Attendance at the NCAA Convention by student-athletes is a well established tradition in the AMCC.  The tradition was disrupted for the first time in ten years when the convention went virtual in 2021 but the students were back in force in 2022, traveling to Indianapolis, home of the NCAA headquarters.

The conference was represented by seven student-athletes this year:  Ally Givler (Penn State Altoona), James Rice (Mount Aloysius College), Denali Nicholas (La Roche University), Brent Kennedy (Pitt-Bradford), Brittany Fisher (Alfred State College), Tessa Gunby (Mount Aloysius College), and Sihle Sizani (Pitt-Bradford).

Givler, Rice, Nicholas and Kennedy were at-large attendees chosen by the conference.  Fisher participated as the conference's representative to the Div. III Student Athlete Advisory Committee.  Gunby and Sizani were selected to participate in the Div. III Immersion Program, begun in 2015 as a way to identify talented ethnic minority student-athletes interested in careers in college athletics, and to provide them with an idea of the skills needed to become successful coaches and administrators.

Each came away with their own perspective on the convention, which was a historic one with the passage of a new constitution at the core of the legislative program.

"I loved being a part of such a historical gathering at the convention," said Givler about attending the NCAA association-wide business session.  "Hearing that it was only the fourth time all divisions were able to get together to discuss matters made it feel all the more special to be present. Hearing the differing views on the new constitution depending on what division one was in was also a very interesting take. It showed what each speaker picked out as the most beneficial or most detrimental parts to their conference."

Denali had a different take. 

"I got to learn more about how the NCAA, specifically Division III, does business," he shared.  "From the proposals, discussions, and the passing of the new constitution, I learned and understand why it’s important to have the difficult discussions at this level. Something that stood out to me was the reaction to some of the older delegates when the idea of having more input from the student delegates during the business session was brought up. Their ideals were more based off of the fact that 'we are still too young" to be making the types of decisions we were making, even though the NCAA is based on student athletes."

In addition to the association-wide and Division III-only sessions, the student-athletes also had the chance to interact and learn from their peers on the national SAAC at a special luncheon and social hour; tour the national headquarters and NCAA Hall of Champions; participate in a meeting of the AMCC administrators; and not just listen to but actually meet the Gerald R. Ford Award Recipient and women's basketball pioneer and broadcasting great Ann Meyers Drysdale.

The experience was clearly inspirational to the students as they look to apply lessons learned.

"A few things I want to start implementing in my SAAC at Penn State Altoona is having a Special Olympics of Blair County liaison," explained Givler.  "It has certainly been challenging with COVID-19 to come up with plans for events with Special Olympians, but that shouldn't stop this incredible 10 year long partnership that DIII athletics has had. I also want to try and partner more with our Student Affairs office to create more events surrounding diversity and inclusion. It is super important to have an inclusive campus and I want to create an atmosphere within athletics and sporting events where everybody feels welcome."