Six former NCAA student-athletes have been named recipients of the 2006 Silver Anniversary Award.

The award recognizes former student-athletes who completed successful collegiate careers in various sports 25 years ago and went on to excel in their chosen professions.

The awards will be presented at the NCAA Honors Celebration January 7 during the annual NCAA Convention in Indianapolis.

The winners were selected by the NCAA Honors Committee, composed of eight athletics administrators and nationally distinguished citizens who are former student-athletes.

This year's Silver Anniversary Award honorees are Valerie B. Ackerman (University of Virginia, basketball); Danny Ainge (Brigham Young University, basketball); Charles E. Davis (Vanderbilt University, basketball); Terry Schroeder (Pepperdine University, water polo); Michael Singletary (Baylor University, football); and Susan D. Wellington (Yale University, swimming and diving, and softball).

Following are biographical sketches of the 2006 award winners.

Valerie B. Ackerman

University of Virginia

Basketball

President, USA Basketball

A four-year starter, three-time team captain and two-time academic all-American, Ack erman's collegiate basketball career concluded with her being named the Atlantic Coast Conference scholar-athlete of the year and receiving the Jettie Hill Award for the highest grade-point average among all Virginia female athletes. After graduation, Ackerman played professional basketball in France for one year.

After obtaining her law degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, Ackerman worked for a major New York City law firm before being hired as a staff attorney for the NBA in 1988. From 1990 to 1992, she served as special assistant to NBA Commissioner David Stern, then was named NBA vice president of business affairs in 1994. In 1996, she was appointed the first president of the WNBA, a role in which she served until being named to her current post as president of USA Basketball in 2005.

As a member of the USA Basketball board, Ackerman was instrumental in the formation of the women's national team that won the 1996 Olympic gold medal in Atlanta. In 2005, she was named a recipient of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association President's Award and also received the inaugural Sports Business Woman of the Year Award given by the University of Oregon's Warsaw Sports Marketing Center.

She currently serves on the national board of trustees for the March of Dimes and the national board of directors of Girls, Incorporated. She also serves on the executive committee for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Ackerman was appointed as a member of the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics in May.

Danny Ainge

Brigham Young University

Basketball

Executive Director of Basketball Operations, Boston Celtics

A three-sport high school athlete, Ainge was selected in the 15th round of the 1977 Major League Baseball draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. While playing collegiate basketball at Brigham Young, Ainge spent his first three years also playing professional baseball with the Blue Jays.

Named both the 1981 John Wooden and Eastman Award winner, Ainge averaged 24.4 points per game during his senior season. He still holds several individual season and career records at Brigham Young and is the only Brigham Young men's basketball player to have his jersey retired.

After graduation, Ainge was selected in the second round of the 1981 NBA draft and spent 14 seasons playing for the Boston Celtics, Sacramento Kings, Portland Trailblazers and Phoenix Suns. A member of two world championship teams with the Celtics (1984, 1986) Ainge is one of only three retired NBA players to make 1,000 three-point shots.

Hired as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns, Ainge was promoted to head coach eight games into the year. He served as an NBA game and studio analyst for Turner Sports before being named executive director of basketball operations for the Celtics in 2003.

Ainge has worked with several community and charitable organizations, including the Children's Miracle Network, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the Stay-In-School campaign and Special Olympics.

Charles E. Davis

Vanderbilt University

Basketball

Founder and Executive Director,

Charles Davis Foundation

After completing a su ccessful career at Vanderbilt, Davis spent more than a decade playing professional basketball in the NBA and internationally in Italy and Japan. After playing with the NBA's Washington Bullets, Milwaukee Bucks, San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls, Davis became a member of the men's basketball coaching staff at his alma mater.

In 1982, he founded the Charles Davis Foundation with the mission of empowering inner city youth to reach their full potential through PEACE (Positive, Education, Athletic, Cultural and Economic) development. The foundation is based in Nashville and includes learning centers for youth in grades 1 through 12. The initiative also includes a "Senior Saints" program, camps and year-round activities for inner city children and their families.

Davis also is co-founder and president/CEO of CNT Enterprises, LLC, for real estate development and construction management.

