Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell's Amanda Backus Named Chair of NCAA Division I Field Hockey Committee
10/1/2004 8:00:00 AM | General
Oct. 1, 2004
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell associate director of athletics and senior woman administrator Amanda Backus was recently appointed chairperson of the NCAA Division I Field Hockey Committee. Backus, whose appointment officially began on Sept. 1, is in her third year as a member of the committee.
As chair of the committee, Backus is charged with a myriad of tasks, including conducting NCAA Championship site evaluations, organizing and leading committee conference calls and serving as the primary liaison between the committee and the NCAA. Backus also remains in her post as chair of the Mideast Region committee, where her duties include seeding the teams in the region for consideration by the NCAA Tournament selection committee.
Backus is in her fourth year as an athletics administrator at Bucknell. She was also senior woman administrator and associate AD for compliance and student services at Quinnipiac University for two years, beginning in July 1999. A 1992 graduate of Franklin & Marshall University, Backus also spent a year and a half at Cornell University working in NCAA compliance and event management.
At Bucknell Backus serves as a senior aide to director of athletics and recreation John Hardt and is the direct supervisor for 13 Bison sports programs. She oversees Bucknell's unique Sideline Coaches Program as well as NCAA compliance. Backus is a key campus liaison in the areas of financial aid and admissions and with the faculty and deans.
Bucknell sponsors 26 intercollegiate sports, including 14 women, at the Division I level (I-AA in football). It is a charter member of the Patriot League and has won the league's all-sports championship in 11 of the 14 years it has been contested, including the last seven in a row. Bucknell led the nation with a 100 percent graduation rate in the most recent survey and ranks third in Division I in producing Academic All-Americans.
