KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference and 10 of its full member institutions earned a Five-Star distinction from the NAIA Champions of Character program for their commitment to the Champions of Character program in 2022-23.
The KCAC was named a Five-Star conference for the 13th consecutive year, and joins 19 other conferences in earning this recognition for the 2022-23 school year. In order for a conference to earn the Five-Star distinction, it must meet the following criteria:
Established Champions of Character Conference Committee
Conference has a conduct in competition oversight committee composed of a minimum of three members
At least 50% of members institutions must receive the NAIA Champions of Character Five-Star Institution Award
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Institutions that are designated as Five-Star Institutions are broken down into gold, silver, and bronze tiers, based on their final scoring on the Champions of Character Scorecard. The KCAC finished with four institutions in the Gold Tier, two in the Silver tier, and four in the Bronze tier.
INSTITUTION DISTINCTION
Avila University
Gold
Bethel College
Gold
Tabor College*
Gold
University of Saint Mary*
Gold
* =
One of the 27 institutions who are part of the Five-Star Institutions Top Scores list (meaning they scored 100 points on the Champions of Character scorecard).
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INSTITUTION DISTINCTION
Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Silver
Sterling College
Silver
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INSTITUTION DISTINCTION
Evangel University
Bronze
Friends University
Bronze
Kansas Wesleyan University
Bronze
York University
Bronze
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"Being named a Five-Star Champions of Character conference for 13 consecutive years is a reflection of the KCAC's priority on modeling the five core values," Dr. Karol Hunt, Chair of the KCAC Champions of Character committee, remarked. "It is a reflection of the focus and perseverance of member institutions to strive to compete with integrity and sportsmanship even when doing so is challenging."
"It is an honor to continue as a Champions of Character Conference in the NAIA," Dr. Scott Crawford, KCAC commissioner, stated. "I appreciate the high number of conference member institutions that make being a Champions of Character a campus priority. I also thank the KCAC Board of Presidents for making this a key performance indicator for the conference as it has been part of our strategic plan for many years now."
ABOUT THE NAIA CHAMPIONS OF CHARACTER PROGRAM
The vision of National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Champions of Character program is to change the culture of sport. Its mission is to provide training to instill the values that build character so students, coaches and parents know, do and value the right thing on and off the field.
Research shows that the longer a student spends in sports, their social reasoning – sacrificing for the good of the team – rises.
The Champions of Character program helps participants find the balance by keeping five core values – integrity , respect , responsibility , sportsmanship , and servant leadership – at the heart of the athletics experience.
Students learn to understand how the values play out in both practice and competition. Coaches are taught how to intentionally define, model, shape and reinforce the values through their coaching and mentoring. Parents learn how their behavior is key to supporting their athletes.
For more than a decade, Champions of Character has been making a difference in developing athletes, coaches and parents of character.
The NAIA is committed to advancing character-driven athletics.
—KCAC—