Waterville, Maine - As the Colby College Athletic and Recreation Department continues to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Title IX, we want to highlight the designation of the Senior Woman Administrator (SWA). 

In 1981, the NCAA membership voted to create the "Primary Woman Administrator of athletic programs" (PWA) designation - the same year it added women's championships. The designation was created to identify women that could serve on NCAA committees and encourage meaningful involvement of female administrators in the decision-making process of intercollegiate athletics at the institutional, conference and national levels. The highest-ranking female involved in the management of an institution or conference's intercollegiate athletics program was to serve in that role. The legislated definition for the Senior Woman Administrator was first included in the NCAA Manual in 1989-90, when the NCAA manuals were reformatted. This also was the time when the reference changed from "Primary Woman Administrator" to "Senior Woman Administrator."

At the recommendation of the Division III Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, in 2016, the NCAA governance staff partnered with Women Leaders in College Sports to offer a new professional development opportunity for Division III Senior Woman Administrators (SWAs), thus funding is available for 30 SWAs to attend a division-specific program. Casie Runksmeier, Colby College's current SWA, was fortunate enough to be in the Division III SWA Program in the spring of 2022 and operated as a facilitator for the program in the fall of the 2022. 

Colby SWA's through the years include Carol Anne Beach, Heidi Godomsky, Deb Pluck, Laura Halldorson, Marcella Zalot, Tracey Cote, Jessica Cherry, Jacqui Shuman, and Casie Runksmeier (current).

It is important to understand that schools and conference offices are not legislatively required to have an SWA, although 99 percent of NCAA schools do. Additionally, if an athletics director or commissioner is female, the school or conference may designate another woman as its SWA.

Other common SWA misperceptions include: 

• The second word in the acronym is senior WOMAN, not senior WOMEN'S administrator
• "Senior" refers to the highest-ranking female in the athletics department, not the longest serving or oldest
• Provides leadership to both men's and women's sport issues
• It is a designation, not a position
• The SWA designation is not a requirement, the NCAA Constitution only defines the term.

"I appreciate the opportunity to be in a leadership role and am proud to serve as Colby's current SWA." - Casie Runksmeier, Associate Athletic Director & Senior Woman Administrator