JULIE CROMER

Division I FBS Nike Executive of the Year
Director of Athletics, Ohio University

Under Julie Cromer’s leadership, Ohio Athletics has continued to excel on the field while reimagining student-athlete engagement and setting records for graduation success. In addition to the pursuit of student-athlete achievement, Ohio Athletics is a leader in experiential learning, reaching new heights while actively training the next generation of sports professionals.

Ohio has enjoyed athletic success during its first female athletics director’s tenure. The 2020-21 men’s basketball team returned to the NCAA Tournament after winning the Mid-American Conference Tournament for the first time in nine years. During the 2021-22 season, every Bobcat Olympic sport team made the MAC Tournament for the first time since 2009-10. The 2022 football team finished the season as MAC East (7-1) and Arizona Bowl Champions with a 10-4 record, marking its first 10-win season since 2011 and the second-best turnaround in FBS football last year. Also in 2022, Ohio led the MAC in men’s basketball total season attendance and was second in the league in football attendance.

Ohio’s NCAA Graduation Rates reached record numbers under Cromer’s leadership with a 94% Graduation Success Rate in 2022, marking the third-straight year Ohio led the MAC. In addition, Ohio has increased philanthropic support of all Ohio sport programs, including a commitment in 2022 of $2 million to enhance women’s athletics at Ohio, the largest gift to women’s sports in Ohio history.

Early in her tenure, Cromer reconfigured Ohio’s external relations department, creating one of the first digital strategies units in the MAC. As a result, Ohio has led the league with the most followed and most engaged digital media platforms in the Conference for the last three years.

Cromer is an Executive in Residence in Ohio’s world-renowned AECOM Center for Sport Administration, teaching a course for the residential MSA program and directly supervising graduate assistants. Actively engaged in intercollegiate athletics nationally, Cromer has served on committees and working groups within the NCAA, various athletic conferences, and several professional development associations. In 2022, Julie co-chaired the NCAA’s Transformation Committee, which was formed to identify opportunities to modernize Division I college sports.

Cromer currently serves on the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee and the LEAD1 Executive Board and has completed previous appointments to the NCAA Division I Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of Women Leaders in College Sports. Most recently, the Sports Business Journal named her to its 2022 Game Changers class.

Prior to her appointment at Ohio University, Cromer served as senior deputy athletics director, associate vice chancellor and senior woman administrator (SWA) for the University of Arkansas. Cromer joined the University of Arkansas after prior service at Indiana University and the NCAA National Office.

Cromer received an MPA in Policy Analysis from Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and she is an Honors College graduate of Missouri State University.

LISA ARCHBALD

Division I FCS Nike Executive of the Year
Associate Commissioner for Compliance and Governance/SWA, Northeast Conference

Lisa Archbald was promoted to Associate Commissioner for Compliance and Governance/SWA in July, 2017. Archbald is entering her eleventh year with the NEC. She spent her first four years as Assistant Commissioner for Compliance and the Senior Woman Administrator.

Lisa oversees the NEC’s compliance and eligibility programs, NCAA and NEC waivers, violations, assists with rules interpretation and education, and National Letter of Intent matters. She also serves as the primary liaison to the NEC Senior Woman Administrators, Academic Support Administrators, Faculty Athletic Reps., and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Since joining the NEC, Lisa has been actively involved at the national level. She currently serves on the NCAA Nominating Committee, NCAA Legislative Committee and Chairs the Modernization of the Rules Subcommittee. In addition, Lisa previously served on the Board of Directors for the National Association for Athletic Compliance (NAAC), NCAA Division I Interpretation Committee, NCAA Division I Legislative Council and was member of the NCAA Limited Resource Working Group.

Prior to her arrival at the NEC, Lisa served two and a half years as Associate Athletic Director for Compliance and Senior Woman Administrator at Saint Peter’s College. In that role, she served as the head compliance administrator, oversaw five sports and acted as an athletics liaison to admissions, residence life and financial aid. Prior to Saint Peter’s, Lisa spent three years as Assistant/Associate Athletics Director for Compliance at Central Florida (2007-10) and two years as Assistant Director for Compliance at the Mountain West Conference (2005-07). She began her career as Special Events Coordinator at the National Association of College Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA) in 2003 and also served two years as an Academic Advising/Compliance Support Coordinator at UNC Wilmington.

