Matt Baysinger, a track and field student-athlete at Kansas, recently was elected chair of the Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Baysinger said that intercollegiate athletics is “one of the only places in the world where the team is bigger than the players.” He described his goals for the national SAAC and how being a student-athlete changed his life.

Q  What is the proper role of student-athletes in the governance structure? Why is the student-athlete voice important?

Baysinger: The NCAA is an Association created for the well-being of student-athletes. Its very existence is based on the education of and athletics competition for student-athletes all over the country. It is paramount that student-athletes have a major role in shaping the rules and regulations that govern the athletics and academic settings in which we participate. I hope and believe that the cabinets and committees that make the decisions in the NCAA governance structure are truly acting with the well-being of student-athletes as their first priority, and it is the duty of the national SAAC to ensure that this is the case.

Q  Should student-athlete representatives on cabinets and committees have a vote?

Baysinger: During my tenure on the national SAAC, I have seen our committee make leaps and bounds in shaping the decisions that are made in the governance structure. The national SAAC has earned the respect and esteem of cabinets and committees throughout the Division I governance structure, and the scope of our representation is ever-increasing. At this point, I believe that as non-voting members, we have just as much influence on the cabinets and committees as we would with a vote. This is not to say that we should not be voting members in the near future, but the most important thing right now is to make sure that we continue to have a presence in the discussions that shape legislative outcomes.

Q  What misperceptions do you think people have about student-athletes? How can those be corrected?

Baysinger: The general public often views student-athletes as narrow-minded. The NCAA commercials have it right when they say that most of the 400,000 student-athletes plan on going pro in something other than sports. What people fail to realize is that we are excited for our careers outside of athletics. In many schools, student-athletes actually have a higher grade-point average than the general student body on their respective campuses. It has become common practice for media outlets to report only the negative actions of student-athletes. For anyone who feels negatively about student-athletes, I would suggest that they perform a Google-news search of the word “SAAC” to see all of the positive things that student-athletes all across the country undertake on a daily basis. The fact that student-athletes are able to be full-time students, full-time athletes and make time to have positive impacts on their communities is truly astonishing.

Q  How has being a student-athlete changed you?

Baysinger: Being a student-athlete has allowed me to experience things that simply cannot be taught in a classroom. When I began my college career, I began as an athlete. After being submerged in such a highly academic environment, however, I am proud to say that I have become a student. Being a student-athlete has taught me how to manage time and priorities. Through sportsmanship, I have seen the virtue of honesty and fairness. Through competition, I have learned how to succeed with humility and fail with hope. Through practice, I have seen the product of perseverance and the resolution of endurance. Being a student-athlete has allowed me to see places in America that I may have never experienced and encounter people that I may have never met. Being a student-athlete has not only changed me, but it has shaped the quintessential definition of who I am. I believe that I am a more capable, more patient, and more adept because of my experience as a student-athlete.

Q  How has your experience as a SAAC member – and now as chair – influenced you?

Baysinger: Until I started working with SAAC, I did not have a solid career path or goal. I knew that I wanted to work with people, and I knew that I loved being a student-athlete, but I did not see the connection between the two. After I began working with the SAAC at Kansas, I saw a completely different side of athletics. I realized that the collective voice of many is infinitely louder than the voice of one. When I began working with the SAAC on a national level, I realized that the issues that affected the student-athletes at the University of Kansas were often the same issues that affected student-athletes all over the country. I was in awe to see how knowledgeable and efficient the national SAAC was when dealing with legislation and leadership practices. Working with the national SAAC has taught me to look at things from a broader perspective. Being a part of this prestigious group has shown me that leaders are not the ones with fancy titles and important positions, but those who act on behalf of their friends and peers. Being on the national SAAC has allowed me to be a better listener, because the most important thing with this position is to be sure that I am speaking on behalf of every student-athlete.

Q  What do you see in the future for Division I athletics?

Baysinger: Division I athletics is growing stronger by the day. We live in a world of change, but the love for college athletics has not changed. There are more Division I student-athletes than ever before, and this number is only getting larger. Surely there will be changes made to Division I athletics in the future, but NCAA Division I will always showcase the finest amateur athletes in the world. No matter what the future may bring for Division I athletics, I am certain that there will only be more opportunities for student-athletes to grow both athletically and academically.

Q  What are the top priorities for the Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee in the next year?

Baysinger: The national SAAC is excited for the 2009-10 NCAA legislative cycle because we are hoping to have more of an impact on the Association than ever before. We want to actively participate with the governing bodies of Division I. With the commercialism task force report coming out during the 2009 NCAA Convention, we anticipate a great deal of discussion and research to be directed toward student-athlete well-being as it pertains to commercialism. We are planning to use new-media outlets and social networking to ensure that we are reaching out to, and speaking on behalf of, all 160,000 NCAA Division I student-athletes.

Q  What are your goals as chair?

Baysinger: Kerry Kenny did a great job guiding the national SAAC through the change in the Division I governance structure last year. It is my hope to set a precedent for how the national SAAC will continue to interact with the various cabinets and committees that help shape legislation. As we continue to increase our dialogue with these groups, the voice of the student-athletes will resonate even more clearly in the legislative process.