Jan 20, 2014 04:09 PM EST By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

The NCAA and its Division I "power conferences" may be having a dialogue to give the schools more power, but the student-athletes who attend those schools are not necessarily on board.

According to Inside Higher Ed, Maddie Salamone, a female lacrosse player for Duke University, addressed the room of some 800 college presidents, athletic directors, faculty members, representatives, conference officials, NCAA faculty and more. She said the new dialogue surrounding a proposal for a new Division I model is favorable for conferences and schools, but not students.

"There's been a lot of rhetoric around this room about how important the student-athlete voice is," Salamone said. "The proof is in the pudding.... The student-athlete voice is not as meaningful as we have been led to believe in the past."

The dialogue has been ongoing for two days at the annual NCAA convention in San Diego. This year, the NCAA is seriously considering giving the five "well-resourced conferences" - SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC - more "legislative autonomy" to make decisions regarding their schools and student-athletes.

While these five conferences have pulled in much larger profits than any others, all Division I conferences have had to adhere to the same rules. The new proposal would change that and likely give athletic directors and conference heads more control of their profits, set recruiting rules, financial aid and even athlete benefits.

The NCAA has doled out countless penalties to schools who have either improperly paid its players in some way or looked the other way when someone else did so. Several power conference leaders believe expanded benefits would curb these NCAA violations.

On the other hand, the NCAA is currently fighting a lawsuit filed by former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon for using his name, image and likeness without being compensated. If O'Bannon eventually wins, the NCAA could get a major facelift anyway.

Several university presidents said the proposal is in dialogue stages because it is not ready to be signed into existence, Inside Higher Ed reported. Salamone said for the dialogue to continue, it will be vital to have student-athletes be represented by one of their own.

"We are the only ones affected by these rules 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," she said. "Anybody that is going to create and pass legislation relating to student-athletes must have an athlete on that board, with voting and advisory [influence] at every level."

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