MONROE, La. – ULM President Dr. James E.
Cofer, Sr. has been named to the NCAA Board of Directors for Division I of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Cofer is the lone representative on the board from the state of Louisiana.
“I'm honored to have been asked to serve our
conference in this manner,” Cofer said. “I look forward to focusing on the
continuing development of all student-athletes, especially in the Sun Belt
Conference, as well as increasing the participation of students in athletic
programs.”
The board is comprised of 18 chancellors and
presidents of Division I members. All 11
Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conferences have a permanent seat, while seven
seats rotate among the 20 Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and Division
I conferences.
Because of its status as a member of the FBS
coalition, the Sun Belt Conference has a permanent seat on the NCAA's 18-member
Board of Directors. As a result, the conference has a crucial voice on some of
the most pressing issues in college athletics and will always have a role in
the implementation of any future NCAA legislation and guidelines.
“We are delighted to have Dr. Cofer serve on
this prestigious panel,” Sun Belt Commissioner Wright Waters said. “He has been an outstanding leader for ULM
and the Sun Belt Conference and the timing is right for him to join this group
of national leaders. We are confident
that he will be a valuable voice for the league.”
Increased student enrollment, campus
revitalization, avocation of online degree programs and the expansion of the
state's only publicly supported College of Pharmacy, are just a few of the
areas in which Dr. Cofer, who is in his eighth year as ULM's president, has
provided leadership during his tenure.
He received his Bachelor of Science in
Business Administration and his Master of Business Administration from
Mississippi State University, and his Doctorate of Education in Higher
Education Administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
The NCAA is a voluntary organization through
which the nation's colleges and universities govern their athletics programs.
