From left, Vaishnav Siddapureddy and Benedetto Daniele Iaboni at the 2024 NCAA Convention PHOTO CREDIT: NCAA COMMUNICATION STAFF
By Kristin Barrett ′24
PHOENIX—The National Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) casted their first legislative votes during a four-day National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) annual convention in January, contributing to the passing of four proposals concerning the Division III philosophy statement, tennis participation, stunt, and the legislative process.
Fifteen student-athlete representatives from the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) contributed to discussions with National SAAC prior to the voting process.
“The biggest change by far is the revised DIII Philosophy Statement,” said Benedetto Daniele Iaboni, former Anna Maria College student athlete and National SAAC and Management Council Representative.
The statement was modernized to reflect within the language that Division III participation has “Primarily focus on intercollegiate athletics as a four-year, undergraduate experience” and “Shall not award financial aid to any student on the basis of athletics leadership, ability, participation or performance.”
The modernization in the philosophy statement allows for DIII schools to continue the emphasis on the well-rounded development of athletes over the course of a typical four-year athletic experience, while still providing the opportunity for flexibility such as graduate eligibility. The latter reflects the importance DIII places on preserving the student-athlete experience by not awarding athletic-based financial aid.
“Much of the old document is from over ten years ago and does not match today’s post pandemic and the new NCAA constitution world. It was time to update, and I’m glad the membership supported it, as it will help propel the future of DIII,” said Iaboni.
With regard to tennis participation, the minimum number of participants on a team has decreased from six to four. Regis College is one of the many NCAA schools that will be directly impacted by this change.
Pamela Roecker, dean of athletics at Regis College, who was also in attendance at the convention and in full support of this legislation, shared that the revised NCAA legislation allows for greater flexibility within the Regis roster. “Our goal will always be to have a full and vibrant women’s tennis roster that features between six to ten student-athletes, but in the event of injury, class conflicts or small roster size, the reduction to four will allow us the flexibility to still compete,” said Roecker.
With the women’s tennis team advancing to the GNAC championship the last two seasons, Roeker shared her excitement for the future of the program. Although Regis College does not currently sponsor a men’s tennis team due to low participation, Roecker said should they have the interest, this program would benefit from the increased roster flexibility.
Mitchell Weiner, a Regis College graduate of the men’s tennis team, reflected on his time as a member of the program and shared how he values the bonds and connections he made throughout his years as an athlete. “I was a part of some tough times through Covid, conference shakeups, and new competition,” said Weiner, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic, when Regis as well as other universities were forced to go remote with classes and limit campus activities.
Weiner feels that the new legislation provides an opportunity for colleges to benefit from recruiting practices.
“This change is huge for small schools like Regis to promote athletics and to gain traction for the future of the tennis program,” said Weiner. “Recruiting is no easy task, and this new legislation will help bring in athletes to compete at the highest level.”
The business session also included the passing of Stunt, which “focuses on the technical and athletic components of cheer, including partner stunts, pyramids, basket tosses, group jumps and tumbling,” according to the website, stuntthesport.org. Stunt is an emerging sport for women within Division III athletics. Iaboni thought this was the biggest change in his opinion. “It was supposed to be voted on last year but was tabled, so I’m glad it came back this year and has been voted in as an emerging sport,” Iaboni said.
Lastly, the amendment-to-amendment deadline was expanded from September to November to allow more time for conferences, schools, and NCAA governance to properly adjust amendment proposals, such as the legislations that were recently passed, in preparation for voting at the annual convention, said Iaboni.
With National SAAC having the opportunity to cast their first ever vote on behalf of DIII student athletes across the nation, it created the opportunity for other delegates to vote in unison with those who are experiencing these legislations firsthand. Many athletic directors at the conference mentioned they will never vote against National SAAC, because after all, they are there for and in support of the student athletes.
Nearly 3,000 members, including student athletes, athletic directors and athletic representatives from schools across the country attended the 2024 NCAA Convention held in the Phoenix Convention Center.
The GNAC commissioner council features one athlete from each member institution who serves to represent their school with the goals of enhancing the student-athlete experience and student-athlete success, according to the GNAC website. The representatives who attended the convention included Sharaya Keele (Albertus Magnus College), Liam Bedenkop (Anna Maria College) Benedetto Daniele Iaboni (Anna Maria College), Heather Hanson (Colby-Sawyer College), Nina Medeiros (Dean College), Clement Kimani (Elms College), Sasha Hyacinthe (Emmanuel College), Caitlyn Smith (Lasell University), Emily Reynolds (Mitchell College), Jason Mercado (New England College), Liliana Rolfe (Norwich University), Kristin Barrett (Regis College), Rachel Symmes (Rivier University), Michael Wearne Jr. (Saint Joseph’s College Maine) and Sydney Gonyea (Simmons University).
Iaboni, who has recently joined the Great Northeast Athletic Conference staff as assistant to the Commissioner for Special Projects, reflected on his experience as a member of SAAC. “The most meaningful thing about being a part of SAAC is getting to know and collaborate with so many amazing people with the common goal of supporting and serving student-athletes. Community and service to others is of utmost importance to me and SAAC allows me to do both which I’m truly grateful for,” said Iaboni.
Emily Reynolds, a student athlete from Mitchell College in New London, Conn., said she “enjoyed getting to know the other student-athletes who represent the conference as well as learning how to improve the issues that present at my own institution.”
Next year’s convention will be held Jan. 15-18, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn.
Kristin Barrett ’24 is a Marketing and Communication major with minors in Business Management and Journalism in the Marshall M. Sloane School of Business and Communication. A Regis College student athlete, Barrett attended the 2024 NCAA Convention as a GNAC SAAC Commissioner’s Council Representative.
