CLEVELAND, OH – The North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) has announced that its Academic Honor Roll will be renamed the Dr. Gordon Collins Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll, beginning with the 2024-25 academic year.

"This is a deserving honor for Dr. Collins and all that he contributed to the NCAC over his tenure at The College of Wooster and beyond," said NCAC Executive Director Keri Alexander Luchowski. "This recognition also ensures that we honor this history and keep it alive as the conference continues into the future."

Dr. Gordon Collins played a key role in the establishment of the NCAC in the early 1980s as one of the league's founding faculty athletic representatives. A professor of psychology and volunteer track and field coach at The College of Wooster from 1963 to 2000, Collins worked with presidents, athletic directors, fellow faculty athletic representatives and coaches across the conference to help build an athletic model that prioritized academic excellence, equity for women's sports, broad-based athletic programs, mutual trust between members and presidential oversight of athletics.

"Gordon Collins played a huge role in forming the NCAC and provided significant leadership to the conference for many years as one of The College of Wooster's faculty athletic representatives," said Lynn Holleran, Wooster's director of athletics and physical education. "We are very thankful to everyone involved in making this a reality, especially our conference partners and presidents for working with us to make this happen. This is a great way to honor his legacy and dedication to the NCAC and its members."

He was a strong advocate for these guiding principles and remained an engaged supporter of the conference and its mission throughout his career. His commitment to the values of Division III athletics and the overall student-athlete experience had a lasting impact on the NCAC.

The Dr. Gordon Collins Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll, which will be announced on Monday, June 23, 2025, will continue to recognize student-athletes who have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of 3.50 or higher while competing on a varsity team at an NCAC institution. Renaming the award honors Dr. Collins' foundational contributions to the conference and his enduring influence on its academic and athletic priorities.