CLEVELAND – The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) is set to host the inaugural NACDA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Leadership Summit presented by Learfield Sports this weekend, beginning Sunday in Dallas, Texas. The Summit will take place in conjunction with the events leading up to the first ever College Football Playoff National Championship Game on Monday, Jan. 12.
“The new format for the College Football Playoff is one of the most exciting and interesting sports stories this year and we are excited to be a part of the Leadership Summit for ADs,” said Greg Brown, President and CEO of Learfield. “We already have a very close partnership with NACDA and athletics directors across America through the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup and this new sponsorship around the College Football Playoff takes our relationship to a new level.”
The NACDA FBS Leadership Summit presented by Learfield Sports will take place at the Hyatt Regency Dallas. Those in attendance will have the opportunity to tour the George W. Bush Presidential Center on Sunday evening to kick off the event.
The majority of the programming for FBS athletics directors will be held throughout the day on Monday at the Hyatt. Several educational sessions are on the schedule, highlighted by an FBS Football Issues Summit, which will be moderated by Kirby Hocutt, director of athletics, Texas Tech University. Former U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, will also be addressing the attendees at a session entitled “The Valuable Leadership Role ADs Play in the Intercollegiate Enterprise.”
Athletics directors and their guests are also invited to hear Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer, AT&T, Inc., speak on “Leadership Tactics in an Ever Changing World”.
“The Inaugural NACDA Leadership Summit will enable our FBS members to participate in a professional development opportunity focused on leadership, while attending the historical College Football Playoff National Championship,” stated NACDA President Jim Phillips, vice president for athletics and recreation at Northwestern University. “On behalf of NACDA and our FBS member institutions, we would like to thank Bill Hancock and the leadership of the College Football Playoff for this very special opportunity.”
“This weekend will be a real celebration of college football,” said Bill Hancock, executive director of the College Football Playoff. “We are delighted that NACDA and its Football Bowl Subdivision members will be participating in the activities.”
For more information on the College Football Playoff, please visit www.collegefootballplayoff.com.
About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 50th year, is the professional and educational Association for more than 11,000 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 4,000 athletics administrators annually attend NACDA & Affiliates Convention Week. Additionally, NACDA manages 15 professional associations and three foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.
About Learfield Sports: Learfield Sports manages the multimedia rights for nearly 100 collegiate properties. Its rich history includes four decades of developing trusted, long-term relationships with some of the most revered institutions and associations in the world of college sports. The company has prominence in all of the major conferences and titles the prestigious Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup with award co-founders NACDA and USA Today. Learfield represents collegiate institutions, conferences and arenas for their respective multimedia rights and sponsorship initiatives, and offers these partners with professional concessions and ticket sales, licensing and trademark consulting and digital platform expertise through its owned companies. To learn more about Learfield’s history, businesses and job opportunities, please visit www.learfieldsports.com.