CLEVELAND - The Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA) is pleased to announce the 2019-20 recipients of its Founders' Professional Development Grant. This year, MOAA is providing three grants to one male and two female MOAA members. The recipients of this year's grants are Nicholas Sailor, director of training and education for diversity, equity, & inclusion at Providence College, Alexis Guess, assistant director for academic services at the University of North Texas (UNT) and Dr. LaWanda D. Miller, senior woman administrator at Fayetteville State University (FSU).

The Founders' Professional Development Grant was introduced to assist MOAA members with their attendance for professional development opportunities, including but not limited to the NACDA & Affiliates Convention Week. In an effort to support the development of its members in accordance with the mission and objectives of the Association, MOAA is providing grants to deserving individuals, in the amount of $1,000 each.

Sailor rejoined the Providence community in October 2019 as the college's first director of education & training for diversity, equity & inclusion. As an undergraduate, Sailor double majored in gender studies, becoming the first male graduate of the department, and sociology. Upon graduating in 2017, he joined Teach for America Baltimore and spent two years as a special educator in Baltimore City Public Schools and as a Next Generations Scholar Teacher at the YMCA of Central Maryland. While in Baltimore, Sailor co-founded Black Chalk Corps Council, a start-up council of Black educators within Teach for America (TFA) Baltimore corps, that strives to strengthen the community and culture between Black educators in Baltimore City and in the TFA Baltimore community at-large. Sailor's new role at Providence is the result of a collaboration between the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the athletics department. Sailor's mission is to strengthen and build upon the College's efforts to cultivate policies, practices and structures that ensure an inclusive, equitable environment for students, faculty, staff, student-athletes and coaches.

Guess is in her second year at UNT, overseeing the cross country, tennis, track & field, volleyball and women's basketball teams. Guess is a member of UNT's Staff Senate and University Counselor and Advisors Network. Guess is part of the National Association of Academic and Student-Athlete Development Professionals (N4A) and serves on the Ethnic Concerns Committee (ECC). She was chosen for the 2019 Professional Development Institute (PDI) and completed the New Practitioners Track. In her previous role, Guess was the assistant academic coordinator at Northwestern State University (NSU). She earned her bachelor's degree from Louisiana State University (LSU) and her master's degree from Duquesne University.

Dr. Miller is a Texas native who joined the Fayetteville State family in 1994 and became FSU's head cheerleading coach in the spring of 1998. She currently serves as the assistant athletics director for business affairs, senior woman administrator (SWA), deputy title IX coordinator, student-athlete advisory committee advisor and head cheerleading coach.

A central theme in her life has always been to serve in a capacity that would enhance diversity and expand opportunities for women with a special focus on minority opportunities within the athletics community. Dr. Miller is a proud 2017-18 and 2018-19 CIAA Senior Woman Administrator of the Year Award recipient. Below are some of her other committee and professional activities:

• Member, CIAA Diversity and Inclusion Committee
• Member, Women Leaders in College Sports
• Member, Association of Title IX Administrators
• Graduate, UNC-Chapel Hill BRIDGES Academic Leadership Program for Women
• Graduate, NCAA/NACUBO Athletics Business Officers Program
• Certified, Adult Mental Health First Aid Instructor

Miller holds a doctorate degree in business administration from Argosy University-Sarasota and both her master's and bachelor's degree in business administration from FSU. Her message to young people is "Attitude is a little thing that makes a BIG difference."

The 2020 MOAA Symposium is scheduled for June 6-7 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.

About MOAA: MOAA promotes equitable employment opportunities for minorities in the athletics industry through the exchange of ideas, the creation of networking opportunities and the advocation of an increase in employment for minorities in athletics administration positions at all levels of the sports industry. The Association also promotes cultivating a sports environment that supports the values necessary to accept aspiring professionals from all walks of life. For more information on MOAA, please visit www.moaaweb.com. MOAA is partnered with the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 55th year. For more information on NACDA and the 17 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.