March 26, 2007 

NYIT Student Athletes Continue Winning Tradition

Old Westbury, N.Y., March 19, 2007: New York Institute of Technology’s (NYIT) Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), in collaboration with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and other college campus Division II SAACs, is sponsoring “Links of Love,” a national fundraiser to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

“Links of Love” are available for $1 at NYIT home sporting events. Each link purchased is joined together to form one chain that will be displayed throughout NYIT’s Department of Athletics. The national campaign’s goal is to raise $100,000 during the current academic year. Last year, more than $118,000 was raised nationally and donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation benefiting children with life-threatening medical conditions.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation fundraising campaign was established three years ago by the national Division II SAAC as a way to exhibit teamwork and collaboration for a common goal and a worthy cause. The Division II SAAC is the only committee to sponsor a division-wide community service campaign.

Division II national SAAC members address issues facing student athletes such as the development of campus and conference SAACs, Title IX education, faculty/student athlete relations, and championships enhancements. Their mission is to “enhance the total student athlete experience by promoting opportunity, protecting student athlete welfare, and fostering a positive student athlete image.” The SAAC also offers input on the rules, regulations, and policies that affect student athletes at member institution campuses.

There are separate national SAACs for NCAA Divisions I, II, and III. NCAA legislation mandates that all member institutions have SAACs on their respective campuses.

For more information or to make a contribution, please contact Erin Merz, NYIT promotions coordinator, at 516.686.4890 or emerz@nyit.edu. For more information about the Make-A-Wish Foundation, please visit www.wish.org.

About NYIT

NYIT is the college of choice for more than 14,000 students enrolled in more than 100 specialized courses of study leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees in academic areas such as architecture and design; arts and sciences; education and professional services; engineering and computing sciences; health professions, behavioral, and life sciences; management; and osteopathic medicine. As a private, nonprofit, independent institution of higher learning, NYIT embraces an educational philosophy of career-oriented professional education for all qualified students and supports applications-oriented research to benefit the greater global community. Students attend classes at NYIT’s campuses in Manhattan and Long Island, as well as online and in a number of programs throughout the world. To date, more than 69,000 alumni have earned degrees at NYIT. For more information, visit www.nyit.edu.

Contact: mediarelations@nyit.edu