The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame inductee also was given the professional achievement award by the Vanderbilt Alumni Association and the 1994 Civitan's Nashville Citizen of the Year. In 2004, he was named one of the 10 Most Influential African-Americans in Nashville Sports History.

Terry Schroeder

Pepperdine University

Water Polo

Head Men's Water Polo Coach, Pepperdine University

Schroeder was the leading scorer for the Waves during three of his four years. While competing at Pepperdine, he was selected to the United States national water polo team. Schroeder is the only four-time U.S. water polo Olympian in history, earning two silver medals. In the 1988 Seoul Olympics, he was selected to carry the United States flag for Team USA in the closing ceremonies.

Twice named the best water polo player in the world by Swimming World magazine, Schroeder has been the men's head water polo coach at Pepperdine since 1986. In his 19 years as head coach, he has led the team to eight NCAA championship appearances and one title, and he has coached more than 20 all-Americans and one Olympian, compiling a .606 winning percentage overall. Schroeder also has worked as a water polo color analyst for TBS Sports, Prime Network, USA Cable and Bud Sports.

He gradated magna cum laude with a degree in sports medicine and later attended chiropractic school. Currently in private practice as a chiropractor, Schroeder and his wife Lori, also a chiropractor, donate their services to numerous organizations including the Special Olympics, the YMCA and several schools, as well as providing complimentary care to underprivileged patients. Schroeder designed and developed a posture-friendly backpack for children and donates hundreds of the "Posture Packs" to needy children nationwide.

Schroeder. who co-chairs the Barbara Bush "Project Literacy for the United States," is a champion for children and the underprivileged. He works as an inspirational, motivational and instructional speaker at various camps, clinics, schools and civic organizations, and for 19 years has donated sessions of summer water polo camps to charity organizations.

Michael Singletary

Baylor University

Football

Assistant Head Coach,

San Francisco 49ers

A four-year letter-winner as a middle linebacker, Singletary ca ptained the Baylor football team during his junior and senior campaigns and still owns six school records. The Baylor defensive player of the decade for the 1980s also was named to Baylor's all-decade team for the 1970s. Singletary's accolades include being named the Southwest Conference Defensive Player of the Decade for the 1980s, being named to Baylor's All-Hall Century Football Team, and being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame.

After his college career, Singletary was selected in the second round of the 1981 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears, where he played for 12 seasons. Selected to 10 consecutive Pro Bowls, Singletary was named to the NFL Team of the 1980s.

While in Chicago, Singletary won a Super Bowl championship and two Associated Press NFL defensive player of the year awards. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame during his first year of eligibility for the honor. In 1990, he was named the NFL Man of the Year for his community service and his excellence on the football field.

After retiring from professional football, Singletary co-founded "The Leadership Zone," a company that provides leadership and motivational training. He often speaks to Fortune 500 companies about diversity, teamwork and leadership, and serves as a consultant with ServiceMaster Corp. and CoMark Corp. He also was named the Father of the Year by the National Fatherhood Initiative.

After two years coaching with the Baltimore Ravens, Singletary now is an assistant coach with the San Francisco  49ers.

Susan D. Wellington

Yale University

Swimming and Diving/Softball

Former President, Gatorade

A four-year letter-winner, team captain and all-American in swimming and a three-year letter-winner in softball, Wellington graduated from Yale with a degree in economics and mathematics. She continues to be a leader today in Yale sports and is one of nine founding members of W.I.S.E.R. (Women's Intercollegiate Sports Endowment and Resource), a $1 million endowment for women's athletics at Yale.

Beginning her career at Quaker Oats, Wellington rose through the corporate ranks to hold posts as vice president of marketing and vice president of strategy and world-wide market development for Gatorade.

She became president of the company in 1998 and remained in that role through 2002.

Recognized throughout the marketing world as a strong brand builder, Wellington has been named among Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal's Top 10 Most Powerful Women in Sports, Brandweek's Power 50 and Crain's Business 'Top 40 under 40."

Wellington left Gatorade in 2002 to spend more time with her family. She currently is a board member with the Women's Sports Foundation, and a minority owner of the Chicago WNBA franchise. Wellington also is a recreational tri-athlete.