National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics

History
The NACDA Community Service Award presented by Fiesta Bowl is celebrating its 10-year Anniversary, recognizing Division I college athletics departments that go above and beyond in giving back to the community.

The Fiesta Sports Foundation/Fiesta Bowl has a long-standing reputation for being a leader in community support and NACDA is appreciative of the commitment to expanding that impact beyond the Arizona state lines and encouraging, supporting and recognizing the efforts made by student -athletes across the country.

Description
This award has been created by NACDA and is sponsored by the Fiesta Bowl to recognize outstanding community service efforts for NACDA Division I member institutions. NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl will announce the winner in conjunction with the 2026 NACDA & Affiliates Convention in Las Vegas, at the Association-Wide Featured Session on Tuesday, June 9, at 4 p.m. ET, along with an on-campus presentation of the trophy to the winning institution later in the year.

Athletics departments being nominated for this award will have consistently demonstrated qualities of compassion, and service to either one organization or a variety of volunteer activities in one school year (2025-26). The winning institution will be one that exemplifies the best in volunteering and demonstrates a responsibility for helping others, thus connecting citizens and addressing community issues. Additionally, the award winner will be a department who makes selfless and extraordinary contributions beyond what is expected of them for the betterment of the local community and beyond. This award should not be a for a single student-athlete or team, but the overall athletics department.

Nomination Eligibility Requirements

• Nominee must be a paid NACDA Division I member institution.
• Nominations must be submitted by a staff member of the athletics department, the member institution, or the conference.
• A particularly compelling news article, video link, letter of recommendation or other background material related to community service activities can be included with the nomination.
• Nominations must be submitted using THIS FORM. Other formats will not be accepted.

Nomination Process
The nomination form for 2025-26 is now open. Click HERE to nominate!

• Institutions must submit up to a 500-word description of their community service during the 2025-26 school year, including objectives, demographics or communities served and outcomes.
• Supporting collateral including videos, photos and social media may also be submitted.

Timeline
Time period for nominations: March 2-April 13, 2026
Judging/Panel Review: April 14-17, 2026
Top Three Finalists Notified: Week of April 20
Finalist Interviews with Selection Committee: Week of May 4
Announce winner: Monday, June 8, 2026 (in conjunction with the NACDA & Affiliates Convention in Las Vegas)
Recognize winner: Fall 2026

Selection Committee
The Selection Committee will consist of five judges:
Kristina Chumpol, Chief of Staff and Vice President of Community Investment, Fiesta Bowl
Pat Manak, Chief Executive Officer, NACDA
Thorr Bjorn, Senior Deputy Athletics Director and Chief Administrative Officer, University of Massachusetts
Janet Cone, Senior Administrator for University Enterprises and Director of Athletics, UNC Asheville
Sean Frazier, Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics, Northern Illinois University

Each judge will score against the rubric and the scores are tallied to select the highest ranked.
In the case that a judge's institution has been nominated, they will not be permitted to vote for their own institution.
The top-three finalists based on the judging criteria will be notified following the review period. Those three institutions will have individual interviews with the Selection Committee to determine the overall winner.

Judging Criteria
Nominations will be judged based on the following criteria:

1. What was the goal/objective and was it reached?
2. Delivery of impactful community service.
3. Percentage rate of the overall athletics department participation.
4. How many specific community service hours were logged.
5. The degree to which services/actions have made a lasting or meaningful contribution or impact on the community.
6. The extent to which the service or action might be considered above and beyond the call of duty.
7. The extent to which the action would be recognized and valued by peers/community leaders.

Press Releases
June 10, 2025 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select Boston College as 2025 Community Service Award Winner
June 6, 2025 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Announce Top 3 Finalists for 2025 Community Service Award
June 10, 2024 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Honor San José State University as 2024 Community Service Award Winner
June 12, 2023 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select Iowa State as 2023 Community Service Award Winner
June 27, 2022 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select Ohio State as 2022 Community Service Award Winner
July 27, 2021 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Announce Georgia Tech as 2021 Community Service Award Winner
June 9, 2020 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select Vanderbilt University as 2020 Community Service Award Winner
July 10, 2019 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select Boston College as 2019 Community Service Award Winner
June 10, 2019 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Announce Finalists for 2019 Community Service Award
July 19, 2018 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select University of Southern California as 2018 Community Service Award Winner
June 28, 2018 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Announce Finalists for 2018 Community Service Award
July 18, 2017 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Select University of Maryland as 2017 Community Service Award Winner
June 12, 2017 - NACDA and the Fiesta Bowl Announce Finalists for Inaugural Community Service Award
February 2, 2017 - NACDA and the John McLendon Minority Scholarship Foundation announce new partnership with the Fiesta Bowl