SELINSGROVE — This week is Division III Week and colleges across the country are celebrating the impact of athletics and student-athletes on campus. Susquehanna University is a Division III school.
President L. Jay Lemons said, “Division III is the NCAA’s largest membership classification. There are about 450 Division III institutions in the country. Eighty-one percent of those are private institutions and many of those are a lot like Susquehanna.”
Lemons says DIII schools focus on academic accomplishments, athletic experience and campus involvement, “Division III was founded in 1973 and it is in its 44th year. In addition to thinking about why students are at the institution, the expectations about what those students will do while they are students, may have some differences. In Division III, philosophically we say that we want and expect our students to be able to engage fully in the life of the campus.”
Lemons talked about coaches for DIII schools, “Most of our coaches will carry some sort of administrative responsibility in addition to their coaching. There are any number of good people from our community who have been engaged as part time coaches as well.”
And Lemons said he is proud of their student athletes, who have high grade point averages, give back to the community and are very active on campus. (Ali Stevens)
