CLEVELAND - The Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA) is proud to announce Dr. Dan Mahony, president of the Southern Illinois University System, as the 2020 MOAA Charles Whitcomb Service Award recipient. This award was presented during the 2020 MOAA Virtual Symposium this week.

The MOAA Charles Whitcomb Award recognizes and celebrates individuals that foster diversity and inclusion within the intercollegiate athletics community. The recipient of this award will be announced and recognized at the MOAA Symposium each year. 

Mahony (bio), began his tenure as the 10^th president of the Southern Illinois University System on March 1 after previously serving as president of Winthrop University. During his time at Winthrop from 2015 to 2020, he initiated a campus-wide effort to create a strategic plan that focused on the university's attention on becoming a national model for a student-centered university experience while adjusting to the changing realities of higher education.

Prior to Winthrop, Mahony spent seven years as the dean of the College of Education, Health, and Human Services and professor of sport management at Kent State University. His forward thinking at Kent State led to the college's strategic plan and reorganization which led to increases in both enrollment and retention. He also spent 13 years as a faculty member and administrator at the University of Louisville.    

Dr. Mahony earned a B.S. in accounting from Virginia Tech, an M.S. in sport management from West Virginia and a Ph.D. in sport management from Ohio State University.  

About the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association: Administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association promotes equitable employment opportunities for minorities in the athletics industry through the exchange of ideas, the creation of networking opportunities and the avocation 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 the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association, please visit www.moaaweb.com.