The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- November 8, 1999

Two staff members elevated to championships director level

Two long-time members of the NCAA national office staff have been promoted to the director level in the championships group.

Thomas A. Jacobs and Christine Pohl were promoted to the positions of director of championships October 25.

The promotions are a result of Donna J. Noonan's appointment as the vice-president for the Division I Women's Basketball Championship and the upgrading of an assistant director of championships position, which is part of the championships group restructuring.

Both Jacobs and Pohl have played key roles in the growth and success of many NCAA championships during their tenures.

Jacobs has staffed the Division I Men's Soccer Championship since 1994, overseeing growth of the event that has taken it from campus venues to capacity crowds at Davidson College, the University of Richmond, and this year at Ericcson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. Jacobs also has helped administer the Division II Men's Basketball Championship, which has enjoyed success at Springfield, Massachusetts, and Louisville, Kentucky, for many years.

Jacobs also has staffed the Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship, the Division I Men's Tennis Championships and the National Collegiate Men's Water Polo Championship, among others.

Jacobs joined the NCAA staff in 1990 after serving as the assistant marketing director at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a 1985 graduate of the University of Kansas, and he obtained a master's degree in sports administration from Ohio University in 1988.

Pohl joined the championships group in 1994 after having served three years with the education services staff, where she was a youth programs coordinator.

Pohl has served as the staff liaison to the Division I Women's Softball Championship and the Division I Women's Volleyball Championship since that time. She also has staffed the Division III Men's Basketball Championship and the Division III Men's and Women's Swimming Championships, among others.

Pohl is a 1981 graduate of Central Michigan University. She served as an assistant softball coach at Pennsylvania State University after obtaining her master's degree there in 1984.

Before joining the NCAA staff, Pohl was a teacher at Interlochen Arts Academy in Traverse City, Michigan, where she coordinated the school's outdoor recreation program and initiated an arts medicine program.