NJCAA holds inaugural SAC meeting and introduces representatives

Charlotte, NC - The NJCAA Student-Athlete Council (SAC) held its inaugural meeting over Zoom Wednesday, November 4, and announced the 48 student-athlete council representatives. The first meeting discussed the overall goals of the council, an overview of the NJCAA governance structure, the impact of SAC, the NJCAA Student-Athlete Welfare and Safety Council's involvement, as well as what meetings will look like moving forward. 

In August, the NJCAA announced the creation of the NJCAA Student-Athlete Council (SAC) and appointed Heather Conger, NJCAA Region 19 Women's Assistant Director, and Aaron Bouyea, NJCAA Region 3 Men's Assistant Director, chairs of the council. The chairs are joined by Bryson Collins, NJCAA National Office liaison. The council contains two student-athletes, one male and one female, from each of the 24 NJCAA regions. In doing so, there is an abundant opportunity to engage and grow on a national level to further professional development, that surpasses academics and sports. 

For more on the creation of the NJCAA Student-Athlete Council, visit: National Office announces NJCAA Student-Athlete Council. 

Collins moderated Wednesday's meeting and administrators on the call included Dr. Christopher Parker, NJCAA President & CEO, Mick McDaniel, NJCAA Board of Regents Chairman, Heather Conger, Aaron Bouyea, Donna Sledge and Kyle Roepnack from the NJCAA Student-Athlete Welfare and Safety Council, and special guest Dr. Patty Keller Ed. D., University of Cincinnati (OH) Sport Administration Assistant Professor-Educator. The NJCAA Student-Athlete Welfare and Safety Council will work closely with SAC to ensure the well-being of student-athletes and to closely support them as needed. 

"The student-athletes have a unique opportunity to create SAC to fit their needs in the current world and let it develop as the landscape of college athletics fluctuates," stated Keller. "I am honored to be a part of the inaugural NJCAA SAC meeting and to be a resource in the future. This is an opportunity for the student-athletes of the NJCAA to use this platform to allow their voice to be heard, to implement change, grow their leadership skills and strengthen the national NJCAA community."

Looking ahead, SAC will hold five meetings next semester with several presenters and guest speakers. Meetings will be utilized to discuss current SAC programs across NJCAA regions, to go over relevant standings in the association, to bring forward any concerns or questions, and to hear from leaders within the association.

When asked about the inaugural meeting and what they look forward to, SAC representatives said: 

"I am excited about being a representative for student-athletes in my region that do not normally get a voice in these matters. Being able to discuss certain student-athlete issues with teammates from my sport as well as other sports will help us to decide whether or not a rule is working. The inaugural meeting was very informative and made me excited for more to come."

-Lillie Redmond, NJCAA Region 18, College of Southern Nevada, Volleyball

"When it comes to my involvement in SAC, I'm really looking forward to finding ways to improve the NJCAA experience. Being the first time something like this was made for the NJCAA, I believe that all of us have a huge opportunity in front of us that we must take advantage of especially during times like these. The better we work together the more problems we are going to be able to solve especially for future NJCAA student-athletes. Something that really excites me is the fact that we have an array of different athletes participating in different sports which gets more and more different perspectives of the college athletic experience. I thought the first inaugural meeting was great. I thought the presentation was very informative and I liked how everybody had the chance to introduce themselves. I'm looking forward to attending the next meeting."

-Ariel DeJesus, NJCAA Region 15, Nassau, Football 

"I look forward to having a voice in my community as we discuss ways to help improve the college experience for student-athletes in the NJCAA. I am proud and excited beyond words to have this opportunity to represent Region I and the thousands of student-athletes in their respective sports in Arizona. I hope to gain a sense of community on the national level, where student-athletes and council members can propose suggestions and discuss new ideas to forge a dialogue about positive change in our institutions. I thought the first inaugural meeting was fantastic. I was pleased to hear from the impressive panel of board members as they provided insight for what the council is truly about. It makes me excited for future meetings and what is yet to come."

-Kaitlin Bruchhauser, NJCAA Region 2, Glendale, Volleyball

"I am most looking forward to developing great relationships with both the administration of the NJCAA and the student-athletes that are involved on the council. I want to gain valuable leadership experience and communication skills with others that can help me in the future separate myself from other candidates when going for job opportunities. This council excites me because I get to learn about rules and regulations that are in place in the association that I play under. In addition, I am excited to learn about how other student-athletes across the country are both similar and different to me and how we can help one another. Before the first meeting, I didn't realize how big of an honor and privilege it was to be selected to this student-athlete council. Knowing the opportunity that I have to increase my leadership skills and implement change for student-athletes is something that I am grateful for and won't take it for granted."

-Dan Labelle, NJCAA Region 21, UConn Avery Point, Basketball