We have moved! The Division 1 National SAAC Now has a Web site where we will provide even more information to enhance the student-athlete experience.
You can find this at: http://nationalsaac.weebly.com/
See you there!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Vice Chair Scott Krapf's Legislative Council Experience
With sound prep work under my belt and a cache of feedback from student-athletes, I made my way to Indianapolis April 12 and 13 where I had the opportunity to attend the NCAA Division I Legislative Council meetings. This is one of the last steps for this cycle of legislative proposals that the National SAAC has been looking at for almost a year. With a busy agenda on our plates and a number of proposals to revisit, the Legislative Council was hard at work over the course of the two day meetings. From here, the Board of Directors will have an opportunity to review the proposals for final consideration.
I was very impressed to see how thorough the committee looked at everything. It is clear that the Legislative Council makes a conscientious effort to examine all angles of the proposals that they look at before taking action. Not only does the committee have to look at the impact of their decisions, there are also a number of other issues that are examined and considered. Some considered are the legal ramifications and others being the opinions of other cabinets and committees.
I was invited to dinner by a few of the committee members. We went to Naked Chopstix, a sushi restaurant in the Broadripple neighborhood near downtown Indianapolis. The food was delicious and the company was even more enjoyable. It was nice to be able to put the agendas aside for awhile and just get to know some of the members of the Legislative Council on a more personal level.
Serving on the Legislative Council is such an amazing opportunity that comes with the position of Vice Chair. However, I give the entire credit to the National SAAC and all student-athletes across the country who have worked tirelessly to garner appropriate feedback relative to the proposals and issues that we looked at. Your work helped to make my role in serving SAAC much easier and gives me the confidence to attend these meetings with a wide perspective of the student-athlete voice. For that, I sincerely thank you!
-Scott Krapf
I was very impressed to see how thorough the committee looked at everything. It is clear that the Legislative Council makes a conscientious effort to examine all angles of the proposals that they look at before taking action. Not only does the committee have to look at the impact of their decisions, there are also a number of other issues that are examined and considered. Some considered are the legal ramifications and others being the opinions of other cabinets and committees.
I was invited to dinner by a few of the committee members. We went to Naked Chopstix, a sushi restaurant in the Broadripple neighborhood near downtown Indianapolis. The food was delicious and the company was even more enjoyable. It was nice to be able to put the agendas aside for awhile and just get to know some of the members of the Legislative Council on a more personal level.
Serving on the Legislative Council is such an amazing opportunity that comes with the position of Vice Chair. However, I give the entire credit to the National SAAC and all student-athletes across the country who have worked tirelessly to garner appropriate feedback relative to the proposals and issues that we looked at. Your work helped to make my role in serving SAAC much easier and gives me the confidence to attend these meetings with a wide perspective of the student-athlete voice. For that, I sincerely thank you!
-Scott Krapf
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Getting to know the National SAAC'ers
Hailing from Cal State Sacramento, Anne Morrison represents the Student-Athletes of the Big Sky Conference. Anne is a senior working on her degree in Journalism and photography. She is a member of the women’s rowing team.
How long have you been on National SAAC?
Second year
How did you become involved with SAAC?
I volunteered to help out on the campus level and became very involved. When the conference position on national SAAC opened, I applied and was selected for the position.
What's one cool thing your campus SAAC does that makes you unique?
Our campus SAAC has done a lot of work in the community and it has sparked community service projects within the individual teams, which is great. Also, SAAC gives out student planners and memory sticks every year to our student-athletes to emphasize the student aspect of our collegiate careers.
What is your favorite memory from National SAAC?
So far, it has been the in depth discussions we have over various issues and the work we put into each and every proposal.
What is the best thing about being a D1 Athlete?
The competition is, by far, the best aspect of being a D1 athlete. There is nothing more gratifying then beating the big dogs.
(Anne's in the hat and sunglasses)
Favorite food?
Ouch, that's a hard one. I'll eat pretty much anything.
Favorite TV show?
At the moment, Glee
Favorite Musical Artist?
Jel
Favorite Pro Sports Team?
SF Giants. Got to represent the hometown.
If you could meet one person in the world, who would it be?
Dead: Irving Penn, Alive: Johnny Depp
Place you’ve never been that you’d love to visit?
Madrid, Spain
The actor who plays you in the movie version of your life?
Ellen Page
Hobby?
Throwing pottery and hiking
One interesting fact about yourself?
Besides Canada, I've never been out of the country.
What are some of your career goals?
My goal is to be a foreign correspondent in the Middle East.
Check back next week as I interview myself. Read about Bob Nolte from Binghamton University and the easiest sport to do, Diving, as well as his/my interesting summer job dressing up as a frog.
How long have you been on National SAAC?
Second year
How did you become involved with SAAC?
I volunteered to help out on the campus level and became very involved. When the conference position on national SAAC opened, I applied and was selected for the position.
What's one cool thing your campus SAAC does that makes you unique?
Our campus SAAC has done a lot of work in the community and it has sparked community service projects within the individual teams, which is great. Also, SAAC gives out student planners and memory sticks every year to our student-athletes to emphasize the student aspect of our collegiate careers.
