UMass Boston

Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) 

Members of the UMass Boston Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) serve as liaisons between the committee, their respective teams, coaching staffs, and the athletic administration. As student-athletes and campus leaders, SAAC members are expected to foster a culture of collaboration, advocacy, and service. Through their efforts, they support the well-being of fellow student-athletes, enhance the student-athlete experience, and positively impact both the campus and surrounding community. 

Important Links: 

• NCAA Division III SAAC Website   

• LEC SAAC Website  

• UMass Boston SAAC Website  

• UMass Boston SAAC Constitution 

Membership:  

• SAAC is open to all full-time, eligible student-athletes at the University of Massachusetts Boston.     

• Each team will have representation on SAAC. The representatives must be approved by the head coach, the VCAR, the SAAC Advisor and the senior woman administrator.   

• In the event a representative terminates his/her participation on an athletic team, the representative may continue to attend meetings but relinquishes his/her official status as a SAAC representative and delegates that responsibility to a current teammate.   

• All members of SAAC must be active eligible athletes on their respective teams. If a student athlete is no longer eligible for SAAC, the head coach must email the SAAC Advisor that they be removed.    

• Special consideration for medically retired athletes should be given based on the circumstances.  

• Chosen representatives must be in good academic standing with the university and be trusted to uphold the rules established by the NCAA guidelines and the UMB Student-Athlete Handbook.    

• Representatives will serve a two-semester term, however, there is no limit to the number of semesters a student athlete can serve on the committee.    

• When athletes have either fulfilled their duties and can no longer serve on SAAC due to graduation, have class conflicts with SAAC meeting times, or if they are longer interested in being a SAAC representative, the remaining team representatives should work with their head coach and the SAAC Advisor to select a new representative. If the head coach or the SAAC Advisor feels that person is not a good fit, they will work together to name a new SAAC representative for that team.      

Meetings:

• Meetings are held on Monday evenings on a bi-monthly basis in the Clark Athletic Center Multipurpose Room, unless communicated otherwise.   

• The first meeting of each semester should occur no later than the third week of classes.    

Attendance:

• It is the duty of each representative to attend all SAAC meetings.    

• Absences are excused only in the following cases:   

• Documented emergencies  

• Athletic competition  

• If student has an exam  

• SAAC members with an excusable absence must email the Executive Board and the SAAC Advisor at least 24 hours before the meeting.  

• Documented medical emergencies are the only excused absences without prior written notification.   

• In the event of an absence, the representative missing the meeting must communicate with their teammate to ensure they know what they missed and how to get caught up to speed.   

• Three unexcused absences from a meeting are cause for dismissal from SAAC. 

• Unexcused absences are defined as an absence from a regularly scheduled meeting without providing written notice to the Executive Board and SAAC Advisor at least 24 hours in advance. 

Election Process for the SAAC Executive Board:    

• Officers will be nominated in the month of April.     

• Any member of SAAC may run for the Executive Board after serving on SAAC for at least one year.    

• Each nomination requires a second approval from a member of SAAC.   

• The nominated parties will be responsible for writing an original Statement of Purpose as to why they want to be on the Executive Board or in the Committee Chair roles to the SAAC Advisor.    

• The SAAC Advisor will share the statements of the nominees with their head coach, SWA, and VCAR.  

• After nominations are accepted and the statements are approved; each SAAC member will cast one (1) vote for the Executive Board using a google form.    

• Members will have one (1) week to cast their votes via the google form.    

• The SAAC Advisor will then share the proposed SAAC Executive Board roster based on the voting results with the VCAR and SWA for final approval before any announcement is made.   

• The Executive Board will be named in May after votes are reviewed, tallied, and approved.    

SAAC Executive Board:

• President or Co-Presidents  

• Vice President  

• Secretary    

• Treasurer  

SAAC Committee Chairs:  

• Community Engagement  

• Events & Campus Engagement  

• Social Media  

• Student-Athlete Wellbeing  

• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion  

SAAC Superlatives for the UMBY’s:

SAAC Superlatives are awards determined by SAAC representatives and voted on by all student athletes. SAAC Superlatives are presented at the UMBY’s Athletic Banquet at the end of the academic year and are designed to be fun and engaging.  Examples of potential SAAC superlatives are:   

• Glue Beacon 

• Grittiest Beacon 

• Drippiest Beacon 

• Dynamic Duo 

• Comeback Player of the Year 

• Strongest Beacon 

• Most Likely to Make You Laugh 

SAAC Superlative Nomination and Voting Process:

Process	Timeline	Who
Identify five superlative categories	February	Members of SAAC
Nominate for superlatives	March	Members of SAAC
Vote on superlatives	April	All student athletes via online ballot
Review votes	April	SAAC Advisor, Administrators
Announce winners	UMBY’s	Members of SAAC