by Kirby Boehm
The Student Athlete Advisory Committee (S.A.A.C.) takes on the task of representing the student athletes on campus. As a group in charge of voicing the concerns of a large part of campus, it isn’t very well known; this is something the members of S.A.A.C. are looking to change.
One or two members of each varsity sports team on campus represent S.A.A.C. These members meet every month and plan ways to involve the student body in athletic events on campus among with community-involved projects.
President Caitlin Prange, a senior on the Capital track team, is in charge of leading the organization through somewhat of a rebuilding process.
“S.A.A.C. has been around longer than people think,” Prange said. “It just doesn’t get a lot of recognition across campus.”
The main goal for S.A.A.C. moving forward is to create momentum for the organization. Prange focuses on creating cohesiveness on campus with the events S.A.A.C. orchestrates.
“We want our events to be something people can rely on and for them to become familiar with,” Prange said.
The programs S.A.A.C. has planned this school year include a Toys for Tots drive and a canned food drive. S.A.A.C. is also in charge of the halftime shows at the men’s and women’s basketball games. They bring members of the audience onto the floor to compete for gift cards, usually by way of a half court shot or three-point contest.
Prange hopes the students gravitate toward the halftime shows and get excited for them week in and week out. While S.A.A.C. will continue to organize the service drives and halftime shows, there is a lot more in the future for this student-led organization.
S.A.A.C. is in charge of planning the Special Olympics hosted in the Cap Center in the spring. Students find the Special Olympics rewarding and look forward to it throughout the year.
“The Special Olympics is probably one of the most rewarding projects to work,” Prange said. “We get a lot of volunteers from the rest of the student body. It’s great to see everyone come together for such a great cause.”
They’re also organizing a pop tab collection as part of a competition amongst the other OAC schools. The money collected from the turned in tabs will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House to support families in need.
“It is very important for everyone to keep collecting tabs,” Prange said. “We need a full effort from everyone on campus to make this successful.”
Prange reiterates the fact that the more momentum and support S.A.A.C. gets, the more it will be able to do for the athletes on campus. S.A.A.C. has more events planned and would like to implement around campus.
“We are looking for more funding and support so that we can do more events in the future,” Prange said. “I just want to lay a foundation so that whoever takes over next year has a plan on how to be successful.”
by kboehm@capital.edu
