NORFOLK, Va., July 1, 2022 – Norfolk State University President Dr. Javaune Adams-Gaston has been named an ex-oficio member of the NCAA Board of Governors.
“Dr. Adams-Gaston’s decades of experience in higher education will make her a tremendous asset to the Board of Governors,” MEAC Commissioner Sonja Stills said, “and we appreciate her representing the MEAC – and HBCUs more broadly – on that body. HBCUs need that strong voice in the room, that presence at the table, so we can advocate for ourselves when decisions are being made, and Dr. Adams-Gaston provides that for us.”
“It is my distinct honor to be selected to serve on the NCAA Board of Governors,” Adams-Gaston said. “In my ex-oficio role, I look forward to working with my fellow colleagues to advance and promote intercollegiate athletics. This assignment is even more meaningful, as I have been asked to represent the HBCU members of the NCAA. We are among the strongest and most successful institutions for excellence and achievement of African-American college students and all who want the HBCU experience. I will be a voice, advocate, and conscience in the room, impacting the decision-making for all student-athletes and collegiate athletics.”
Adams-Gaston has served as president at Norfolk State since June 2019, and she has more than 30 years of higher education experience. Prior to her appointment at Norfolk State, Adams-Gaston served as senior vice president at Ohio State University, and her tenure there also saw her serve as the university’s first African-American Vice President of Student Life.
She also serves on the NCAA Div. I Committee on Academics, having done so since Sept. 1, 2021, as well as the Div. I Transformation Committee.
The new Board of Directors will assume its duties on Aug. 1.
The new board includes nine voting members: four from Division I (at least one school president and one conference commissioner), one from the Division II President’s Council, one from the Division III President’s Council, two independent members, and one graduated student-athlete.
Non-voting ex officio members are selected by virtue of their position and include the NCAA president, the chairs of the Division I Council and Divisions II and III Management Councils, the president of one historically Black college or university, and one former NCAA student-athlete from each of the two divisions not represented by the voting student-athlete.