PHOTO GALLERY
GREENWOOD, Ind. – The Great Midwest Athletic Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) gathered in Cincinnati earlier this week for the group’s annual fall meeting.
A total of 18 faces from the nine institutions were acclimated shortly after arrival, some after competing the day prior in their respective sport like senior quarterback Michael Wilson (Central State University), who led his football team to victory against Concordia (Ala.) on Saturday.
Sunday’s entrance from everyone set the stage for team-building exercises, a guest speaker from the Make-A-Wish Foundation, further education on newsworthy issues and reviewing legislative proposals.
Conference personnel Angela Tressel, Jordan Rickert and commissioner Tom Daeger, conducted the meeting while additional SAAC advisors from Alderson Broaddus University, Cedarville University and Davis & Elkins College, also attended.
Tressel, the G-MAC’s Associate Commissioner for Internal Operations, oversees the student-athlete advisory committee and its objectives.
“In every aspect, the recent G-MAC SAAC meetings demonstrate the exceptional creativity, perspective and mindset of student-athletes in our league,” Tressel said. “I hope, that through our efforts, their athletic and educational experiences continue to positively impact their collegiate career.”
Cedarville’s Laura Farleman (track and field) remains the G-MAC chair and league’s representative at the NCAA level as she serves her second year in that capacity. She has been featured prominently in a public service announcement advocating the NCAA Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
The conference role for Farleman allows her voice to be heard on the national floor to vote on pertinent issues affecting the welfare of student-athletes.
“It’s definitely a humbling experience and exhilarating one,” she said. “I have loved every moment and have come to greatly enjoy what Division II seeks to do. It has increased my pride and confidence in my institution and the conference.”
On Sunday, SAAC members engaged in a combination of laser tag, miniature golf, mini bowling and go karting, while enjoying a pizza buffet at the WEB Extreme Entertainment. Groups of three teams were formed before going through a points system tallied from all activities.
The following morning, Rebecca Dykstra from the Kentucky/Ohio/Indiana Make-A-Wish Foundation chapter, presented to the group and explained how the G-MAC could get involved.
This year, the G-MAC SAAC has targeted a goal of raising $15,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation with totals being updated at g-macsports.com throughout the course of 2014-15.
Last year’s G-MAC SAAC fundraising efforts resulted in over $7,000 while the overall NCAA Division II fundraising goal in 2013-14 surpassed the previous division record by $50,000. Since 2003, student-athletes have raised over $3.5 million dollars, equating to almost 100 total “wishes.”
“We felt that this was a very attainable goal for the year as long as we strategize within the fundraising opportunities,” Farleman said. “We talked about different ways to plan events and implement them into action.”
The $15,000 goal was laid out by vice chair Chloe West of Cedarville University and if met, could grant two ‘wishes’ by the non-profit organization. Each school is starting with 100 ‘stars’ to sell for $1 apiece and display them on campus.
The G-MAC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee also pledged its commitment to continuing the A.C.T.S. (Athletes Collecting Toiletries in Service) initiative.
The A.C.T.S. project was started last season and includes student-athletes gathering shampoo, conditioner, soap or lotion, from team road trips and all items are donated at the year.
“There has been a lot of outside interest [from other conferences] coming from this and I’m excited to see what our conference continues to do with this initiative,” Farleman added.
The G-MAC SAAC is scheduled to meet again in the spring, this time in Louisville, Ky., set for May 17-19.
“I was really proud of how the meeting went this weekend,” Farleman concluded. “It shows the power of the student-athletes and their ability to further their voice in a community environment. Overall, I’m very excited about how far we’ve come in a short amount of time.”