Policy & Advocacy

As an association, NIRSA strives to monitor and track policy and legislative issues with the potential to impact our members or the campus communities they serve.

View Recent Policy Pages

NIRSA Policy Agenda

NIRSA’s Government Affairs Committee monitors legislative issues being discussed at the state and U.S. federal levels. When these issues impact higher education and/or NIRSA’s value areas, the committee strives to help members understand the impact these issues have on their work in the campus recreation field. When possible, the committee advocates to empower member voices in these larger conversations so that the broader higher education world can understand the impact of campus recreation.

Each year the committee, with approval from the NIRSA Board of Directors, sets the policy agenda for the Association. This agenda comprises what issues the group anticipates will dominate legislative action and allocates an action strategy based on current knowledge. Things may shift as the year goes on, but the agenda gives the group a sense of priority in the always crowded legislative landscape. It also gives members a working sense of what they can expect to hear more about as the year progresses.

2023-2024 Policy Agenda | 2022-2023 Policy Agenda | 2021-2022 Policy Agenda

Recent NIRSA Position Statements

Statement on Transgender Sport Participation Bills (2021)
Read the Statement | Read the news article
Guiding comments on Title IX (2018)
Read the comments | Read the news article
Health & Wellbeing in Higher Education: A Commitment to Student Success (2018)
Read the statement | Read the news article | See the webpage
NIRSA Board endorses Okanagan Charter (2017)
Read the Charter | Read the news article
NIRSA supports marriage equality (2013)
Read the statement | Read the news article
NIRSA Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Statement (2013)
Read the statement | Read the news article
Statement against concealed weapon carry on university campuses (2011)
Read the statement

Statements and Comments on Recent Policy Matters NIRSA Has Joined

Higher Education Health Act (2023)
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month resolution (2023)
Request for Organizational Support for a College Health Index (2023)
JED Foundation’s Letter to Improve Mental Health on College Campuses (2022)
Support for expansion of SPAN (State Physical Activity & Nutrition) funding to all 50 states and funding for Active People, Healthy Nation consistent with the National Strategy on Hunger Nutrition and Health (2022)
Public Comments on Title IX Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, SAHEC policy group (2022)
Public Comments on Title IX Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, NASPA (2022)
Organizational sign on letter for H.R. 7980 – student loan deferrals for victims of sexual violence (2022)
Free and Open Academic Inquiry and Debate on Our Campuses is Essential to Our Democracy and National Wellbeing (2022)
SAHEC Public Comment on Title IX Hearing in Relation to Gender Identity (2021)
Advocacy for front-line campus staff to be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination (2021)
Comments in Response to Changes to the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) Data Collection Form (2021)
Support for CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO) for FY 2022, including funding for Active People Healthy Nation (2021)
Coalition letter for H.R. 2525/S. 744, the “Report and Educate About Campus Hazing (REACH) Act” (2021)
Coalition letter for H.R. 4327, “Enhancing Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Through Campus Planning Act” (2021)
Letter to House on the Improving Mental Health for Students Act (2021)
Recommendation to Increase Federal Efforts to Promote Physical Activity During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic (2021)
Coalition letter for H.R. 3539: Behavioral Intervention Guidelines Act (2021)
ASAE letter asking Congress to pass further COVID-19 relief and support for 501(c)(6) organizations (2020)
Letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee showing support for passing H.R.2891, the Physical Activities Recommendations for American Act (2020)
Hope Center letter to Congress asking for SNAP work requirement for post-secondary students to be suspended in COVID-19 emergency response legislation (2020)
Physical Activity Alliance (PAA) letter to the House of representatives supporting INVEST in America Act to help make transportation safe and accessible for all (2020)
ASAE letter to Congress to support associations impacted by COVID-19 (2020)
Letter from ACSM asking for inclusion of the PHIT Act in COVID support considerations (2020)
SAHEC letter to Secretary of Education to suspend Title IX regulation changes in light of COVID’s impact on post-secondary institutions (2020)
ASAE letter reiterating the need to include associations in the COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) (2020)
Letter to National Center for Education Statistics appreciating updates to National Post-secondary Student Aid Survey for 202 that reflect how COVID-19 has impacted students (2020)
ASAE letter asking for 501(c)(6) organizations to be considered for COVID-19 aid (2020)
SAHEC letter asking for all college student employees, students with disabilities, and students support services to be considered in COVID-19 federal aid (2020)

Stronger Together

Knowing many voices are often stronger than one, NIRSA works to combine knowledge and expertise with partners across both higher education and the physical activity space.

Physical Activity Alliance

The Physical Activity Alliance (PAA) works to promote physical activity in the United States. Its foundation was a merger of the National Physical Activity Plan Alliance, the National Physical Activity Society, and the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity. NIRSA has long been a board member of the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity and continues to be a board member of PAA.

SAHEC

The Student Affairs in Higher Education Consortium (SAHEC), a CHEMA subgroup, promotes the understanding of learning and development as intertwined, inseparable elements of the college student experience.

NIRSA has joined with a subset of SAHEC members in hiring Active Policy Solutions to assist with monitoring, tracking, analyzing, and determining appropriate action on issues relevant to our associations.

Legislation Regarding Transgender Athletes’ Sport Participation

For several years, NIRSA’s Government Affairs Committee has been tracking the increasing number of bills being introduced into state legislatures regarding transgender athletes’ participation in sports. Many of these bills name elements of campus recreation—e.g. intramurals and/or club sports—specifically.

In 2021, the NIRSA Board of Directors approved a statement that outlines NIRSA’s support for the rights of transgender individuals to participate in sport based on their gender identity. Several of NIRSA’s partner associations in higher education have signed on in support of the statement.

In April 2023, the U.S. Department of Education released its proposed change to its Title IX regulations on students’ eligibility for athletic teams. NIRSA submitted comments during the public comment period for this rule.

As bills related to transgender athlete participation continue to be introduced into nearly every state legislature, NIRSA has curated this space to share resources with members.

NIRSA’s Gender & Trans Inclusion in Collegiate Recreation Webinar Series

Gender Identity & Trans Inclusion in Collegiate Recreation, a four-part webinar series, will dive into this topic. Each program is also available individually. The series includes:

Policy Pages

NIRSA posts weekly copies of Federal and state policy and legislative updates. These active policy solutions track federal and state policy and legislative news around a curated list of topics that are pertinent to higher education and campus recreation.