Initiatives: The Division III Commissioners Association recently unveiled its Division III Fan Sportsmanship Program with a goal of achieving 100 percent participation by conferences and institutions during 2006-07. The program focuses on fan education, game management and policy enforcement through what is billed as “a unified effort to promote respect for student-athletes, coaches and officials in intercollegiate athletics.” Promoting the message “Be Loud, Be Proud, Be Positive,” the commissioners are asking conferences and institutions to endorse the principles of the effort — and to adopt or create at least one program in each of the three focus areas. Recommended approaches to fan education include insertion of information in game programs; use at games of a student-athlete pledge; and fan code-of-conduct statement, posters, and letters to parents or guardians of student-athletes. The game-management component features model guidelines for managing athletics events and descriptions of responsibilities for specific personnel. The policy-enforcement component proposes ways of maintaining a positive atmosphere at games and holding those who attend accountable for their behavior. Materials describing the program, along with an “endorsement/adoption page” for committing to the effort, recently were sent to conference commissioners, the Association of Division III Independents and athletics directors at Division III institutions. The materials also can be obtained online from the Division III Commissioners Association at www.diiicomm.org/sportsmanship.htm. The program was created by the commissioners’ sportsmanship and ethical conduct committee, chaired by Empire 8 Commissioner Chuck Mitrano and also including as members Donna Ledwin of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (who also currently serves as DIIICA president), Dennis Collins of the North Coast Athletic Conference, Gary Karner of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, Steve Larson of the Lake Michigan Conference, Katie Hersey of the New England Women’s & Men’s Athletics Conference, and David Neilson of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

Conferences: The Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation announced that Lycoming College will move from the Freedom Conference to the Commonwealth Conference and that Manhattanville College and Arcadia University will become members of the Freedom Conference and join Lycoming and 11 other institutions as members of the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC), effective in August 2007. Lycoming, an MAC member since 1952, will compete in soccer, basketball, tennis, volleyball, golf and softball in the Commonwealth Conference, and in lacrosse, football and cross country in the Middle Atlantic Conference. Manhattanville (currently a member of the Skyline Conference) and Arcadia (a member of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference) will compete in soccer, field hockey, basketball, tennis, golf, baseball and softball in the Freedom Conference, and in lacrosse in the MAC. The actions follow the recently announced departure of four MAC members — Drew University, Juniata College, Moravian College and Susquehanna University — which plan to form a new conference with three other schools. “Besides adding two members and realigning Lycoming, our presidents approved a philosophy and principles statement establishing standards that exceed NCAA requirements,” said Ken Andrews, MASCAC executive director, in announcing the most recent actions. “We have ensured a conference-wide commitment that student-athletes are representative of the entire student body and integrated into the fabric of each institution. The restructuring of the corporation, coupled with the acceptance of this new document, reinforces our position as leaders in Division III.” The Middle Atlantic Conference originated in 1912, and the Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation was established in 1993 as an umbrella organization for the Freedom, Commonwealth, and Middle Atlantic Conferences. Manhattanville and Arcadia will become full members for the 2007-08 academic year.

Milestones: Ken Howe won his 300th game in baseball when Keene State College defeated Becker College April 26, and the milestone win comes during a season in which the team set a program record for victories in a season (31 through May 14). Howe, who is in his 20th season at the school, has coached the Owls to five 20-win or better seasons since the school joined the Little East Conference in 1997 ... Paul Murphy notched his 200th baseball win in Gwynedd-Mercy College’s May 5 victory over Arcadia University. Murphy, who became the school’s first baseball coach eight years ago, has led two of his teams to Division III Baseball Championship appearances ... Ken Carlyle earned his 100th baseball coaching victory at Greensboro College in an April 21 victory over nationally ranked Emory University. The win came in the regular-season finale of Carlyle’s fifth season at the school.

Miscellaneous: Chapman University has introduced a new logo for its athletics teams. The modernized version of the school’s traditional “C” logo features a thinner version of the letter that transforms into the head of the program’s Panther mascot. The school will use both the new logo, developed by Ryan Tolentino of the university’s publications office, and the traditional logo. The new look accompanies the development of the Lastinger Athletics Complex, where the school’s new Wilson Field is scheduled to open in September. “What we’ve been able to do is incorporate the past with the future of Chapman athletics,” said Athletics Director David Currey. “The new logo is an exciting symbol of bringing all of our teams together as we enter an era of change with the new facilities on campus.” ... Kelly Curtan, a key member of the three-time Northwest Conference championship women’s golf team at Pacific University (Oregon), has received a Fulbright Teaching Assistantship to teach at an elementary school in Madrid, Spain. A Spanish major interested in bilingual education, Curtan will teach a variety of topics at a school that has a large number of Moroccan and sub-Saharan African students. She believes her time with the golf team contributed to her selection for the opportunity. “One of the things that was on the application was that I have learned to manage my time well because I am a student-athlete,” she said. “I think that was a huge part of the reason that I got it — because I was so well-rounded from my participation in athletics.” Curran served as one of the golf team’s captains this year and helped lead Pacific to a 34-stroke victory April 22 at the conference tournament.