Lisa graduated from UNC Wilmington in 2000 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Marketing and was a four-year soccer letter winner for the Seahawks. She went on to earn a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of West Florida in 2002.

Lisa’s husband, Anthony, is an Executive Associate Athletic Director at Princeton University. They reside in Princeton with their daughters Riley and Harper.

AMANDA BRAUN

Division I Nike Executive of the Year
Director of Athletics, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

Amanda Braun enters her 11th full year as the Director of Athletics at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2023-24.

In March 2020, she was honored as one of the Under Armour AD of the Year Award (ADOY) winners, given out by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). She was also honored by the Milwaukee Business Journal as a “Woman of Influence” in 2019. Amanda currently serves on the NCAA Women’s Basketball Committee and was recently appointed to the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee. She also serves a key role in Horizon League administration, as a representative on the League Council, serving as Chair from July 2021 to July 2023.

Amanda announced in 2018 a new partnership with Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin (OHOW), the largest-ever for the department in terms of both length and financial value of the partnership. In addition, she secured from OHOW a naming rights donation ($2.1 million) for a brand-new practice facility for Panther Basketball programs. Completion of the state-of-the-art OHOW Center is set for July 2023.

Under her watch, Milwaukee student-athletes have extended their streak of recording a GPA of 3.0 or better to 46 consecutive semesters, as well as the 17th straight with a 3.20 GPA or higher. During the Spring 2023 semester, 105 Panthers compiled a GPA of at least 3.8, while 56 of those achieved a perfect 4.0 mark.

Amanda was named to the post in early March of 2013 before officially taking the reins of the department on May 1, 2013. In her tenure on campus, she has helped Milwaukee to new heights, starting by playing the lead role in bringing Panther men’s basketball contests back downtown and helping the University secure naming rights for UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, the downtown home of Milwaukee men’s basketball.

Amanda helped coordinate the department's partnership with ROC Ventures, one in which the Milwaukee baseball team began playing all of its home games at the new facility, Franklin Field, at Ballpark Commons. She also secured the first-ever $1 million gift to Panther Athletics, coming from alumnus and entrepreneur Fred Sitzberger in the Fall of 2016; he followed up again with a second $1 million pledge in 2022.

Amanda came to Milwaukee after seven years at Northeastern University, where she was the Executive Senior Associate Director of Athletics. No stranger to the Horizon League, the Brodhead, Wis., native also previously worked for six years at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, where she rose to the position of associate director of athletics.

Amanda also has served stints at the University of North Carolina and Duke University and has gained valuable experience on numerous NCAA and conference committees, including the NCAA Women’s Basketball Issues Committee, NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Committee, and NCAA Division I Competition Oversight Committee.

A former basketball player at Siena College, Amanda graduated summa cum laude with a degree in psychology. She later earned a master’s in sports administration from the University of North Carolina.

JENN BELL

Division II Nike Executive of the Year
Director of Athletics, Converse University

Entering the 2023-24 academic year, Jenn Bell began her sixth year as the Director of Athletics, serving as a member of the Converse University senior leadership team. Under Jenn’s leadership, Converse Athletics has developed a winning culture - in the classroom, in the sports venues, and in the community. Throughout the institution's recent model change, Jenn led a successful transition from a single-gender athletics program to a coed program by adding six male sports, esports, and a spirit squad to the list of athletic programs offered at Converse University. With these eight additions, Converse Athletics now offers 21 athletic programs, which more than doubles the number of student-athletes within the department. Jenn has overseen nearly $1.4 million dollars in facility upgrades, including the expansion of the athletic training room and several smaller projects within the Weisiger Center.

With the help of the Athletics Diversity and Inclusion Designee, Jenn has developed the department's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement and Pledge, as well as specific programming for the athletics department. Jenn has led the fundraising efforts for Converse Athletics, raising more than $1.9M over the last five years. Fundraising activities include the annual golf tournament, revamping the department's booster club, identifying corporate sponsors, and partnering with eTeamSponsor and Hometown Ticketing.

Upon Jenn’s arrival at Converse, she and her staff began to set the standard for all Valkyries by creating “The Valkyrie Way” mantra that notes - Together, we will rise to the occasion and be bold and resilient, as we strive to maintain excellence for Converse Athletics. In addition, the department’s core values were created: Excellence, Respect, Integrity, Strength, Vision, Accountability, Leadership, and Service.

