The Ithaca College department of intercollegiate athletics is pleased to announce it is participating in the NCAA's annual Division III Week celebrations.The Ithaca College department of intercollegiate athletics is pleased to announce it is participating in the NCAA's annual Division III Week celebrations.
Ithaca is one of 450 Division III institutions across the country, and most of these institutions will participate in Division III week activities that celebrate the student-athletes. Division III Week starts on Monday and runs through Sunday, April 10.
Division III Week was established six years ago to provide a positive opportunity to recognize the impact of athletics and student-athletes on campus and in the community.
Throughout the week, Ithaca is holding activities that highlight academic accomplishment, athletic experience, and leadership/community service/campus involvement.
Among the activities the Bombers have planned for Division III Week: On Thursday, there will be a faculty/student-athlete luncheon geared towards bringing student-athletes and faculty members together to have open and candid discussions on how juggling academic and athletic obligations add to the experience of being a student on campus.
"The goal of the event is to bring together faculty and student-athletes from across campus and encourage conversation about the benefits and challenges of balancing academics and athletics a student-athlete with the goal of enhancing the Ithaca College experiences of our student-athletes," said Barb Belyea, a clinical professor of physical therapy and Ithaca's Faculty Athletic Representative.
Starting on Monday, Ithaca College's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will join the other SAAC's in the Empire 8 Conference for a friendly, spirited, week-long fundraising competition to help Special Olympics.
There will be a collection table set up in the campus center for those who want to make a donation to Ithaca's "Change War" effort.
The SAAC groups at E8 and Liberty League member institutions will conduct a weeklong "Change War" from Monday through Sunday. Campus SAAC groups will collect change during Division III Week, and the conference which raises the most combined funds will be declared the E8/Liberty League "Change War" winner.
All funds raised will go directly to Special Olympics. Since 2011, Special Olympics and NCAA Division III schools have been connected through a partnership designed to foster a mutual learning experience between Division III student-athletes and Special Olympics athletes. Through this partnership, Division III student-athletes across the country are encouraged to participate in existing Special Olympics events, create their own events, or otherwise serve to support Special Olympics organization.
Student-athlete leaders at Ithaca have also joined the national It's On Us initiative to stop sexual assault, producing a video that can be viewed at youtu.be/erMyPpl1jY8. For more information on the national initiative, visit http://itsonus.org/.
On Wednesday, Ithaca's student-athletes will be celebrated on National Student-Athlete Day. Division III is the largest division of the NCAA with 450 members, 43 conferences, and 187,000 student-athletes.
Here is a schedule of home athletic events during
Wednesday, April 6
Thursday, April 7
Saturday, April 9
Sunday, April 10
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20160402163345926