Policy Number: 120-3
Last Updated: 1/27/2020
Policy Title: Team Travel – Chartered Air Transportation
Administrative Contact & Phone: Athletic Business Office: 568-3829 or 568-2367
JMU Contact & Phone: Jayne Sorel, A/P Supervisor of Travel, 568-8019
Websites: JMU Financial Procedures Manual
POLICY: See the JMU FPM at the website listed above which states that chartering an aircraft must be authorized in advance by the AVP for Administration & Finance (Charles King). Athletics will execute chartered air travel in accordance with Commonwealth and University requirements.
PURPOSE: To provide procedures to book chartered aircraft travel that has been approved in support of a team’s competition schedule.
DOCUMENTS:
- Cost analysis
- Sport Program Letter with AD, Sport Administrator, and AVP for Administration & Finance signatures
- Official Travel Roster (including JMU and non-JMU personnel)
PROCEDURES:
In addition to the website information:
Teams may request chartered travel in order to expedite the travel of student-athletes to and from JMU. Reasons for charter travel are to reduce student-athlete missed class time; unknown competition time, difficulty in traveling with large travel parties, and/or cost savings over commercial travel.
Coaches requesting authorization for charter transportation must receive approval from their sport administrator. Upon approval, the sport program will work with the ABO to ensure the all requirements are completed.
Sport Programs Complete the Following:
- Complete cost analysis including all costs associated with each compared mode of travel (i.e. commercial to charter).
- Letter from the Sport Program to AD requesting the charter travel and listing explicit reasons for the charter. This letter should contain date, time, and location of athletic contest, and travel dates. This form contains a signature line for the sport administrator, athletic director, and AVP Administration and Finance.
- Official Travel Roster – name and position (i.e. athlete, manager, coach, etc.) Be explicit. It is usually not feasible to give the names at the preliminary stage of requesting a charter. The roster can read, for example: 56 student athletes, 12 coaches, 12 managers, 6 athletic trainers, etc.
Turn in all completed forms to the ABO, which will coordinate all signature approvals, starting with the letter to the athletic director. The ABO will coordinate the approval process through the Athletic Administration, Administration and Finance, and Accounts Payable.
Official Travel Roster:
The official travel party will include those participants in the athletic contest that are authorized to travel. If there are open seats available, it is at the discretion of the University President to invite individuals (i.e. Athletic Program sponsors and supporters, donors, business partners, etc.) to fill seats that would be otherwise unused. As there are no additional costs to the University for filling unused seats, no cost is passed on to these travelers. These names do not need to be on the original charter travel roster (item 3 above). However, this information must be updated by the President’s Office and supplied to the Athletic Business Office at least one week before the date of competition.
