CLEVELAND - The Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA) is pleased to announce Precious Birdsong, assistant director, National Commodore Club at Vanderbilt University as the 2024 Rudy Keeling Scholarship recipient.

Birdsong will receive a $2,500 postgraduate scholarship toward an advanced degree with the intention of furthering administrative pursuits within the intercollegiate athletics industry. The scholarship will be presented with financial assistance of sponsors, Bob McCloskey Insurance and the NCAA. 

As the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Commissioner, Rudy Keeling was the first African-American ever to head a major sports conference, a position he held from 2007 until his retirement in January 2013. He was also a former member of the MOAA Board of Directors. Candidates for the scholarship were reviewed by the MOAA leadership and members of the Keeling Family. 

At Vanderbilt, Birdsong currently serves as the assistant director of the National Commodore Club where she is a frontline fundraiser for Vanderbilt Athletics, securing gifts for athletics facilities, student-athlete scholarships, sport-specific excellence funds, and planned gifts. She is an active member of MOAA and the National Association of Athletic Development Directors (NAADD) and serves as the Executive Director of the Precious Birdsong Family Foundation. Birdsong began her career at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock as the assistant director of facilities and game operations. She joined Vanderbilt in 2021 as the assistant director, facilities and event management prior to earning her current position. Graduating from Middle Tennessee State University, she earned her B.S. in Leisure Sport and Tourism Studies and M.S. in Sports Management and was a softball student-athlete.
Birdsong involvement and achievements include but are not limited to

• NCAA Foundations of Fundraising
• Women Leaders in Sports Institute for Advancement
• Vanderbilt Athletics Vice-Chancellor Award
• MOAA External Relations Committee
• Women Leaders in Sports External Co-Circle Lead
• CEFMA Mentorship Program Mentee
• MOAA Rising Stars Graduate

As she moves through her career, her goal is to empower future generations of student-athletes within collegiate athletics. In pursuit of achieving this goal, she has started earning her Doctor of Education degree in Higher Education Leadership and Policy at Vanderbilt University and is determined to follow the blueprint laid out for her, breaking barriers along the way.

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.