2008 Woodie Awards
Guilford's SAAC Gets Active in Local Community
Joanna Bernstein
Issue date: 12/7/07 Section: Sports
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While it may appear that student-athletes at Guilford College spend all of their free time practicing their sport and working out in the gym with beads of sweat dripping from their cheeks to the floor, this isn't the case.
When they're not studying their playbooks, many athletes get involved with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, or SAAC.
SAAC provides a vessel for student-athletes to participate in community-based activities and work closely alongside the administration to formulate athletic policies on campus.
According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Web site, the mission of the Division III Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is to "enhance the total student-athlete experience by promoting opportunity for all student-athletes; protecting student-athlete welfare; and fostering a positive student-athlete image, while maintaining the tenets of the Division III philosophy."
To comply with the NCAA's mission, SAAC holds weekly meetings where student-athletes can talk about issues that their team have faced or are concerned about.
"Each of our varsity teams has two representatives that attend our meetings to make sure every team has a voice," said president of SAAC and lacrosse player Kelly Gonzalez.
"The representatives are either voted on by their team, coach appointed, or volunteer," said Emily Hayes, women's volleyball coach and SAAC liaison between student-athletes and the athletics department.
In addition to soliciting student-athlete responses to proposed conference and NCAA legislation, SAAC representatives organize their team members to volunteer in programs like Reading Buddies and the Special Olympics.
"With the Reading Buddies program, student-athletes travel down the road at least once a week to New Garden Friends School to sit and read with elementary-aged students," Hayes said.
"We just sit with a student and listen to them read aloud," Gonzalez said. "It is a very easy way to help these children with their reading skills, while providing role models to them."
When they're not studying their playbooks, many athletes get involved with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, or SAAC.
SAAC provides a vessel for student-athletes to participate in community-based activities and work closely alongside the administration to formulate athletic policies on campus.
According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Web site, the mission of the Division III Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is to "enhance the total student-athlete experience by promoting opportunity for all student-athletes; protecting student-athlete welfare; and fostering a positive student-athlete image, while maintaining the tenets of the Division III philosophy."
To comply with the NCAA's mission, SAAC holds weekly meetings where student-athletes can talk about issues that their team have faced or are concerned about.
"Each of our varsity teams has two representatives that attend our meetings to make sure every team has a voice," said president of SAAC and lacrosse player Kelly Gonzalez.
"The representatives are either voted on by their team, coach appointed, or volunteer," said Emily Hayes, women's volleyball coach and SAAC liaison between student-athletes and the athletics department.
In addition to soliciting student-athlete responses to proposed conference and NCAA legislation, SAAC representatives organize their team members to volunteer in programs like Reading Buddies and the Special Olympics.
"With the Reading Buddies program, student-athletes travel down the road at least once a week to New Garden Friends School to sit and read with elementary-aged students," Hayes said.
"We just sit with a student and listen to them read aloud," Gonzalez said. "It is a very easy way to help these children with their reading skills, while providing role models to them."
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