The Division II Presidents Council has elected four new members whose terms will begin at the conclusion of the 2001 NCAA Convention in Orlando.

Four new members also have been elected to serve on the Division II Management Council.

The new Presidents Council members are Nancy Belck, University of Nebraska, Omaha, North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference; Frank D. Brown, Columbus State University, Peach Belt Athletic Conference; John P. Keating, University of Wisconsin, Parkside, Great Lakes Valley Conference; and W. Clinton Pettus, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

The members elected to the Management Council are Clyde Doughty Jr., New York Institute of Technology, New York Collegiate Conference; Richard Gropper, University of North Florida, Peach Belt Athletic Conference; George Klebez, West Virginia Wesleyan College; and Joan McDermott, Metropolitan State College of Denver, Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

Presidents Council members

Belck

Belck was named chancellor of Nebraska-Omaha in 1997. She previously served as chancellor at the University of Southern Illinois, Edwardsville. Before that, she was provost and vice-chancellor for academic affairs at Louisiana State University, Shreveport.

A specialist in strategic and long-range planing, Belck has consulted at more than 30 universities and professional organizations during the last decade. She has received a number of national honors awards and is associated with many professional, civic and community organizations, including serving on the boards of directors for the Omaha Chamber of Commerce, the Omaha Executive Institute and the Urban League of Nebraska, among others.

She earned her bachelor's degree in teacher education from Louisiana Tech University. She also holds a master's degree in textile science from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a Ph.D. in family ecology and communication from Michigan State University.

Brown

Brown was appointed president of Columbus State in January 1998.

He previously had held positions with the IBM Corporation, the Alabama Commission on Higher Education and the University of Houston. He came to Columbus State in 1981 as vice-president for business and finance.

He has been active in many civic organizations, including the American Lung Association, the Rotary Club of Columbus, the United Way and the Columbus Symphony.

He received his B.S. in business administration from the University of Southern Mississippi; a master's from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa; and a Ph.D. in higher education administration from Florida State University.

Keating

Keating began his duties as Wisconsin-Parkside chancellor in 1998, making him the fifth person to serve as chancellor since the university opened 30 years ago.

Before joining Wisconsin-Parkside, he served as provost of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. During his four years there, he led a revitalization of the university's research and teaching missions, forging a cooperative bond between the two groups.

Keating earlier served as the founding dean and vice-provost at University of Washington campuses at Tacoma and Bothell. He also served as a professor at Washington.

He earned his B.A. in classics/philosophy from Gonzaga University. He holds master's degrees from Gonzaga (philosophy) and the University of Santa Clara (theology). He earned his Ph.D. in social psychology from Ohio State University.

Pettus

Pettus has been president of Cheyney since 1996. Previous to that, he was provost and vice-president for academic affairs at Cheyney.

Before arriving at Cheyney, Pettus was at Virginia State University, where he served as professor of psychology; vice-president for administration; dean of the school of natural sciences; and chair of the department of psychology.

Pettus has been directly involved in intercollegiate athletics since 1989. He currently is a member of the board of directors of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

Pettus earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Virginia State in general psychology. He holds a doctorate in personality psychology from the University of Illinois, Champaign.

Management Council members

Doughty

Doughty has been at New York Tech for 24 years, since the day he first attended a class at the Old Westbury campus. He oversees intercollegiate, recreational and intramural athletics programs at the Old Westbury and Central Islip campuses. He counts among his achievements enhancing the athletics department's organizational structure and stability and improving the academic performances of New York Tech's student-athletes.

Doughty earned a bachelor's degree in business management and has two master's degrees from New York Tech, one in human resource management and one in human relations.

Doughty currently serves as chair of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference's men's basketball committee, is the men's basketball chair for the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference and was a member of the NCAA's Northeast Men's Basketball Regional Committee for three years. He was president of the NYCAC from 1994 through 1997 and was a member of the ECAC's executive council from 1989 until 1992.

Gropper

Gropper was selected as North Florida's fifth athletics director in 1994. Since his arrival on campus, he has built the program's budget, expanded the athletics booster association, increased corporate and private support, and increased television exposure for the program.

Gropper came to North Florida from Florida International University, where he had served as associate athletics director since 1988. At Florida International, he administered all internal operations.

Before Florida International, he served in a number of positions at Miami Dade Community College.

He received his bachelor's degree from the University of South Florida and has a master's and a doctorate from Florida International.

Klebez

Klebez has been director of athletics at West Virginia Wesleyan since 1990. He oversees a program that includes 19 teams.

Klebez has played a major role in enhancing gender equity at his institution by adding and improving women's sports. He also organized and established an athletics hall of fame and athletics recognition program at his institution. During his tenure, West Virginia Wesleyan teams have won 60 conference championships and five national championships.

Previously, Klebez served as a faculty member and swimming coach at West Virginia Wesleyan, playing the key role in establishing the men's and women's swimming teams. Before that, he coached soccer, building a record of 96-33-10.

He has a B.A. in biology from West Virginia Wesleyan and master's and doctorate from Indiana University, Bloomington, in physical education.

McDermott

McDermott was named Metro State's director of athletics in 1998.

She previously coached Metro State's volleyball team for five years and was the institution's senior woman administrator for three years before her appointment as athletics director.

McDermott coached the volleyball team to a berth in the Division II "Sweet 16" in 1998 and won her 400th career match in 1998. She also coached softball for 11 years at Metro State and two other schools.

Before arriving at Metro State, McDermott was assistant athletics director and co-athletics director at Morningside College, where she oversaw compliance and budgeting.

McDermott received her bachelor's degree from the University of San Francisco and her master's from Stanford University. She needs only her dissertation to earn her doctorate from San Francisco.