In the classroom, Jenn has guided the department to new heights. Each semester since Jenn arrived at Converse, the department GPA has been above 3.0. Jenn created the Valkyries Academic Excellence Award, which is given to the team with the highest grade point average each semester. In the sports venue, many programs have experienced a complete turnaround, earning the respect of its competitors. In the fall of 2022, six out of seven programs competed in a conference tournament, with three programs winning the championship, one program finishing as runner-up, and one program winning its first-ever tournament contest. Converse student-athletes continue to impress by serving the local community. In the fall of 2022, Converse student-athletes served more than 1,600 hours in the community.

Some of Jenn’s professional development and committees include: 3rd Vice President for D2 Athletics Directors Association (D2 ADA) June 2023: Named Cushman & Wakefield Athletics Directors of the Year for NCAA Division II. December 2022: Named to the Advisory Board for the Business of Small College Athletics (BOSCA). Currently, Jenn is the liaison for the women's volleyball coaches committees. Between 2018 and 2020, she served as the Chair of the Southeast Region Women’s Soccer Regional Advisory and National Committee. Jenn is a 2013 graduate of Women Leaders in College Sports Institute for Administrative Advancement.

KRISTIN HUGHES

Division III Nike Executive of the Year
Director of Athletics, Smith College

Kristin Hughes has served as Smith College’s Director of Athletics since July of 2015. An experienced administrator and coach, Hughes is a graduate of Smith College’s Master of Science in exercise and sports studies (ESS) program.

Kristin has made it her mission to position Smith as a nationally recognized athletics program, while providing an elite experience for all student-athletes. In her time at Smith, she initiated groundbreaking projects such as the Friends of Athletics Endowment, facility rebranding and construction of a new boathouse and softball stadium. Additionally, she has prioritized DEI initiatives for administrators, coaches, graduate assistants and student-athletes. Serving on the President's Council, Kristin has elevated the status of athletics across the campus.

Under Kristin's leadership in 2022-23, the Pioneers enjoyed one of the most successful years in Smith's rich athletics history, including a Final Four appearance by the basketball program while also succeeding in the classroom with an average GPA of 3.67. Prior to Smith, Kristin served as the athletic director for the Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District, supervising the operation of 27 athletic teams and 75 coaches.

Before becoming an administrator, Kristin was the head women’s basketball coach at Colgate University and at Case Western University. In addition to coaching, while at Case, Kristin also served as the interim director of athletics, assistant director of athletics and senior women’s administrator. Kristin received a bachelor’s degree in biology and secondary education from Elms College before earning her master’s of science degree in exercise and sport studies from Smith College.

JANET EATON-SMITH

NAIA/NJCAA/CC Nike Executive of the Year
Vice President of Athletics, Lourdes University

Janet Eaton-Smith was named Lourdes University’s first full-time Athletics Director in July of 2018. In the summer of 2021, she was promoted to Vice President of Athletics. Janet was named the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Athletics Director of the Year for the 2020-2021 season after guiding the Gray Wolves through the ever-changing COVID-19 landscape.

While at Lourdes, Janet has been at the forefront of expanding the department. The Gray Wolves have been named a NAIA Gold Five-Star Institution each of her first four years, the only gold awards in the department’s history. She has been responsible for three new sports, men’s and women’s tennis as well as women’s wrestling, along with resurrecting the track and competitive dance programs. In addition, she has aggressively pursued sponsorship opportunities, forming numerous new partners. She has also greatly increased the Lourdes athletic department’s fundraising and has worked to secure grants for facility improvements.

Janet has also been responsible for establishing a student-athlete banquet at the conclusion of the academic year. She also formed the “Wall of Fame”, a compilation of the NAIA All-Americans that have been produced throughout athletics history. While at Lourdes, Janet became a member of the NAIA RISE program, providing an avenue for NAIA membership to participate in training and programming aimed at influencing positive change in the association where all people are valued and provided equal opportunity in all aspects of life. Janet was selected as a member of the NAIA National Administrative Council beginning in the 2021-2022 academic year. The NAC serves as the primary leadership council in the NAIA related to postseason policies and competition regulations. Janet is also a member of NAC Champions Competition subcommittee.

