WASHINGTON, D.C. (PRWEB) January 10, 2018
LEAD1 Association President and CEO Tom McMillen announced today the appointment of Chevonne Mansfield as Director of Communications, effective January 16th. Mansfield currently serves as the Director of Communications at the American Athletic Conference and adjunct professor in the Sports Entertainment Event Management program at Johnson & Wales University.
“We are thrilled to welcome Chevonne to the LEAD1 team,” said McMillen. “She brings years of experience in college athletics having worked at both the university and conference level. We expect her to produce great work that will create new relationships and enhance the existing relationships among our FBS member institutions.”
Prior to her joining LEAD1, Chevonne’s responsibilities at the American Atlantic Conference included oversight of host operations at the American Basketball Championship and contributing to the editorial direction of the American Digital Network. She strengthened the conference’s visibility in live broadcast coverage by working directly with writers and reporters to provide story lines, photography and interviews.
From 2011 to 2013, she worked as Assistant Director of Media Relations at the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and Assistant Director of Communications at the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) from 2010 to 2011. At the SEC she managed media relations for large scale events including the BCS Championship, the SEC Football Championship, and the SEC Men’s and Women’s Basketball and Baseball tournaments. She served as the SWAC’s sport administrator for women’s soccer, men’s tennis and women’s tennis and boosted their social media followership by 200% from 2010 to 2011.
Chevonne began her career in college sports in 2007 as Assistant Sports Information Director at Howard University, where she managed a $60,000 communications operating budget and served as the primary communications contact for 17 of the 19 sports at the university.
A native of Long Island, New York, Mansfield received her bachelor’s degree in communications with a double minor in business and international studies from St. John’s University. Her efforts also earned her the Marianne Noonan Award, which recognizes academic performance and outstanding contributions to the sport management program. She went on to earn her master’s degree and Poynter-Cronkite certificate for adjunct professors from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and Arizona State University, respectively.
A graduate of the NCAA Leadership Institute in 2009, Chevonne served as both a board member and panelist to many prestigious groups that provide people like herself with the opportunity to grow in the industry of college athletics. Her memberships include the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), Women Leaders in College Sports (formerly NACWAA), and National Sports Forum’s Business of Diversity in Sports and Entertainment (BDSE) Cohort. She received the CoSIDA Rising Star Award in 2011.
With a deep understanding of the role sports play in the lives of student-athletes, administrators, and outside constituents, Chevonne will become an essential component in helping LEAD1 to continue its momentum as a driving force towards positive change in Division I athletics.
ABOUT LEAD1: Essential to the mission of the LEAD1 Association are influencing how the rules of college sports are enacted and implemented, advocating for the future of college athletics, and providing various services to the members, ranging from professional development to pooled purchasing arrangements. The mission statement of the LEAD1 Association is, "Supporting the athletic directors of America's leading intercollegiate programs in preparing today's students to be tomorrow's leaders." The universities of LEAD1 Association are located in 41 states across America. For more information, please contact Lori Fravel at lori@lead1a.com.