Page 11 - MGATODAY-Fall2017_lr

Athletics Engagement Model

As we entered our fourth season in the Southern States Athletic This past year, our Division of Student A airs implemented a new
Conference (SSAC) of the four-year National Association of Intercolle- programming model focused on six key elements: life skills, wellness,
giate Athletics (NAIA), we welcomed a new athletics director in 2017. service learning, community building, diversity and scholarship. These
Joseph “Chip” Smith came to Middle Georgia State from the University are the facets of college life that help round out our students’ in-class
of North Carolina Charlotte’s NCAA Division I 49ers athletics program. learning.
Prior to his work at UNC-Charlotte, he served in various capacities with As part of the new engagement model, the o ces of Student Life,
the athletics departments of Western Carolina University, Morehead Career Services and Diversity collaborated to host our first Student
State University, Eastern Kentucky University and Virginia Military Leadership Conference. The event, which will take place annually,
Institute. provides an opportunity for students across more than 65 student
clubs and organizations to hone their leadership skills.
As a university, we have continued to Each of the elements of our new model is a proven ingredient to
develop an athletics tradition rooted in succeeding in college and in life. And its impact is felt beyond our
the impressive experience of our campuses — with nearly 60 community service events coordinated
scholar-athletes. Our teams are not just by our student clubs and organizations in support of that model.
winning on the field of play — they Our faculty and sta engage with our students on a daily basis to help
received 42 academic awards from SSAC them learn from their unique experiences. We are proud of the impact
and NAIA this past year. their growth has on Middle Georgia, both on and o campus.

Our successful history in baseball includes 2017 Student Leadership Conference
a 2016 NAIA National Tournament
Appearance, as well as four Junior
College National Championships and 14
Junior College World Series Appearances Mr. Joseph “Chip” Smith

before ascending to our four-year
division. This year, we kept the wins coming as the 2017 SSAC Baseball
Regular Season Champions.

The NAIA approach to athletics is grounded in its Champions of
Character program, which holds us accountable for putting the values
of integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship and servant
leadership in play. We made it a goal to achieve distinction in this
program and in 2017 we did, as the NAIA named us a Champions of
Character Silver Institution.

While most of our teams are based in Cochran, we added two new
sports in Macon, Women’s Volleyball and Women’s Cross Country.
Participating in athletics and cultivating spirit for our Knights are two of
the many co-curricular opportunities available to our students.