Janet arrived at Lourdes from Indiana State University, where she served as an assistant basketball coach for the Sycamores. Prior to her stint at Indiana State, Janet spent six years at Wiley College, where she served as the school’s Director of Athletics. While at Wiley, she was named the Red River Athletic Conference Athletic Director of the Year in 2013-2014 and was appointed to the National Administrative Council for the NAIA in 2014. Janet reinstated the men’s soccer program at Wiley along with the Hall of Fame and started the women’s soccer program. The athletics department won the RRAC GPA Award and the men’s track and field program was named the 2013 NAIA Outdoor Champions of Character Team. Janet began her collegiate athletic career at Lamar University, where she was an assistant coach for the NCAA Division I program for four seasons.

Prior to working in the collegiate setting, Janet spent time as the athletic director, women’s basketball coach, and a teacher at Xavier University Prep High School in New Orleans, La. after coaching and teaching at St. Bernard High School in Louisiana. At Xavier Prep, she was named the district’s Athletic Director of the Year in 2001-2002. A 1994 graduate of Dillard University with a Bachelor of Arts, Janet received her Master of Education from The University of Phoenix in 2001.

DEEDEE MERRITT

Association/Organization Nike Executive of the Year
Director of Leadership Development, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)

DeeDee Merritt serves as Director of NCAA Leadership Development, a position she has held since January 2020. As the department lead, DeeDee oversees the promotion, establishment, execution, evaluation and expansion of all NCAA leadership development initiatives and programs, playing a key role in fulfilling the missions of both the NCAA and the leadership development department.

DeeDee has been instrumental in asserting her group as a prominent national voice in the area of student-athlete development in intercollegiate athletics. In 2019, DeeDee led the department through a comprehensive evaluation process that resulted in the creation of a program pipeline designed to educate and develop student-athletes and those who serve them at all levels of their professional career.

During her tenure, DeeDee has overseen the creation and execution of several new transformative programmatic offerings, including Lessons in Management, a curriculum delivered to an all-female cohort of first-time managers; Foundations of Fundraising, an immersive educational opportunity designed to provide women and minorities in-depth education in the field of fundraising; ARISE, a virtual mentoring program for HBCU student-athletes interested in careers in STEM; and Athletes Using Their Power (A4), a virtual program educating student-athletes on how to maximize their voices and platforms. Additionally, she led the creation of the NCAA Leadership Collective, a platform designed to promote inclusive hiring practices within college sports administration and coaching. In 2021, the work of leadership development was featured in Forbes magazine.

Prior to her promotion to director, DeeDee spent two years as an associate director in leadership development. Before her transition to the NCAA national office, Merritt held various positions at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, including assistant athletics director, director of special projects, and coordinator of women’s services and advocacy. DeeDee has a Bachelor of Science in business management from the University of Phoenix and a master’s degree in business administration from Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee. DeeDee is the proud parent of one child, Breanna (32).

CRICKET LANE

Nell Jackson Nike Executive of the Year
Senior Associate Athletic Director, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Dr. Marchelle “Cricket” Lane is the Senior Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Development at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has been working with student-athletes for almost 30 years, 20 of which have been at UNC. She has and continues to focus on the development and well-being of student-athletes by helping them find their purpose and passion. She is committed to providing opportunities and connections in the areas of personal development, career development, civic engagement, and leadership development for all of the UNC’s 850 student-athletes. She also has responsibilities for sport supervision of the track and field/cross country and rowing programs at UNC.

Cricket’s commitment to student-athlete development, as well as her interest in civic engagement and social justice, led her to extensive involvement at the national, conference and campus level. On the national level, she has been consultant and lead facilitator for the NCAA National and Regional Leadership Conferences and she has chaired the NCAA Leadership Selection Committee and the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Committee. Cricket has also served on numerous conference and university committees, ranging from mental wellness to diversity and gender equity, and been an advisor to several on-campus affinity student groups. She has presented and co-presented with other educators on various leadership and student well-being issues at national and regional conferences on the college and high school level.

Cricket has been the recipient of several honors, including the Ernie Williamson Award for displaying an unquestioned love and loyalty to UNC, the athletics department, and the student-athletes; a Rammy Award for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; and membership in the Order of the Golden Fleece, the oldest and highest honorary society at UNC.

Prior to coming to UNC, Cricket worked in student-athlete development at Saint Francis University and the University of Detroit Mercy. She holds a Ph.D. in counselor education from Wayne State University, a M.A. in counseling from the University of Detroit, and a B.S. in psychology from George Mason University.