraising events. They are:
    • Institutional entities (Robert Morris University groups such as CAC, etc.);
    • Charitable/non-profit groups;
    • Educational groups (elementary and middle schools, etc.).
  • Most importantly, it is not permissible for items autographed by student-athletes or coaches to be:
    • Used by any school containing students in the 9th grade or above; or
    • Used by any group to raise funds which will be used to provide college scholarships.
  • Once the fundraiser is approved by the Compliance Office, the item may be autographed.

Requests by Individuals

Individuals seeking to get items autographed by student-athletes generally do so for their personal use/display. Occasionally, however, unscrupulous individuals attempt to gain autographs for the purpose of personal profit. The sport's point person on an autograph request should confirm the autographed item is only for the individual's personal use or display before submitting an autograph request form to the compliance office.

EXCEPTIONS:

Two types of individual requests do not require submission of an autograph form for Compliance Approval:

  1. Requests made to student-athletes in a game-related setting (e.g. pre-game, post-game, road hotel); or,
  2. Student-athlete autographs provided in an autograph session organized by the athletics department.

    3. Upon approval from the Compliance Office, it is extremely important that the autograph must be personalized (e.g. "To Eric"). This greatly reduces the potential for abuse.

    ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY

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