NCAA Division III
Student-Athlete Advisory Committee

 

What is a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee? (SAAC)

A student-athlete advisory committee (SAAC) is a committee made up of student-athletes assembled to provide insight on the student-athlete experience. The SAAC also offers input on the rules, regulations and polices that affect student-athletes' lives on NCAA member institution campuses.

Presently, there are separate national SAACs for NCAA Divisions I, II and III. NCAA legislation mandates that all member institutions have SAACs on their respective campuses. Further, NCAA legislation requires that all member conferences have SAACs. 

The Mission of the Manhattanville College Student Athlete Advisory Committee:

-To promote efficient communication between the Manhattanville College Athletic Department and the student-athlete population.

 -To solicit student-athlete response to proposed NCAA legislation.

-To encourage the involvement of student-athletes in campus and community projects.

-To design and implement programs which will encourage community relations, school spirit/campus initiatives, and academic concerns.

-To create a vehicle for student-athlete representation on campus-wide committees. 

-To disseminate information to student-athletes.

History of the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee

An Association-wide SAAC was adopted at the 1989 NCAA Convention and was formed primarily to review and offer student-athlete input on NCAA activities and proposed legislation that affected student-athlete welfare.

The initial national committee was comprised of student-athletes from all membership divisions for the purpose of ensuring that the student-athlete voice was one that accounted for the myriad of educational and athletics experiences of both female and male student-athletes at all NCAA member institutions. In August 1997, the NCAA federated along divisional lines. The federation caused the SAAC to expand to three SAACs representing NCAA Divisions I, II and III. 

Each national divisional committee is comprised of both female and male student-athletes charged with the responsibility of assisting in the review of NCAA proposed legislation and representing the voice of the student-athlete in the NCAA governance structure. This is accomplished by providing student-athlete input on issues related to student-athlete welfare that are division-specific. (Federation has increased student-athlete participation in the governance process of intercollegiate athletics by increasing the number of SAAC members from the former Association-wide committee of 28 student-athletes to a sum total of 79 members serving on the national Divisions I, II, and III committees). 

The input of the respective Divisions I, II and III SAACs continues to be sought by a variety of constituencies within the Association. Student-athlete committee members have the opportunity to speak with their respective NCAA Management Councils, and the Divisions II and III SAACs continue to speak to legislative issues on the NCAA Convention floor.

Manhattanville players involved with SAAC:
Tom Verrengia - Baseball
Hugo Robinson - Tennis
Jason Zubatkin - Golf
Joey Hasbrouck - Lax
Nicole Oliva - Softball
Danielle Waldron - Tennis
Mike Luzzi - Golf
Caitlyn Conklin - Softball
Maureen Hickey - Soccer
Sarah Fullerton - Hockey
Brian Fink - Basketball
Auguste Charlemagne - Soccer
Lauren Grenier - Basketball
Frank Albano - Baseball

For More information, please visit: http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/membership_svcs/saac/d3/index.html