What is your favorite memory from National SAAC?
So far, it has been the in depth discussions we have over various issues and the work we put into each and every proposal.
What is the best thing about being a D1 Athlete?
The competition is, by far, the best aspect of being a D1 athlete. There is nothing more gratifying then beating the big dogs.
(Anne's in the hat and sunglasses)
Favorite food?
Ouch, that's a hard one. I'll eat pretty much anything.
Favorite TV show?
At the moment, Glee
Favorite Musical Artist?
Jel
Favorite Pro Sports Team?
SF Giants. Got to represent the hometown.
If you could meet one person in the world, who would it be?
Dead: Irving Penn, Alive: Johnny Depp
Place you’ve never been that you’d love to visit?
Madrid, Spain
The actor who plays you in the movie version of your life?
Ellen Page
Hobby?
Throwing pottery and hiking
One interesting fact about yourself?
Besides Canada, I've never been out of the country.
What are some of your career goals?
My goal is to be a foreign correspondent in the Middle East.
Check back next week as I interview myself. Read about Bob Nolte from Binghamton University and the easiest sport to do, Diving, as well as his/my interesting summer job dressing up as a frog.
Monday, March 22, 2010
The Northeast Conference SAAC
By: Lauren Chapman
The Northeast Conference is one of the smallest NCAA Division I conferences, mainly composed of schools in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, and Rhode Island. During the weekend of February 27 and 28, our conference got together for our first in-person meeting of the year in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Surprisingly, there is more than just chocolate in this town. The area is home to the Cancer Recovery Foundation which has a “Bear-able Bag” program that our conference worked with personally. The program is the largest distributor of gifts to kids with cancer in the world. Huge companies such as Crayola and Mattel donate to the foundation and it was our jobs to put the boxes together that get sent to hospitals all over the country.
Mattel donated around 6,000 Barbie’s to the foundation and it was part of our job to unload them out of the boxes. We spent a whole afternoon there and we all felt very accomplished afterwards. Prior to our meeting we had a conference wide penny wars where $2,803.91 was raised for the Cancer Recovery Foundation as well. It was a great experience and we are looking forward to doing it again next year.
For the first time this year we decided to elect a chair and two vice chairs to run the conference SAAC. This will change the formats for future meetings and it will hopefully be run by only the chair instead of our head liaison.
Along with this change, we decided to add the Northeast Conference Award for Excellence in Community Service which would recognize one institution in the conference annually for their community service efforts. The winner will be decided at our February in-person meeting next year. This is a great opportunity for institutions to be recognized for all their hard work within their communities.
The meeting to start off the year was a great success and we were happy to see some major changes within the conference. Our next in-person meeting will be in November where more conference issues will be discussed and hopefully pushed in the right direction.
The Northeast Conference is one of the smallest NCAA Division I conferences, mainly composed of schools in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, and Rhode Island. During the weekend of February 27 and 28, our conference got together for our first in-person meeting of the year in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Surprisingly, there is more than just chocolate in this town. The area is home to the Cancer Recovery Foundation which has a “Bear-able Bag” program that our conference worked with personally. The program is the largest distributor of gifts to kids with cancer in the world. Huge companies such as Crayola and Mattel donate to the foundation and it was our jobs to put the boxes together that get sent to hospitals all over the country.
Mattel donated around 6,000 Barbie’s to the foundation and it was part of our job to unload them out of the boxes. We spent a whole afternoon there and we all felt very accomplished afterwards. Prior to our meeting we had a conference wide penny wars where $2,803.91 was raised for the Cancer Recovery Foundation as well. It was a great experience and we are looking forward to doing it again next year.
For the first time this year we decided to elect a chair and two vice chairs to run the conference SAAC. This will change the formats for future meetings and it will hopefully be run by only the chair instead of our head liaison.
Along with this change, we decided to add the Northeast Conference Award for Excellence in Community Service which would recognize one institution in the conference annually for their community service efforts. The winner will be decided at our February in-person meeting next year. This is a great opportunity for institutions to be recognized for all their hard work within their communities.
The meeting to start off the year was a great success and we were happy to see some major changes within the conference. Our next in-person meeting will be in November where more conference issues will be discussed and hopefully pushed in the right direction.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Get to know Aminah Charles
Aminah Charles is the representative from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). A Volleyball Student-Athlete at Hampton University, she graduated with a degree in Sports Management.
How long have you been on National SAAC?
2 Years
How did you become involved with SAAC?
I became involved during my sophomore year after learning about SAAC as a freshman from senior leaders on the team. They gave such positive feedback about the group of student-athletes on the committee and I really just wanted to be a part of this great group of people who worked hard to make the student athlete experience amazing.
What's one cool thing your campus SAAC does that makes you unique?
Every year we do a Penny Drive and raise money for a different charity. We also pay a visit and do community service at a charity or organization we select.
What is your favorite memory from National SAAC?
It would have to be my first meeting in Indianapolis. Everyone said I would grow close to the members in a week’s time than I had to anyone before, and it was so true!
What is the best thing about being a D1 Athlete?
We are D1, so we set the bar!
