INDIANAPOLIS - Gallaudet University Associate Athletic Director for Communications Sam Atkinson was elected chair of the NCAA Division III women's volleyball committee for the 2023 season.
Atkinson was elected by his peers on the 10-member committee at the NCAA headquarters back in February during the annual committee meeting but did not begin his responsibilities officially until September 1, 2023.
Atkinson will begin his third year of four on the NCAA Division III women's volleyball committee this fall. He will continue to chair Region IV which consists of schools from the CUNYAC, MAC Freedom, NJAC and United East conferences and NYU from the UAA, in addition to his national committee responsibilities. He has worked and supervised the last two national championships in Pittsburgh (2022) and St. Louis (2021). Atkinson served as the NCAA site representative at the Johns Hopkins University regional in November 2021.
"It is a honor to volunteer and represent Gallaudet University and the United East Conference on the national stage as a member of a NCAA sport committee," said Atkinson. "I am humbled to accept this appointment as chair and work with nine excellent committee members, who are well respected throughout Division III women's volleyball."
Atkinson follows Edgewood College women's volleyball head coach Paul Schlomer, who was the chair for the 2022 season. He becomes the first chair of the women's volleyball committee to be a Sports Information Director.
"Gallaudet has a storied history when it comes to women's volleyball so being a member of the NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Committee representing the Bison means a lot to me personally," added Atkinson.
The NCAA Division III women's volleyball committee will evaluate teams throughout the season prior to the selection of the tournament field and create the official bracket. Members of the committee serve as chairs on regional advisory committees and partake in numerous regional and national committee calls during the season.
The 2023 NCAA Division III women's volleyball national championship will take place November 29-December 2 at Roberts Pavilion in Claremont, Calif.
Atkinson is in his 14th year at Gallaudet University, the world's only university with programs and services specifically designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students, where he manages the athletic communications office and the media and public relations for Bison athletics.
Atkinson completed a four-year term (2016-20) on the NCAA Division III men's basketball committee, where he became the first two-time chair and the first chair of that committee to be a Sports Information Director.
Atkinson is a member of College Sports Communicators (CSC), formerly known as College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), a 4,100+ member national association for strategic, creative and digital communicators across intercollegiate athletics in the United States and Canada. Atkinson served as President of that organization during 2020-21 and now serves in a Past President role. He was only the second President to hail from a NCAA Division III institution in the 66-year history of the organization. Atkinson served as a member of the CSC Board of Directors for seven years (2015-22).
