WASHINGTON - Gallaudet University Associate Athletic Director for Communications Sam Atkinson accepted the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Presidential gavel virtually on June 12 during the organization's annual business meeting. The business meeting was held as a virtual event, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as part of the #CoSIDA2020 virtual convention being conducted throughout the month of June.
CoSIDA was founded in 1957 and is a 3,100+ member national organization comprised of the sports public relations, media relations and communications/information professionals throughout all levels of collegiate athletics in the United States and Canada.
Atkinson is only the fifth College Division representative (Division II, III, NAIA, CIS) to become president of CoSIDA in the 60-plus year history of the organization. Atkinson and Union (N.Y.) College's Eric McDowell (2014-15) are the only two CoSIDA Presidents from a NCAA Division III school. Luther College's Warren Berg was CoSIDA President in 1963-64 well before NCAA Division III began in 1973.
"This is a huge honor to represent the college division as well as Division III in this capacity as president," said Atkinson. "To have the past CoSIDA presidents vote for you means a lot. It has been a great journey. I'm looking forward to it."
Atkinson has served on the CoSIDA Board of Directors since 2015 when he was first elected to a three-year term as a College Division at-large representative. He served two years in that capacity before being elected into the officers rotation in June 2017.
Atkinson will enter his 12th year at Gallaudet, the world's only university with programs and services specifically designed to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing students, where he promotes all 14 varsity sports and handles marketing and game operation oversight for the athletics department. His office also maintains www.gallaudetathletics.com and the top ranked social media platforms in Division III. In addition, Atkinson has helped the athletics department secure 13 CoSIDA Academic All-America® awards in the past nine years, to increase Gallaudet's overall total sevenfold.
He is the first in Gallaudet history to serve on the CoSIDA board and be elected for the officers rotation.
"Sam is an invaluable member of our team at Gallaudet and he means so much to our department. We are very fortunate to have him share his time, qualities and valuable perspective with us," said Gallaudet Athletic Director Victor Mansure. "CoSIDA is in great hands. His caliber of work, consistency and integrity are truly remarkable. Our department is very proud of Sam for achieving such a milestone."
In addition to his CoSIDA duties, Atkinson will complete his fourth year on the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball National Committee, where he served as the chair and spokesperson for the committee for the last two years, at the end of August.
From the perspective of the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC), Atkinson has been one of the most visible members of the conference at the national level in recent years.
"We are so proud to have Sam represent the NEAC and we congratulate him on ascending to the role of CoSIDA President," shared NEAC Commissioner Stephanie Dutton. "As a former CoSIDA member myself, his dedication to the organization has had such a positive impact on the athletic communications profession. We are all facing a challenging year for college athletics and Sam is the perfect person to provide steadfast leadership for the organization in the coming year."
The Phoenix, Md., native received his bachelor's degree in Communication Arts from Salisbury University in 2000 and his master's degree in Sports Industry Management from Georgetown University in 2013.
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ABOUT CoSIDA
CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) was founded in 1957 and is a 3,100+ member national organization comprised of the sports public relations, media relations and communications/information professionals throughout all levels of collegiate athletics in the United States and Canada. CoSIDA is the second oldest management association in all of intercollegiate athletics. CoSIDA became an affiliated partner with NACDA in December of 2008. Learn more about CoSIDA here: www.cosida.com.
NEAC Interim Assistant Commissioner for Sports Information Peter Holehan contributed to this article