Favorite food?
Chicken
Favorite TV show?
Greys Anatomy
Favorite Musical Artist?
Beyonce
Favorite Pro Sports Team?
Cleveland Cavs
If you could meet one person in the world, who would it be?
Beyonce
Place you’ve never been that you’d love to visit?
Europe
The actor who plays you in the movie version of your life?
Gabrielle Union
Hobby?
Sports
One interesting fact about yourself?
I love to sing and dance...and I'm not good at either!
What are some of your career goals?
Work for one of the world’s biggest sports brands in sport marketing or brand marketing.
Thanks for reading and come back next week to read about Anne Morrison, a women’s rower from Cal State, Sacramento who enjoys Glee and throwing pottery.
How long have you been on National SAAC?
2 Years
How did you become involved with SAAC?
I became involved during my sophomore year after learning about SAAC as a freshman from senior leaders on the team. They gave such positive feedback about the group of student-athletes on the committee and I really just wanted to be a part of this great group of people who worked hard to make the student athlete experience amazing.
What's one cool thing your campus SAAC does that makes you unique?
Every year we do a Penny Drive and raise money for a different charity. We also pay a visit and do community service at a charity or organization we select.
What is your favorite memory from National SAAC?
It would have to be my first meeting in Indianapolis. Everyone said I would grow close to the members in a week’s time than I had to anyone before, and it was so true!
What is the best thing about being a D1 Athlete?
We are D1, so we set the bar!
Favorite food?
Chicken
Favorite TV show?
Greys Anatomy
Favorite Musical Artist?
Beyonce
Favorite Pro Sports Team?
Cleveland Cavs
If you could meet one person in the world, who would it be?
Beyonce
Place you’ve never been that you’d love to visit?
Europe
The actor who plays you in the movie version of your life?
Gabrielle Union
Hobby?
Sports
One interesting fact about yourself?
I love to sing and dance...and I'm not good at either!
What are some of your career goals?
Work for one of the world’s biggest sports brands in sport marketing or brand marketing.
Thanks for reading and come back next week to read about Anne Morrison, a women’s rower from Cal State, Sacramento who enjoys Glee and throwing pottery.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
What 'Student-Athlete Life' entails
We have started this new section to highlight some of the ins-and-outs of student-athlete life. This will include anything from healthy recipes to interesting ideas of things to do on campus. We hope you enjoy this new section!
Inside Student Government
By Zack Solomon
As a member of the NCAA Student Athlete Advisory Committee, I feel it is extremely important to be a leader in all aspects of your life. For me, that meant getting involved in my campus’ student government. Not only did I want to be a leader in the athletic realm of my college experience, but I wanted to be a leader to the entire student body.
During my first three years of college, I had very little knowledge of what student government did. As I started to learn more about their cause, I came to the realization that the student-athlete voice was not present in any shape or form in the student government structure at American University. Therefore, I made it one of my main priorities to have student-athlete representation in my school’s student government.
After unsuccessfully running for student government president - I lost by less than 100 votes - the incoming president created a position that oversaw all student/athletic areas, from varsity athletics to intramural sports. This opportunity has opened new avenues for me in terms of pushing the cause of student-athletes and students in general.
My experience in the student government in the past six months has allowed me to intertwine my responsibilities as president of our school's SAAC, to my role as Director of Athletics and Recreation for student government. Two experiences that I have had the pleasure to carry out in my position with the student government were to sit on the athletics committee for the Board of Trustees and to serve on the Campus Life, Athletics and Recreation Committee.
My insight as a student-athlete has helped both committees on numerous issues, including coming up with creative ways to raise school spirit and insight on what the American University should do to upgrade facilities to better the student and student-athlete experience at American University. If I were not involved with the student government, these opportunities probably would not have been available to me.
As a member of the NCAA Student Athlete Advisory Committee, I feel it is extremely important to be a leader in all aspects of your life. For me, that meant getting involved in my campus’ student government. Not only did I want to be a leader in the athletic realm of my college experience, but I wanted to be a leader to the entire student body.
During my first three years of college, I had very little knowledge of what student government did. As I started to learn more about their cause, I came to the realization that the student-athlete voice was not present in any shape or form in the student government structure at American University. Therefore, I made it one of my main priorities to have student-athlete representation in my school’s student government.
After unsuccessfully running for student government president - I lost by less than 100 votes - the incoming president created a position that oversaw all student/athletic areas, from varsity athletics to intramural sports. This opportunity has opened new avenues for me in terms of pushing the cause of student-athletes and students in general.
My experience in the student government in the past six months has allowed me to intertwine my responsibilities as president of our school's SAAC, to my role as Director of Athletics and Recreation for student government. Two experiences that I have had the pleasure to carry out in my position with the student government were to sit on the athletics committee for the Board of Trustees and to serve on the Campus Life, Athletics and Recreation Committee.
My insight as a student-athlete has helped both committees on numerous issues, including coming up with creative ways to raise school spirit and insight on what the American University should do to upgrade facilities to better the student and student-athlete experience at American University. If I were not involved with the student government, these opportunities probably would not have been available to me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)