SAAC stands for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, this is a committee made up of student athletes gathered to provide insights on their experiences.   

Every school in the NCAA is required by law to have a Student-Athlete Advisory. SAAC was adopted at the 1989 NCAA Convention. In Aug. 1997, the NCAA federation caused the SAAC to expand to three SAACs representing NCAA divisions one, two, and three. 

The SAAC committee also offers input on the rules, regulations and policies that affect student athletes’ lives on an NCAA member institution. 

As listed on the Ashland Eagles SAAC webpage, the Ashland University SAAC mission includes: 

• To act as a liaison between all student-athletes and the athletic administration, faculty, and staff.  
• To promote AU Intercollegiate Athletics by endorsing community service, social events and the support of team spirit.  
• To foster unity and camaraderie between all student-athletes and their teams.  
• Increase the Conference’s involvement in the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 
• Provide the student-athletes with a “voice” at AU. 

This committee serves as a way for student-athletes to share their voice on campus and provide feedback to NCAA legislation.  

 It also builds a sense of community within the athletic program involving all athletics teams and promotes a positive student-athlete image on campus, among many other functions.  

Elizabeth Hoge, director of Academic Support Services, serves as a liaison for Ashland University’s SAAC and as an advisor.   

“This year SAAC is doing more collaborations with other offices on campus.  We are working with the wellness center, CAB, and Women of Excellence and possible other groups as we host programs this year.  Since we have a large amount of athletes on campus, it is important to encourage cross-involvement,” Hoge explained. 

The 2023-2024 AU SAAC officers include; Trent Maddox, President; Savaya Brockington, Vice President; Macayla Harris, DEI Coordinator; Sabrina Trapani, Student Engagement; Ty Bowden, Secretary; Alexis Montalvo, National Representative; Emily Pate, Financial Advisor; Bri Doctor, Mental Health Chair; Kalli Sidwell, Community Service; Avery Rosso, Social Media/Marketing. 

 SAAC meets once a month and holds events, allowing all student athletes and non-athletes to join.  

Alexis Montalvo, AU SAAC National representative said, “For our meetings, we want as many people as we can have to come, for Ashland we like the most involvement from students as possible.” 

SAAC relies heavily on student involvement and campaigning nationally for changes that will positively affect student athletes.  

“A big thing being voted on right now in National SAAC, is that the government is trying to make student-athletes employees. This would be okay for division one schools, but for division two and three, we don’t have enough money to pay all our student athletes for practices and games,” Montalvo explained. “This is not the best idea, so right now as national SAAC we are having a lot of student-athletes to send out congress letters to congress and get them involved to let them know that we do not want to turn into employees, that it is not going to be beneficial for division two or three schools.”  

By getting involved with campus organizations, students have the opportunity to make a difference, meet new people and make new friends.  

“I encourage you to join SAAC if you are a student-athlete at Ashland University, I think it’s a great thing to be a part of and it’s a great opportunity to be involved in Ashland SAAC,” Ty Bowden, SAAC secretary concluded. 

For more information on AU SAAC, you can visit https://goashlandeagles.com/sports/2020/5/20/information-SAAC.aspx